The Identities in Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself” Whitman wrote the poem “Song of Myself” in 1855, but his arguments are still heard today. In Walt Whitman’s poem “Song of Myself,” he expresses his opinions about the world, the nature and the individuals of human being. He believes that people should have equal rights and there should not be a line of color that determines people’s rights. Whitman states that women and men shall be equal. He believes that truth is unspeakable and people are connected to the universe. Whitman not only just identifies his self as a representative of the people; he also identifies other different things in the universe, which includes women, death, religion, and the democracy in the society.
From the poem, it shows that Whitman is well educated by the scientific theories. In Whitman’s opinion, the universe dynamic and ever-changing, which new ideas and thoughts will be produced as the world changes (Trecker 11) and there is “always the procreant urge of the world” (Whitman 45). As Whitman says that he represents the whole human race and the voices of men and animals speak through him, he states himself is a “kosmos”. The self contains more than soul and body, it consists of goodness and badness, all the live forms, and it is deathless (Whitman 401-415). He is the universe, and he accepts all forms of lives. Besides that, he can also hear from the universe. “I heard what was said of the universe, heard it and heard it of several thousand years” (Whitman 1023-1024). He is as old as the universe and with that time he heard the universe. Whitman states that “Prodigal, you have given me love—therefore I to you give love! O unspeakable passionate love” (446-447). He thanks Earth for giving love to him and he will give his love to the Earth in return. Whitman argues that if the first step is the awareness of self, the next step is expanding self to a larger scale. According to Whitman’s point of view, the universe exists in every object at every moment (Kepner 148). Man can obtain description about the universe though scientific works and the beauties of nature (kepner 148). The purpose of the statement is allowing man to be aware of his self identity and explore the structure of universe though his life (Kepner 148). Man shall release his self and merge it to the universe. Though out this process, one can have better knowledge about his role in the universe (Kepner 148). He argues that “There was never may more inception than there is now, Nor any more youth or age than there is now, Mad will never be any more perfection than there is now”(31-33).
Whitman, Walt. "Song of Myself." The Norton Anthology of American Literature.. Gen. ed. Nina Baym. 8th ed. Vol. C. New York: Norton, 2012. 24-67. Print.
Whitman, Walt. Song of Myself. Dover Thrift ed. Mineola, New York: Dover Publications, 2001. Print.
The Heath Anthology of American Literature repeatedly refers to Walt Whitman and his poetry in terms of being American, yet as I read Song of Myself, my thoughts are continually drawn to the philosophies and religions of the Far East. Like the Tao Te Ching ideas are expressed in enigmatic verse and each stanza is a Zen koan waiting to be meditated on and puzzled out. Even Emerson called Whitman's poetry "a remarkable mixture of the Bhagvat Gita and the New York Herald" ("The Whitman Project"). Song of Myself contains multitudes of passages that express Hindu, Buddhist, and Taoist thought.
In stanza six of the poem "Song of Myself", by Walt Whitman, he poses the question "What is the grass?" I believe that grass is a metaphor for the cycle of life. Throughout the poem Whitman points out images that grass could represent. All of these images stem from the life and death that we come to expect in our lifetime. During your life you will experience death, it at times surrounds you, but if you look past the grief and look to the beauty you will see that it is a cycle that keeps our world in balance. The images of flags, tears, children and older people that are torn from the ones they love, but only to soon return to other lost ones are all parts of Walt Whitman's poem.
Our lives will eventually lead to an eternity...and it is crucial that we take the time to evaluate our soul's future as well as its current status. Whitman clearly emphasizes the importance of looking at life as a whole and not just the moment. Through a biographical narrative of parts of his own life, urges us look at where we've been and all we've been through...look at all those who have impacted our life and realize the big picture.
Every sentence in Walt Whitman's "Song of Myself" tends to either repeat or contradict. He even says of himself, "I contradict myself" (Lauter, p. 2793). This can make Whitman's poetry a little confusing to some. In his many stanzas, definition of the soul is ambiguous and somewhat contradictory.
(A critique of Walt Whitman’s themes and ideas in Song of Myself 6, 46, 47)
Whitman's radical ideas of individualism have a great deal to do with his Quaker background. The Quaker religion is one in which the authority was Inner Light. "Whitman himself was not only personally familiar with, but deeply impressed by, a religion whose only authority was the Inner Light" (Canoy 481). The Inner Light is a special influence, which made Whitman's poetry unique. This certain influence did such things as guide Whitman down his soul searching path as well as help him define within himself the characteristics of an individual. In section fifteen of "Song of Myself," Whitman discusses people from every class and every profession. He goes on to say "the young fellow drives the express-wagon... love him though I do not know him;" (2753). ...
