The term “American” is immediately associated with one who has originated from the United States, although the challenges of what being an American truly entails has continually manifested in many mediums throughout history. The earliest proof of an ideal of being 'an American' is the signing of the constitution, Americans as we see today created this visionary mindset from the beginning of the nation. Creative forces have both challenged and accepted the founding fathers perceptions, consequently resulting in an alteration or adaption to this initial statue of America. Walt Whitman is considered perhaps the most prestigious American poet, pioneering the controversies of American Life through the tool of poetry. Whitman who himself was born …show more content…
While pushing for the individual and independent thought, arguably contradictory, he also encourages the conception of universal contribution and togetherness, the theory that we are all as one. While at initial glance and obvious association the title of the poem makes our instinct believe that Song of Myself presents itself as a self-discovery and perhaps egotistical observation of Whitman himself. When in fact it actually expresses the negation of the term 'myself' into an abstract disclosure between an unspecific individual. The 'myself' subject matter becomes not Whitman but the reader, and you, as the reader, evolve into reading a poem about yourself, together you are experiencing the emotion, ideas and optimism that an American life encompasses. In the first stanza, declaring “what I assume you shall assume” as being an American, defines that we are all in harmony with the panorama of the nation, and each hold a relationship that excludes yet embraces the inevitable environment of our home country. Whitman also displays the natural instinct of nationalism embodied in both himself, and every American “Every atom of my blood, form'd from this soil, this air” initiating the connection of his existence to the American reality, he is physically bound to the land that is America, therefore establishing this relationship from the beginning of Song of Myself, which continues into a 52 section poem. …show more content…
Making the point that this attitude is also what makes one an American. His America is a habitat of uniformity and a requited mind set to acceptance, the quest to perhaps influence the conservative minds of the reader, to believe this is what they should be thinking. Conceivably a connection to the intensity of the historical context looming around the period, issues such as the Civil War, which consequently happened 5 years post the publication of this poem, proving the validation of these concerns. This is most symbolically evident in the 6th section of the poem, Whitman discusses the allegorical significance of the title of his portfolio of poems, of which Song of Myself is part of, named Leaves of Grass. A child asks the 'narrator' simplistically “What is grass?” encouraging the 'narrator' to examine the emblematic principles of this common material. Whitman, and we, the readers along with him, are impelled to discover that this collective insignificance that is a single blade of grass, together becomes a significant occurrence that is a nature produced relation to fellow inhabitants of the United States. M.Walker (1985) suggests in The Literature of The United States of America, that Whitman is the most permissive of Messiahs, his tone is undeviatingly assertive, but his target is the reader's cognitive feeling, not his reason.The entire collection
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.
Throughout the span of this semester, much of the literature discussed revolved around the so-called renaissance of American literature and its impact upon both the nation and its people. Of all the authors studied in this time period, Walt Whitman may well be known as the quintessential American author. Famous for breaking every rule known to poetry in the inimitable compilation, Song of Myself, Whitman provided a fresh and insightful commentary upon the dualistic nature of society, love, and life itself. Through defining these essential aspects of humanity, Whitman indeed composed one of the most accurate and enduring definitions of the individual self that literature, American or otherwise, has ever seen. Specifically, this was done through
Walt Whitman is one of America’s most popular and most influential poets. The first edition of Whitman’s well-known Leaves of Grass first appeared in July of the poet’s thirty-sixth year. A subsequent edition of Leaves of Grass (of which there were many) incorporated a collection of Whitman’s poems that had been offered readers in 1865. The sequence added for the 1867 edition was Drum-Taps, which poetically recounts the author’s experiences of the American Civil War.
Very few people will contest that Walt Whitman may be one of the most important and influential writers in American literary history and conceivably the single most influential poet. However many have claimed that Whitman’s writing is so free form as evident in his 1855 Preface to Leaves of Grass and Song of Myself that it has no style. The poetic structures he employs are unconventional but reflect his very democratic ideals towards America. Although Whitman’s writing does not include a structure that can be easily outlined, masterfully his writing conforms itself to no style, other then its own universal and unrestricted technique. Even though Whitman’s work does not lend itself to the conventional form of poetry in the way his contemporaries such as Longfellow and Whittier do, it holds a deliberate structure, despite its sprawling style of free association.
