Walt Whitman "Leaves of Grass" Review from 2009

Walt Whitman is generally placed in the heart of the transcendentalism movement in American literature and at the beginnings of realism. This classification is unique as being a transcendentalist means to be independent and to be constantly seeking experiences, observations, and knowledge of the world. Whitman’s “Leaves of Grass” is a celebration of this adventure to discover the world, but is even more so an exposition of Whitman’s independence and the power of the self. Whitman is not afraid of addressing a topic, writing of everything from the virtues of manual labor to the beauty and worth of nature. When reading his words we not only realize that there is something to gain from everything around us, but also that within ourselves there is the ability to get something more out of life than we ever expected. “Leaves of Grass” is a testament to the ability of the individual, but it is also a stirring account of America in the 19th Century and an attempt to have an impact with poetry itself.

Fittingly “Leaves of Grass” was self-published in 1855 when no publisher showed any interest in this poetic attempt by Whitman, a fairly uneducated son of a farmer whose only experience was writing stories for multiple newspapers and publishing a few short stories that were not considered as exceptional. While Whitman kept writing he kept publishing. Up until his death Leaves of Grass was still being perfected with no less than eight official editions being made throughout the years. The work is an expression of Whitman’s own life, which he is constantly trying to redefine and discover again. Whitman asserts that his work is something that America needs. In “Shut Not Your Doors” he asserts that “For that which was lacking on all your well-fill’d shelves, yet needed most, I bring” (Book I. Shut Not Your Doors.2) (he is speaking to libraries specifically). Whitman truly believes that his work speaks of life and will aid those seeking something more out of life in a special way. He says “The words of my book nothing, the drift of it every thing.” (Book I. Shut Not Your Doors.5). Although all of this was written over a century ago, Whitman’s attempt to expound on the wonders of life in the 19th Century is certainly successful in its own right.

The book is divided into books that generally have their own topic or direction. Each book is either divided up into separately title poems or is subdivided with numbered poems that delineate thoughts. The books can be generally classified as being about a certain topic due to their titles and of course the topics addressed within; Book XIV: Song of the Redwood-Tree is about nature, Book XX: By the Roadside and Book VII: Song of the Open Road are poems of travel, Book XV: Song for Occupations and Book XII: Song of the Broad-Axe treat manual labor and the American worker. However, throughout all of these internal discussions there is a common thread of observation and experience.

Book II: Starting From Paumanok (Paumanok is a native American term for Long Island where Whitman was born) is an expression by Whitman of where he comes from, what he sees of life, why he went to write these poems, and what the reader will hopefully achieve from reading them. Book II is a microcosm of the book itself. It is a summary of the adventure of observing and experiencing life. It is clear that America is crucial to this adventure. America is the environment that formed Whitman in his young years and is the environment he has traveled through for years as an adult. America is the inspiration for much of his work, but also the intended audience. “Take my leaves America, take them South and take them North, / Make welcome for them everywhere, for they are your own off-spring” (Book II. 4.1-2). Whitman however does not ever discount anything in existence, always aware of something different:

“I will acknowledge contemporary lands,

I will trail the whole geography of the globe and salute courteously every city large and small,

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

And I will report all heroism from an American point of view.” (Book II.6.14-17)

This condition of being constantly aware of not only his surroundings, but of everything that exists there and elsewhere is a unique trait of Whitman. He is always aware of the history behind things, the men and women that have come before him and the people and places elsewhere in the world that he might never see all the while being constantly reminded that he cannot hide the influence that his great land America has had on his perception.

For Whitman something special can be found everywhere. Many poets concern themselves only with great questions about the nature of man and of the great philosophers and some only discuss very specific personal instances that seem to them to have more significance. Whitman does not make such decisions. Again just in Book II Whitman speaks of the most spiritual concerns of religion and devotion; “I say no man has ever yet been half devout enough, / None has ever yet adored or worship’d half enough,” (Book II.7.13-14). He speaks of love and its pains and joys; “Dear son do you think it is love?” (Book II.9.3). Still it is never discounted how important it is that “I have seen where the she-bird the mocking bird sat on her nest in the briers hatching her brood.” (Book II.11.2). It is the combination of him being constantly aware of what is in the world and also recognizing the significance of all that he finds that makes “Leaves of Grass” worthy of the purpose that it seeks to fulfill.