Explication Through a multitude of literary devices and techniques, Walt Whitman's poem, "Song of Myself," is one of his most famous contributions to American literature. He uses simile and metaphor, paradox, rhythm, and free verse style, to convey his struggle between the relation of the body and soul, the physical and the spiritual being. He continues to disobey all social restrictions of the romantic time period. From the beginning, Whitman begins by stating, "What I shall assume, you shall assume, for every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you," proposing that the reader listen to him, for he possesses all of the answers to life. The setting is somewhat naturalistic, and offers an image of the speaker, relaxing, possibly sprawled out across a blanket, philosophizing about life, while in the middle of a peaceful meadow. As the poem later shifts in tone, and setting, Whitman starts to think about the answers to life he has come up with, based upon the past, and decides that the reader should hear him out, one final time, as his ideas have changed. This brings us to #44 of "Song of Myself." In section #44 of, "Song of Myself," Whitman's first stanza begins: "It's time to explain myself…let us stand up. What is known I strip away…I launch all men and women forward with me into the unknown. The clock indicates the moment…but what does eternity indicate? Eternity lies in bottomless reservoirs…its buckets are rising forever and ever, they pour and they pour and they exhale away." Whitman is simply stating that he wants to tell the purpose of his madness. The madness that Whitman expresses is that of power and self-confidence. Whitman has written this based upon his experiences in life. Through these experiences, he has grown to know certain things about life and tries to pass them down to the reader. Throughout the beginning of the poem, Whitman takes the reader by the hand and demands that he follows Whitman and his ideas, because based on his own life Whitman holds the answers to the reader's questions. But now, he asks the reader to erase everything that he has previously said - forget the past. Why don't we try something new? We have to focus on the present, not on the past, but also to focus on what we are going to experience in the future, what can we expect?
Walt Whitman's "Song of Myself" is a vision of the American spirit, a vision of Whitman himself. It is his cry for democracy, giving each of us a voice through his poetry. Each of us has a voice and desires, and this is Whitman's representation of our voices, the voice of America. America, the great melting pot, was founded for freedom and democracy, and this poem is his way of re-instilling these lost American ideals. In this passage from "Song of Myself" Whitman speaks through his fellow man and speaks for his fellow man when his voice is not socially acceptable to be heard.
While the poem can be termed to be democratic, both in subject matter and its language, Whitman is viewed to be cataloging the ‘new’ America that he is seeing around him. The poem includes subject matter such as relationships, patriotism, heroes, family and ancestors, and a view on social commentaries too.
...e final line in this section (6) Whitman says, “And to die is different from what any one supposed, and luckier.” This line suggests a similar concept that both Stevens’ and Dickinson’s poems imply, that we never really know what death is and yet we still fear it. However, Whitman goes further to say that these fears are unnecessary because there is no end in life, it is just a rebirth into another life and for all we know, an even better one, a concept that Sylvia Plath strives for in her poem as well. “Song of Myself” is written in free verse, which gives no restraints or limits on his writing, similar to his concept of life and death and how there should be no limitations because life will always continue. There are no rhymes, no common line pattern, and no noticeable rhythm, which create a calming tone, which parallels Whitman’s placid view of death.
Although Whitman uses a great deal of structural ways to stress his ideas, he also uses many other ways of delivering his ideas. First of all, Whitman portrays himself as a public spokesman of the masses. The tone of the poem is a very loud, informative tone that grabs ones attention. The emphasis placed on the word “all” adds to the characterization of Whitman as a powerful speaker. Furthermore, Whitman takes part in his own poem. Participating in his own poem, Whitman moreover illustrates the connection between everything in life. Lastly, Whitman, most of all, celebrates universal brotherhood and democracy.
The poem has set a certain theme and tone but no definite rhyme. In this poem, the poet explores into a thought of the self, the all-encompassing "I," sexuality, democracy, the human body, and what it means to live in the modern world. He addresses that the human body is sacred and every individual human is divine. Hence, Whitman was known for writing poems about individualism, democracy, nature, and war.
Walt Whitman used free verse in “Song of Myself” in order to connect with the common man and his American readers. In this first person narrative, Whitman deconstructs the “self” into many different sections that all are a part of the celebration of the individual. Some of the topics he breaks the “self” into are self- identity, and human exploration (including the human body and sexuality). In the poem, Whitman uses a speaker to exclaim that for individuals to grow they must discover themselves spiritually, physically, and mentally. The speaker in the poem