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Walt Whitman and transcendentalism
Walt whitman poem leaves of grass
Walt Whitman and transcendentalism
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Recommended: Walt Whitman and transcendentalism
Transcendentalism was an American philosophical movement of the first half of the 19th century, for which there is a reality beyond the senses and reason. (Ralph Waldo Emerson) (Poetic author) by making use of the transcendental Foundation in his essay “Nature” tells us that the true independence of the individual is achieved with intuition and direct observation of the laws of nature. For this conception when a human is in contact with nature, making use of intuition and observation, is able to make contact with the cosmic energy, the creative source of life.
The work “Leaves of grass” was written by Walt Whitman, an American poet of the 19th century. Whitman titled his work with this suggestive name for the reason that he loved simple people; and as the humble people, leaves of grass are the most simple and healthy among the living things. The poetry book “Song of Myself”, included in the work “Leaves of grass”, is contrary to what its name suggests, a song inspired by humanity, of which each one is part.
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.
By its title, it is possible to think that singing to myself is designed from an egocentric and colorful perspective. However, this would constitute a base error, since what looks for Whitman is to capture all of nature to be expressed throughout his mouth and therefore, what results from this exercise, necessarily, have to be recognized. In other words, when Wh...
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...also an act of search and an expedition through the sublime poetic Word.
Eroticism insinuates, provokes and produces multiple sensations such as in the poetic experience because to deal with the eroticism of the good poets’ verses, it is necessary to enter a world full of images that stimulate our imagination. As a result; it makes us establish contact with eroticism presented in a poetic and invite to experience the delight and enjoyment produced by the reading.
In conclusion, “Song of Myself” is the perfect combination between poetry and revelation, Short but prodigious. In general terms, in this poem Whitman conveys the idea and reality of which all belong to a whole, that humans are part of an essence, which unites us and makes us all the same. Therefore; there is no difference between finding the essence and conceive the truth.
Works Cited
Leaves of grass
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.” 1855 ed. Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself.” Edwin Haviland Miller. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1989. 9-11.
A literary catalog is considered a long list of events. One of the works that it is demonstrated in is “Song of Myself” by Walt Whitman. Whitman writes over 52 sections within his poem, which clearly he mastered the technique. He informs the reader that it is time to celebrate himself which then he transmits different episodes of his experiences. The main concern is that his poem is universal in America and can encourage self-reliance.
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.
Who are humans without identity? What is the purpose of life if it is not lived through each person’s perspective? Why does society identify others, rather than individuals identifying themselves? It is the duty of society to answer these questions reveal their true identity into the world. Transcendentalism uses this ideology to connect the body, soul, and mind. In Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself”, Whitman uses figurative language, symbolism and the element of theme to express the principles of Transcendentalism.
... lets the world file past him and assigns each object by its name. It is in this way he rediscover the idiosyncrasies of the world around him, which have been too long camouflaged by conventional attitudes. Unlike Adam, however, he is not merely a giver of names, but Whitman feels at one with what he creates. Hence, Whitman’s attempt to establish a new relationship with reality and contribute to the fundamental ideals of the American identity rests on two premises. On one hand, he wants to experience and appreciate each individual in its particularity, just as Emerson’s “centrality of things” (Emerson, Circles) and in celebration of the “sacredness” (Whitman, Leaves of Grass) held within the individual; on the other, his urge to identify himself with the objects makes him demand that everything has reference to the foundation of the world, and particularly America.
*Whitman, Walt. Song of Myself. The Heath Anthology of American Literature. 3rd ed. Ed, Paul Lauter. Boston,NewYork: Houghton Mifflin, 1998.
“Leaves of Grass” is a well-known collection of Walt Whitman's poetry which he published. In the preface to “Leaves of Grass” Walt Whitman wrote “the United States themselves are essentially the greatest poem”. Whitman was deeply nationalist and spread his love for nature and for his country in “Leaves of Grass”. The period from 1815 to 1880 saw American manifest destiny taking place. This was the idea that America should be expanding westwards. Whitman like many Romantic writers felt an overwhelming love for their own coun...
Whitman is specking directly to the reader, through an all-encompassing god-like persona. In "Song of Myself"
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
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.
In a significant event in section six of the poem, a child asks, “What is grass?” (91). The speaker does not know how to answer, but in this case, grass becomes a visual metaphor for American democracy, a group of equivalent individuals (Casale 64). Whitman struggles to answer the child, but he knows for certain that it –both grass and democracy—is for everyone: “…old people… women, and… offspring taken soon out of / their mothers’ laps” (106-107). This relates to individuality and unity because multiple blades of grass create one field, just as myriads of people unite under democracy (Delancy). Just as grass grows everywhere, the poet believed that American democracy should be spread and become an international concept. Furthermore, grass is separate blades, or leaves, that grow together and form grass, which is considered one whole entity. Whitman loved how nature reflected the paradox of
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.
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.
In “Song to Myself” by William Whitman the theme of appreciating life still remains but in a different way. The speaker already appreciates their life and wants the readers to know it. In the very beginning the speaker proclaims: