Walt Whitman And Leaves Of Grass

ContextWalt Whitman s Leaves of Grass was published during the 1800 s . This period in the history of the States flock be described as being repressive some(prenominal) in the social life and in the literary works of the kingdom . When the book was written , it has been a hundred long time since the independence of America from England further the society and publications argon still very much like the society and writings of the Victorian era of EnglandMen and wo workforce are expected to follow sumptuary social etiquette br They always have to be neat and proper and they have to wear appropriate clothes and fig outes both inner and outside the house . They walk and speech and dress in a finessed way . It is a taboo to talk rough sex and sexual organs and sexual acts . inn is prudish and in that respect is not much room for kittenish and spontaneous behavior especially in publicThis is in like manner how the literature of the period is characterized . It is restrictive in the sense that the imitate the fake and content of their writings from the great of England . Before the time of Whitman , there is no distinct Ameri undersurface literature apart from the literal literature of the Indians . A numbers during this time is characterized by having a poesy and euphony and the prepare is dependent on these deuce . The sonnet form for example has a specific rhyming scheme (Shakespearean and meter (12 syllables . If there is no rhyme and meter , then a written work is not considered rime solely proseWalt Whitman against Rhyme and MeterWalt Whitman is revolutionized not just the form only withal the content of the song of America . In the preface of his 1855 edition of Leaves of Grass , Whitman speaks of a new character of poetry that is embodied not just in speech communication entirely also in the em organic structure and in the countryThe poetic quality is not marshaled in rhyme or uniformity or abstract addresses to things or in melancholy complaints or straightforward precepts , alone is the life of these and much else and is in the brain (Par . 8With this vocalization , Walt Whitman is directly going against the conventions of poetry during his time . What he is expression here is that we cannot put forward that a verse form is a poem just because it follows the conventions of rhyme , meter and content of the restrictive side of meat tradition . Rhyme and meter should arise naturally from the objectfulness of the poet and not from outside . This is what he means when he says that totally beauty comes from handsome blood and beautiful brain (Par . 8 The poet does not need to go outside of himself /herself because everything that he /she can say well in poetry is inside himself /herself perceptions , beliefs , experiences and feelingsWhitman is not interested in formal conventions . What is important to him is the beauty that is in the soul of the poet . He compares poetry with the body of the poet : your flesh shall be a great poem (Par 8 . The poet can be poetry when he /she has a beautiful blood and a beautiful brain : hence a beautiful inside , a soulWhitman also compares a good poetry that is form naturally from the soul of the poet with the soul of the United States . He says that the country itself is the greatest poem (Par . 2 . If Whitman suggests a new form of poetry in having a new kind of rhyme and meter that is based on natural workings of the soul of the poet , he suggests that for content , poetry should stop talking about the life and culture of the lot from upper class but the common people (Par . 2 . The lifestyles and experiences of the working class can be the content of poetry too as unconnected to the English tradition that focuses on themes that are abstract , mythic or elitist . They are the ones who make America vibrant and the poet s soul is the soul of the people who make up his country : His tone of voice responds to his country s spirit .he incarnates its geography and natural life and rivers and lakes (Par .5 .

What Whitman is byword is that these common folks are also the beautiful mind and beautiful brain of the beauty of poetryWhitman s New Form and meaning in his Poem Song of MyselfWe can clarify what Whitman tries to say in his Preface with his poem Song of Myself . In this poem , there is no apparent rhyme and meter but there is still a sense of natural one shot because Whitman s use of repetitions not of the ending sounds or the number of syllables but repetitions of ideas . In Part 5 of the poem , for example when Whitman is rig on the grass and someone kisses his chest , Whitman explodes in gratification for God and for everyoneSwiftly arose and spread around me the peace and knowledge that passall the tune of the earthAnd I know that the hand of God is the promise of my ownAnd I know that the spirit of God is the brother of my ownAnd that all the men ever born are also my brothers , and the womenmy sisters and lovers (Part 5In this excerpt , terzetto lines begin with And I know and all of them take the place of rhyme and meter in the manner that they are also repeated and they have the quality of sameness . They all match to what Whitman realized instantly from the intimate physical connection that he has experienced . What he wants to say here is that through the body , he has experienced God and every human being . This also shows that the content of the poem talks about body and sensual acts which are taboo subjects during his timeThe content of the poem also show the spontaneity , freedom and confidence that emanates from the poet . We can chitchat this immediately in the first part of the poemI CELEBRATE myself , and babble out myselfAnd what I assume you shall assumeFor every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you (Part 1The language is the language of the ordinary people . It does not use highfaluting words or abstract words . It is the language of the common folk because Whitman believes that the beautiful blood and beautiful brain of the United States lie in the common people - the slaves , the working people , the people he meets in the way . These first three lines summarizes his belief that the poem , the poet (Whitman ) and the United States (its constitution and its people ) are all oneWorks CitedWhitman , Walt . Preface to Leaves of Grass------------------- . Song of Myself brWalt Whitman varlet 5 ...If you want to get a full essay, club it on our website: Ordercustompaper.com

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