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Historical fiction civil war essay
Poetry of Walt Whitman
Poetry of Walt Whitman
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Recommended: Historical fiction civil war essay
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
Currently in the United States, many of us are afraid of the future. There have been many recent events that have stirred up fear in this country, especially tensions regarding human rights. In Carolyn Forché’s “The Colonel,” the speaker tells us her story of when she had to deal with the mistreatment of others. The speaker is telling us her story of meeting the colonel to show us the horrible things that have happened in the fight for justice and to encourage us to speak up. She tells us this story because she does not want others to end up the way that the ears did. The speaker wants us to stay strong and fight for justice when we begin to live in a state of constant fear.
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
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.
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
The way he writes the poem shows how he was in love with the president on how Lincoln conducted himself during the war. He refers to Lincoln as the captain of the ship which is the Union, throughout the poem he begins to call out to the Captain acting like the president was never shot. Through this all, it seems like Whitman could never bring himself to acknowledge the assassination of the late president. He also wrote it as a way to express the grief of losing the beloved commander and chief, and also explain to the American people how Booth killed the man who helped bring the Union together once again. However, he makes the metaphor in this poem explain why he would have wrote it, it shows that through an imaginary situation that things begin to seem alright in the world. Finally, Whitman deals with the pain through the metaphor to cover up the hurt America feels even if he despised the poem later on in
In a subtle way, he gives the reader a feeling of lightness and life, because in the last four lines he begins all of the lines with "A's" and as you read it you get that choral "Hallelujah" feeling. Whitman shows you the light. He tells you why death is a good thing. There is no more fear. "To die is different from what any one supposed, and/luckier.
The chronologically earlier poems celebrate the coming hostilities, expressing Whitman’s "early near-mindless jingoism" (Norton 2130). As one progresses through the work, he finds a less energetic, sorrowful, jaded narrator who seems little like the exuberant youth who began. Understandable so, "[Whitman] estimated that over the course of the war, he had made ‘over 600 visits or tours, and went. among from some 80,000 to 100,000 of the wounded and sick, as sustainer of spirit and body in some degree, in time of need’" (Murray).
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.
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
Through the evident contradictions listed in this excerpt, Whiman displays the diversity of the country. He shows that a great nation is filled with a multitude of races and ethnicities, not just one. Whitman brings the southerners and the northerners together and briefly shows his prophetic gifts. The southerner soon becoming the northerner is Whitman saying that soon the south will take on the values of the north in abolishing slavery. He sees slavery ceasing thus leading to a “house” that stands because of no division.
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.
‘The Falling Soldier’ is one of many poems by Duffy which deals with the subject of human mortality. Duffy expresses what could have been over a harsh reality; this is characteristic of her as also seen in ‘Last Post’ and ‘Passing Bells’ which both seem to be largely influenced by poet peer Wilfred Owen’s personal experiences of war. In the ‘The Falling Soldier’ Duffy paradoxically captures the essence of Robert Capa’s famous photograph of a man falling after being shot during the Spanish Civil War (1936). She employs the form of an impersonal narrative voice, using second person to question the possibilities, to explore the tragic and cyclical nature of war. The futile reality of war contrasts to her central theme in ‘The Bees’ anthology of bees symbolising the grace left in humanity.
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.
...macy and public response are at odds here. In fact, the poem ends with a note of sad and quiet desperation, a true confession of love: "But I with mournful tread, / Walk the deck my Captain lies, / Fallen cold and dead" (Terrinoni).
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