It is Whitman’s new personal and free verse style that for many has pushed his work behind the formed verse of Frost and others. However, Whitman’s constant honesty and personal touches to the poetry not only help to make it seem more accessible, but help to communicate the experiences that he has. This work is not a story, there are very few allegorical tools used, and the poems generally do not stray away from things that Whitman has seen firsthand. This style and method is much more efficient than the more classical method of using the complexity of poetic forms to communicate something that has no other means of being communicated. Some might say that the lack of form and literary tools in Whitman’s work diminishes its merit, but when Whitman went about to achieve this treatise on the world around us he relied on his senses and his experiences not on any advanced classical poetic skill. It is with almost raw passion that Whitman writes about the world. He says “I have hardly gone and hardly wish’d to go any farther, / But stop and loiter all the time to sing it in ecstatic songs.” (Book I. Beginning my Studies.5-6). Whitman clearly has the ability to write expressively and it is this skill and his passion that make “Leaves of Grass” unforgettable.

From every angle and in every form Whitman exclaims about the wonders of the world around him, but an even more expressive common theme is his belief in the ability of the individual to achieve what he is attempting in his work or to experience the world just as he has. Whitman begins this theme with a celebration of himself in “Song of Myself” (Book III). This section is not just about Whitman. It is not to gloat about certain abilities that he has or certain achievements he has made. “Song of Myself” is Whitman’s expression of joy at his ability to aggressively see and experience everything that there is in the world. The 15th poem of this book is a rapid enthralling list of actions and events that would be expected to happen all throughout not just the stereotypical American town or city, but all of America. Lines begin with “The pilot” (Book III.15.4) “The deacons” (Book III.15.7) “The young sister” (Book III.15.30) “The bride” (Book III.15.40) “The City” (Book III.15.61) and so on for close to seventy lines. It ends with “And these tend inward to me, and I tend outward to them, / And such as it is to be of these more or less I am, / And of these one and all I weave the song of myself.” (Book III.15.64-66). This song sets the stage for the myriad of discussions and observations that follow on over three hundred pages.

If only one thing can be brought from the “Song of Myself” is the belief that we can experience the same transcendence from every day events and hopefully get something more out of life. Whitman truly believes that the pursuits of everyday working Americans is worthy of praise. In “Pioneers! O Pioneers!” Whitman reveals his love and admiration for the hard work and dedication of the American pioneer. He says of the pioneers “So impatient, full of action, full of manly pride and friendship.” (Book XVII. Pioneers! O Pioneers!.8) and “O beloved race in all! O my breast aches with tender love for all!” (Book XVII. Pioneers! O Pioneers!.29). Whitman continually praises men of all occupations. Not just praising romanticized endeavors. In Book XV, “A Song for Occupations”, Whitman starts off stating “In the labor of engines and trades and the labor of fields I find the developments, / And find the eternal meanings.” (Book XV.1.2-3) and adding “You workwomen and workmen of these States having your own divine and strong life,” (Book XV.6.8). This admiration for the strong work heavy lives lead by so many Americans at that time is an empowering sentiment. Whitman does not see that life as futile like many intellectuals would. Much like his recognition of small events in nature as significant Whitman sees the worth of even the most toilsome occupation.

The reactions to Whitman’s “Leaves of Grass” were polar extremes. Some reacted violently opposite to it and some, like Emerson praised it as “The most extraordinary piece of wit and wisdom that America has yet contributed.” The later editions of “leaves of Grass” contain a large amount of civil war poetry. There are many poems specifically in honor of Abraham Lincoln including the famous “O Captain! My Captain!” (Book XXII). Additionally the so-called ‘deathbed’ edition includes many poems that are of a very different tone speaking of approaching death and the passing of time. The work must be viewed as what it is, a masterful attempt to engage America and to explore the experience of life through poetry. The work is an expression of Whitman’s life and because of that we can hope that it influences ours.

-Spencer Jolly, 2009

Sources

Goodmen, Russell. "Transcendentalism." Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Stanford University, 2008. Web. 14 Aug. 2009. .

Jeffares, Alexander N., and Gay W. Allen. "Walt(er) Whitman Biography." Biography.com. A&E Television Networks. Web. 13 Aug. 2009. .

Szczesiul, Anthony. Walt Whitman and the Development of Leaves of Grass. University of South Carolina, 1999. Web. 15 Aug. 2009. .

Whitman, Walt. Leaves of Grass. Radford, VA: Wilder Publications, 2007. Print.