Oh Captain
In the poem “Oh Captain, my captain” was written by Walt Whitman. This poem was written in 1865 during the civil war and President Lincoln. Whitman admired Lincoln and would gave aid to the wounded soldiers. The writer is referring the war to a ship and is using nautical terms to describe the death of the president. Walt Whitman wrote four poems on the death of Abraham Lincoln. One of the four was “Oh captain, my captain” (Vendler 2). This poem is formally rhymed poem. In the first stanza Whitman is referring “O captain, my captain our fearful trip is done”, (Whitman 1) saying that the captain is Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln was the captain of the union. The word fearful trip is done he means that war is done and over. “Ship has weather’d every rack” (Whitman 1) is that the soldiers are used, tired. In the line is the prize we sought is won meaning that the
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In the third stanza, the poem reads “My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still, My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will” (Whitman 1) he means that Lincoln is no longer answer or speak and he lies unresponsive to anyone. Whitman writes “The ship is anchor’d safe and sound, its voyage closed and done, From fearful trip the victor ship come in with object won” (Whitman 1) means that Lincoln can rest peace because the union has won the war and the U.S can start to recovery from the war.
In the poem, Whitman write’s “Exult O shores, and ring O bells! But I with mournful tread, Walk the deck my Captain lies, Fallen cold and dead” (Whitman 1). Whitman is telling Lincoln to listen to cheers and ringing of the bells for the excitement that war is over. Whitman is mourning of the loss of the president and how he will not walk the deck again. Lincoln is now cold and
Whitman’s work has an arguable style that makes his work appear as an egotistical piece of literature for some and others may find a different deeper meaning within his work. This work is an excellent example of patriotic work that attempts better its audience throughout by making revelations and comparisons of different idea and thoughts about the nation's people. Whitman illustrates his interpretation of what a kind of person is a great person is and how they go about life. He intends to make his audience better as a whole and understand the underlying problem that some have. Whitman's writing truly expresses his feelings about his time and what he expects from them for a better
The tone or mood of the poem is delivered in the first stanza of the poem. He delves directly into birth and death, a sure sign that this poem will be no light reading. However, he uses a question to set the stage of the poem when he says, "Has anyone supposed it lucky to be born?" Questions are effective attention grabbers, but even more effective is Whitman's answer to the question. He produces an unorthodox response to the question, posing the answer that it is just as lucky to die. By giving such an odd answer to the question, he sets the stage for the rest of the poem presenting ideas not necessarily considered orthodox. The whole poem revolves around the idea that things must constantly be looked at from other viewpoints, and this initial stanza serves to illustrate this point well.
In Walt Whitman’s poem Oh Captain! My Captain! He talks about the death of America’s commander and chief, Abraham Lincoln. Whitman published this poem in his book of poems about the civil war causing him to become one of a handful of people to be the only ones who did not participate in the war, but wrote about it. In fact, Whitman uses various metaphors to tell of the death of Abraham Lincoln to the common people of the Union.
Whitman starts his poem off by saying, “I hear America singing, the varied carols I hear, Those of mechanics, each one singing his as it should be blithe
The soldiers that fought during the civil war were fighting for their livelihood. The northern soldiers needed to bring the south back to the north, and the southerners were fighting to keep their way of life. Whitman was amazed at how far each side was willing to go and was amazed at the sacrifices that the men gave to their causes. The soldiers according to Whitman went through hell just to get to battle which if in the case of Gettysburg was even worse. Food was hard to come by, their clothes were tattered, they marched through heat, cold, rain, through mud, and anything that they needed to to get to where their next battle was, only to march on again once the battle has past (Whitman 333). While Whitman worked as a nurse, he was moved by how strong the soldiers were, and when he was going from Fredericksburg to Washington D.C., he wrote to the wounded soldiers families, as he felt that this was one of the best was he could comfort soldiers as they traveled to hospitals (Home). Whitman’s dedication to these wounded soldiers shows how even if he couldn’t fight in the war, he could help in the recovery of the injured. Walt Whitman thought that the way that the developing culture of the arts was beginning to take shape in what was going on around America. Claiming wilderness for fertile farmland, being able to ship goods anywhere along the coast and further, and expanding the railroad so it could touch the furthest reaches of the Louisiana Purchase allowed new ideas to flow and mingle in the new areas and then be condensed into literature and
Whitman utilizes the tool of alliteration to fully express the action of the workers in a way it shows the unity of the country. For example, the speaker expresses the action of the workers by saying: “The shoemaker singing as he sits on his bench.” (9) This shows that even though a shoemaker is not the happiest job in America, the worker are still proud of who he/she is. The shoemaker is carrying out the American pride by being happy with his job. In addition, the author states the quote, “The boatman singing what belongs to him in his boat.” (7) This shows that the boatman is proud of his job and what he does on the boat. Being a boatman is not necessarily the most fun job in America, but you get a lot of time to enjoy the view. The use of alliteration makes the action of the workers sound very important and it is
Poet and journalist Walt Whitman was born May 31, 1819, in West Hills, New York. He is known to be particularly one of America’s most influential poets. Whitman aimed to transcend traditional heroic poems and demonstrate nature of the American experience and his style reflects his distinctiveness. In Walt Whitman’s excerpt #46 of “Song of Myself,” the theme of celebrating yourself in all your faults and glory along with showing that no one else can travel the road for you, you have to do it yourself is shown with the use of literary and sound devices. Walt Whitman isn’t worried about what else is in the universe. He can’t be dignified. His journey will go on forever and all he needs is a good raincoat and a pair of shoes. He does not want to be anyone’s teacher or professor, he just wants to show you the world. At the same time, all he can do is show you the road, you have to walk down it. If you get tired, he’ll support you. Even if he see’s the entire world and universe, he’d still want to travel beyond further and see more things. He reiterates the non conformist system of belief,...