What was an American to Walt Whitman? “I CELEBRATE myself, and what I assume you shall assume, for every atom belonging to me, as good belongs to you. (Whitman)” To Whitman an American was Democratic. Whitman celebrates both the man and the woman and he believes that we are all equal.
Throughout the poem, Whitman explains the diverse songs he hears in America and how each song is different; meant for the person who is singing it. However, how can Whitman “hear America singing” if he is excluding an integral part of America. Whitman states, “ I hear America singing, the varied carols I hear,”(line 1) and “Each singing what belongs to him or her and to none else. ”(line 10). These lines further illustrate how the speaker of “ I Hear America Singing” is oblivious to those around him because he is not hearing the different songs of America.
Throughout all of their sacrifices they were patient and eventually got what they believed in, and all it took was hard work, determination, and patience. Finding love in yourself and others is one of the most important virtues in life to have. In the poem “Song of Myself” Walt Whitman was a caring, observant, free spirited person who loved himself and the nature around him. As the poem says, he loves nature because he feels at home in various places throughout the country. He also describes the grass as fresh uncut hair and a blessing from the lord.
*Whitman, Walt. Song of Myself. The Heath Anthology of American Literature. 3rd ed. Ed, Paul Lauter. Boston,NewYork: Houghton Mifflin, 1998.
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.
His greatest work was ‘leaves of grass’, which is a collection of poems which he first self-published at the age of 37 in the year 1855. It was a free-verse that was loosely inspired by the Bible. It was at first criticized in his country for its ‘raw sexuality’ but was widely acclaimed elsewhere in Britain by prominent writers. It was an attempt by Whitman to get through to the ordinary American people by giving them their very own ‘epic’. He went on changing and adding material to this work until his death in the year 1892 in Camden, New Jersey. The poem ‘America’ is one of the late additions to the collection, written in 1888.
When I Heard the Learn’d Astronomer I Hear America Singing In his Preface to Leaves of Grass, Whitman states, “The United States themselves are essentially the greatest poem”. Whitman was the ultimate Transcendentalist/ Romantic. He united democratic themes and subject matter with free verse form. In Leaves of Grass, Whitman celebrates unity of all life and people. He embraces diversity of geography, culture, work, sexuality, and beliefs. Whitman’s impact solidifies American dreams of independence, freedom, and fulfillment, and transforms them for larger spiritual meaning. Whitman values hard work and being humble and non-egotistical. His ideals are things such as good health, soul, and the love of nature.
He crossed the boundaries of the poetry literature and gave a poetry worth of our democracy that contributed to an immense variety of people, nationalities, races. Whitman’s self-published Leaves of Grass was inspired in part by his travels through the American frontier and by his admiration for Ralph Waldo Emerson (Poetry Foundation). He always believed in everyone being treated equally and bringing an end to slavery and racism. Through his poetry, Whitman tried to bring every people in America together by showing them what happiness, love, unison, and real knowledge looked. His poetry and its revolution changed the world of American literature
While reading through the poem Song of Myself by Walt Whitman, what comes to your mind? His deep love for nature? The use of symbolism throughout the poem? Whitman’s questionable homoeroticism that seeps its way throughout the lines? What came to the forefront of mind when reading this poem by Whitman was his deliberately obvious theme of individuality while also maintaining a universal identity. I also think that Whitman throws in a common underlying theme of transcendentalism throughout his poem. At various times throughout Song of Myself, he really seems to show that each individual person has a sort of knowledge about themselves that surpasses their logic and sense but rather, uses their intuition and inner soul. He also shows how each individual person is, in fact, their own person, but that each person is a part of a bigger, universal identity. Whitman’s theme of transcendentalism intertwined with his main theme of individual having both personal and universal identities is what will be explored in this close reading analysis.
Walt Whitman was one of the most controversial poets of his day. The background of Whitman for his styles of poetry included love, friendship, sexuality, and democracy. Because of these topics, Whitman published his own works because no one would publish them. In fact, if anyone were to obtain a copy of the book Leaves of Grass, they were told to burn and destroy it. The works Song of Myself, which is included in Leaves of Grass, was no less different in his controversial works. Today, these works are