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AMERICAN LITERATURE II |
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AMERICAN LITERATURE II |
| Walt Whitman |
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Be sure to "REFRESH" OR "RELOAD." Read Reading and Writing about Poetry - click to view web site, then return to this page Walt Whitman, Introduction, pp. 10-13 "Song of Myself," p. 25, stanzas 1, 2, 15, 24, 51, 52 "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloomed," p. 83 "There Was a Child Went Forth," p. 89 Notes Walt Whitman is considered not just a great poet, but a poetic revolutionary. Literary critics mark the beginnings of modern poetry from Whitman's publication of his collection Leaves of Grass. Except for a select circle, Whitman's poetry was not appreciated during his life because he was a man ahead of his time. Whitman ignored poetic traditions of form and rhyme. He wrote long, rolling lines of verse, sounding more like the rhythms of the Bible than the closely metered forms of traditional poets. Poetry that does not have a consistent meter and rhyme is called "free verse." His subject matter was even more revolutionary. Whitman writes about the commonplace, glorying in it and at it. He writes about grass and dirt and bodies and sweat. He writes about sex without an ounce of embarrassment. He celebrates the trivial, the ordinary. In this sense, he is a great democrat, a true American. To him, the common laborer is heroic, the ordinary blade of grass a work of art. He loves everything he sees, and he wants all of his readers to see through his eyes. Like Emerson, one of the few contemporaries who appreciated his poetry, Whitman believes in the value of the individual and in the validity of the individual's following and celebrating his own instinctive truth "Song of Myself" is one of Whitman's most remarkable poems. In it, he takes the stance of "everyman." He tries to give the reader a sense of the hugeness of America, and the importance of every small part of it. He wants to "sing" for and about all Americans and all of their dreams, beliefs, values, and fears. He feels himself to be a part of everything. In this sense, he is almost a mystical poet: he is like a universal soul or eye/I who speaks for all of us. His singing may come across as boastful. Whitman may seem to be "full of himself." However, his intent is not to sound selfish, but self-aware: to sound alive and joyous at being a part of all that America is. He is speaking as much for us readers as to us, so when he boasts, he is boasting on behalf of all of us. In many ways, Whitman sounds almost innocent in his wonder. This characteristic is in keeping with other American heroes who are often depicted as innocent, solitary, enthusiastic, and optimistic. Notice that Whitman's language is not always as "tasteful" as that of traditional poets. He uses words such as "yawp" and "arm-pits" and "bowels." He wants to give the reader a sense of the wonder of all parts of existence. In order to fulfil this goal, he often writes in "catalogues," that is, he makes long lists of things. Look for these lists as you read. Study Questions "Song of Myself," p. 25, stanzas 1, 2, 15, 24, 51, 52 Stanza 1 1. Who is singing? What is the song? Why is he singing? Stanza 2 2. What are some of the sensual images in this stanza? How can you tell that Whitman delights in the ordinary? Stanza 15 3. What is the cumulative effect of this "catalogue"? What impression is Whitman able to convey? Stanza 24 4. Who is the Walt Whitman in this stanza? Why does he say, "Unscrew the locks from the doors!/Unscrew the doors themselves from their jambs!" (ll. 501-02) 5. What part(s) of this stanza might a nineteenth-century audience have found offensive? Is it offensive to you? Why or why not? 6. If you said "The scent of these arm-pits [is an] aroma finer than prayer . . ." to your pastor, what would he/she think? What do you think Whitman is getting at here? 7. "I dote on myself, there is that lot of me and all so luscious" (l. 544) on the face of it seems self-serving. How do you interpret this tone of Whitman's? Stanza 51 8. What do you make of the following passage? Isn't it bad to contradict yourself? What is Whitman's point?
Stanza 52 9. What do you think Whitman means when he says, "I am not a bit tamed, I too am untranslatable" (l. 1332)? 10. What is a "barbaric yawp" (l. 1333)? "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloomed," p. 83 Whitman wrote this poem to mark the tragic death of President Abraham Lincoln, who stood for the democratic ideals to which Whitman devoted his life's work. The poem is sombre and meditative, with a lyric movement in the lines. It has a gentle beauty that reflects the poet's deep mourning and sense of loss at the passing of one of the greatest Americans who ever lived. As you read the poem, pay special attention to its three dominant images:
The note in your book says that the lilac, "in eastern symbolism, [has] a connection with manly love" (n. 4, 83). Lilacs bloom in the spring, which is the season in which Lincoln was shot. When Whitman smells the blooming lilacs and sees the "great star . . . in the western sky" (l. 2), he knows it is spring and he is reminded of his great love for Lincoln, one of America's brightest "stars," and the tragedy of his death (traditionally, the west suggests death and the east suggests rebirth due to the direction of sunrise and sunset). Later on in the poem, Whitman sees "[a] shy and hidden bird . . . warbling a song" (l. 19). This is the hermit thrush who "avoid[s] the settlements" and "[s]ings by himself" (ll. 21-2). This solitary bird could be Whitman the poet, who was considered hermit-like by many, who sings by, to, and for himself of Lincoln. This poem is his song. Whitman describes the progress of Lincoln's funeral train. Then he is caught up in his grief. He wonders how he will be able to adequately express his deep love, admiration, and loss: "O how shall I warble myself for the dead one there I loved?" (l. 71). He wonders how he will decorate Lincoln's memory the way the perfume of the lilac decorates the doorway. He will do it with a poem. His poem will encompass all of nature, all of America. He will understand that death is only cruel to the living left behind. He sees visions: he sees the "battle-corpses" (l. 177), but they do not suffer. He is finally able to leave death behind, but he will never forget and will always remember when the lilacs bloom in the spring. 11. You may find other meanings for these images. What is your interpretation of this poem? "There Was a Child Went Forth," p. 89 12. What does it mean that the child "became the object"? What objects did the child become? Do you remember your childhood? Did you ever "become" your bicycle or your baseball bat? What sensations from childhood might Whitman be suggesting we recapture? 13. What do the child's parent's give him? 14. What does the town and the larger horizon give him? 15. What is the movement of this poem? Can you explain its structure? Web Sites You May Want to Visit The Walt Whitman Hypertext Archive |