Comparing A Certain Slant Of Light And Walt Whitman's Song Of Myself

Walt Whitman, 1891-92 Edition

In the two poems “There’s A Certain Slant of Light,” by Emily Dickinson and Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself” both speakers analyze aspects of nature in very different ways. The two speakers’ point of view and tone contribute to the emotions that this poem creates. The speakers have different situations; therefore, they have differing points of view on the nature they are observing. The tones of the pieces are largely based on the narrators’ perception of the events around them and how they are affected by those events. In the poems “There’s A Certain Slant of Light,” by Emily Dickinson and Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself,” the narrators reveal their different emotional reactions to the nature around them, through

In Whitman’s “Song of Myself” the narrator observes a hawk and thinks about his life’s reason. He observes that the hawk seems to chide him for his idleness. To the speaker it seems that the hawk “complains of my gab and my loitering.” The speaker sees the hawk as a symbol of nature and wonders about his life’s purpose. He suggests that perhaps life will pass him by as he sends his “barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world,” nobody really will notice him while he is here and no one will really notice him when he is gone. However, he is not upset about this. He will wish those that pass over his grave well, even if they don’t notice him. This builds into the tone of the piece. The beginning proposes a thoughtful situation that provokes thought. The thoughtfulness of the piece soon melds in with the theme of death. However, the speaker is content with death, and he knows that his idleness will bring him to the ground, but he will be happy there. The point of view and tone build off each other to create the emotions of this piece. Whether the speaker is looking up at the hawk or looking up from his grave, his point of view gives the reader a new look on the situation. This helps to create the slightly confused, thoughtful, and satisfied tone of the piece. This view builds the deep emotion that guides the reader into thinking about two inevitable facts, life and death. Dickinson’s poem also focuses on death, but she looks upon it in a much more somber