Whitman saw America as a land of opportunity, yet realized that the Civil War was a stain on its potential. In his poetry, the writer was able to demonstrate both the country’s positives and downfalls, which is epitomized in “O Captain! My Captain!” In this tribute to Abraham Lincoln, Whitman transitions from “Exult O shores, and ring O bells!”
In his poem, Whitman expresses the American Dream in its most traditional sense. He portrays the very basics of the dream itself; American pride, hard work, unity, and individuality. Whitman mainly conveys the sense of pride when talking about the everyday people of America. He focuses on the hard work the citizens partake in within a variety of jobs; from seamstresses to masons, Whitman celebrates them all. Throughout celebrating the people of America, Walt Whitman provides a sense of individualism without straying from the idea of unity. The entirety of the poem insists that every individual in America sings in unison while maintaining their “varied carols”. By focusing on the simplicity of the everyday individuals as well as the ordinary jobs held by those in his poem, Whitman is able to relay his belief of the American Dream as a reality. The freedom the American people have to live the lives they desire throughout the poem is a reflection of the reality in which Whitman existed. The idea that each person could create their own dream and their own opportunities were the foundation of Whitman’s “American
Whitman establishes a direct connection between the lyrical and the reader to get to each one of us. The power that the poem has and having Whitman writing it, rests on the ability of the author to separate himself amongst thousands, almost as a wonderful schizophrenia which allows you to view the world from certain points of view and understand it better than anyone.
Whitman’s approach to poetry is a reflection of his thought. These thoughts are free and wild, and his typical run-on sentences and his endless litanies of people and places represent the thoughts trying to be conveyed. The overall effect of these run-on sentences provides the reader with a feeling of greatness and of freedom. All of the feelings that are evoked from Whitman’s style can be classified as quintessentially American democratic feelings. The belief that Whitman had no style would imply that Americans as a society have no style, a statement that not only Whitman but Emerson and Thoreau as well fought against through their writings. Whitman and Emerson fighting for the same cause is not coincidental, Whitman has often been viewed as the “child” of Emerson, his work being greatly influenced by Emerson. Whitman’s technique of looking at everything as a whole and always opposed to breaking up the whole can be linked to his belief of unity within our country and the reason why he took the Civil War extremely hard and personal.
Specifically, the title shows that he is no longer a prophet, or an authority figure, but the titles imply that the speaker is weak and is in submission. On the other hand, at the end of the poem there is also an evidence of pre-war Whitman, when he admits “I confess I have urged you onwards with me” (Holloway 124). These words provide the same meaning as the Whitman 1855, in the Song of Myself, whereby, he writes, “shoulder your duds, and I will mine” (Holloway 126). However, the two writings differ because in the 1855 poems, Whitman saw a journey that had promising results, while in a 1892 poem, Whitman ends the poem in disillusioned state, as he writes that without our last idea, what is our destination? (Bloom 234) However, this results from the fact that Whitman, after being side-by side with death, seems to not have all answers concerning the journey of life and, as a result, his poem shows the nature of
Walt Whitman is arguably America’s most influential poet in history. Born Walter Whitman in May 31st, 1819 to Walter Whitman and Louisa van Velsor, he was immediately nicknamed ‘Walt’ to distinguish him from his father. He came to life in West Hills on the famous Long Island, the second of nine children that grew up in Brooklyn. He came to be fondly known as ‘the Bard of Democracy’, mainly because that was a main message in his work. He is also celebrated as ‘the father of the free verse’. He was a liberal thinker and was vehemently against slavery, although later on he was against the abolitionists because, according to him, they were anti-democracy. He managed to marry transcendentalism with realism in his works. His occupation was a printer school teacher and editor.
Terrinoni, Enrico. "Literary Contexts in Poetry: Walt Whitman's 'Oh Captain! My Captain!'" Understanding Literature -- Literary Contexts in Poetry & Short Stories. Great Neck, 2007. Print.
In Walt Whitman’s, “One Song, America, Before I Go”, the soldier who is speaking acknowledges the danger in the war he is to fight. The soldier is content with facing the dangers though, bearing the characteristics of a patriot, and believing that his sacrifice will ensure a better America for future generations. With the soldiers