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Themes in walt Whitman's writings
Walt Whitman’s styles and themes
Walt Whitman’s styles and themes
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Walt Whitman is a highly talented writer of poetry that showcases both transcendentalism and realism. In his two writings, “I Hear America Singing” and “Song Of Myself”, He shows examples of both examples of writing. In the first poem I read by him “I hear America Singing” He talks about the middle class workers and how they contribute. In the end of this poem, the line says “Each singing what belongs to him or her and to none else”. This line shows how materialistic the poem is and proves even further that it is realism. In Walt Whitman’s poem “Song of Myself”It shows a lot of realism as well. From the overly descriptive wording, to the Describing of money and material things frequently. This poem focuses a lot of landscaping which is also
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’s poem was written in the mid-1800s during the industrial revolution, but Hughes’ poem was written in the 1900s during the Civil Rights Movement. This is important because the Civil Rights Movement established the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the Industrial Revolution moved at a slow place but there were still issues with slavery. Whitman’s poem was free verse while Hughes’ poem was traditional rhyme/rhythm. The tone of Whitman’s poem was patriotic and celebratory (I HEAR America singing, the varied carols I hear); because he was paying tribute to the success of the individuals; however, the tone of Hughes’ poem was sarcastic and frustrated (to build a “homeland of the free,’’ because he didn’t feel like some individuals were allowed to experience the American Dream. Whitman’s theme of his poem was that individuals and liberties make America great. On the other hand, Hughes’ theme of his poem expressed that individuals felt excluded from the “homeland of the free.” The purpose of Whitman’s poem is praise for universal brotherhood. However, Hughes’ poem’s purpose was to inform individuals about inequality, meaning that not everyone has the same liberties in America. Whitman’s poem focused on the jobs of the workers, while Hughes’ poem focused on race, social status, and a list to represent the “I am’’ phrase; (I am the Negro bearing slavery’s scars). He also
Whitman, Walt. Song of Myself. Dover Thrift ed. Mineola, New York: Dover Publications, 2001. Print.
In, “ I Hear America Singing”, Walt Whitman uses alliteration, literal imagery, and tone to express the idea that there are many individual, hardworking workers in this country, but as a whole these people carry out the American pride. America does not only consist of one person, but it is the whole population that makes what America is today. This country is filled with fun and laughter for everyone to enjoy!
As Richard Perry once said, “Certainly any hope of dispelling racism requires the spread of knowledge to correct misinformation,” (738). Walt Whitman was raised in New York in a white, American, middle-class family in the early nineteenth century. After becoming a writer, Whitman was a great contributor of "Americanism" in literature. According to the book Walt Whitman 's America, “Whitman’s writings were an impulse to revisit the period before his birth, when slavery and the economy were not yet problematic issues,” (Reynolds, 25). The fact that he was always part of the working class was an influence in his writing style as seen in the poem, I Hear America Singing, where Whitman relates the story of someone who is listening to a song coming from America’s working class. Unlike Whitman, Langston Hughes wrote about the races which were hardly ever mentioned in literature in the early twentieth century. According to the book The Life of Langston Hughes, Hughes was “one of the heroes who inspired a
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.
This influence on the future is the result of Whitman's attempt to universalize his poetry. By shedding the shackles of structure and seeking to find intimacy with the physical world, Whitman has broken down the boundaries of culture and time. His vision of humanity, one that embraces the person and the natural world, still inspires the stirring of an alienated individual. Whitman's gift to the world is his poetry, and in essence, Whitman himself. His poetry is the epitome of the American dream; free, wild and personal. His poem, "Song of Myself," is a bridge, spanning the divides of time, to bring us in touch with our own intimate humanity.
*Whitman, Walt. Song of Myself. The Heath Anthology of American Literature. 3rd ed. Ed, Paul Lauter. Boston,NewYork: Houghton Mifflin, 1998.
From looking at the titles of Walt Whitman's vast collection of poetry in Leaves of Grass one would be able to surmise that the great American poet wrote about many subjects -- expressing his ideas and thoughts about everything from religion to Abraham Lincoln. Quite the opposite is true, Walt Whitman wrote only about a single subject which was so powerful in the mind of the poet that it consumed him to the point that whatever he wrote echoed of that subject. The beliefs and tenets of transcendentalism were the subjects that caused Whitman to write and carried through not only in the wording and imagery of his poems, but also in the revolutionary way that he chose to write his poetry. The basic assumptions and premises of transcendentalism can be seen in all of Whitman's poems, and are evident in two short poetic masterpieces: "A Noiseless Patient Spider" and "When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer."
Emily Dickinson and Walt Whitman are both considered as the most original poets who has boldly revolutionized the subject and style of 20th-century American poetry. Both the poets come from vastly different backgrounds but they share common inspirations but in a distinctive way. They both lived polar opposite personal lives as Walt was friendly, outgoing and influential, while Emily was very simple, shy, isolate and content. A lot of poems written by them were based on nature, death, and immortality and they focused on the importance of individualism in the society like in “I Hear America Singing” by Walt and “Much Madness is most divine Sense” by Emily. Together, they both have huge hands to shape the American poetry, and their influences
However, this difference can also be seen as an addition to Wordsworth, as Wordsworth advocated for organic form. Whitman’s further use of organic form is still within the influence of Wordsworth, as it ties back to the Romantic ideals he put forth. Overall, while Whitman may have denied inspiration from Wordsworth, the evidence points in a different direction. All in all, Whitman’s “Song of Myself” and Wordsworth’s preface to Lyrical Ballads show the influence of Wordsworth’s ideas on Whitman through the use of the common experience and the language they utilized, even if their forms were slightly different.
The poem ‘I hear America singing’ by Walt Whitman is about music that all america hear and dance, also is about the independence patriotic people, and we gonna talk about people that works hard in the united states.
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.
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.
Walt Whitman is often regarded in the literature as a key contributor to establishing the paradigm of an American identity, following the tradition of Emerson. Although the theme of American identity is arguably present throughout Whitman’s works, it is explicitly vivid in a poem such as “Song of Myself.” Hence, Harold Bloom (1974) commenting on “Song of Myself” in the context of Whitman’s contributions to the formation of American identity, writes that here “Whitman establishes a poetic identity that is uniquely American, a poetic form that breaks with the old forms and dry subject matter inherited from the long, extensive British literary tradition.” (p. 15) In this reading, therefore, Whitman’s Americanism is established against the backdrop of the British tradition, whereby Whitman, although clearly using the same language as the latter, nevertheless enacts something entirely new.