ipl-logo

Walt Whitman Identity

1876 Words8 Pages

You are I, I am You, and We are We
Understanding how you identify with yourself, within yourself, and with others in the world is, in my opinion, one of the most important aspects of life. Your identity, not the kind of identity that you physically see, but the identity that embodies all that you are as a person is something that sticks with you no matter where you go in life. This identity not only accounts for both your outer personality that you allow others to see and the inner personality that you keep within yourself but the way in which you allow the world to see you. Walt Whitman’s autobiographical poem “Song of Myself” expresses this theme by discussing his personalities and the ways in which we are connected to one another. For me, …show more content…

Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself” is an autobiographical poem about discovering himself, the world around him, and expressing his desire for Americans to be united in their differences and come together as one. Identity is at the forefront of the many themes in “Song of Myself,” therefore it goes to show how important identity is to Whitman and the significant role it plays in our lives. The opening stanza of “Song of Myself,” “I celebrate myself and sing myself, and what I assume you shall assume, for every soon belonging to me as good belongs to you,” (Pg. 1330) begins Whitman’s expression of unity and identity. This stanza stands to grab the readers attention and draw in their minds the notion that everything he is about to say is meant to relate not only to him but to the readers as well. The natural world around us plays a large part in the ability to discover our own identities. Whitman uses personification as a means to relate nature to ourselves by saying, “The atmosphere is not a perfume, it had no rate of the distillation, it is odorless, it is for my mouth forever I am in love with it, I will …show more content…

By understatement, I mean that after reading this poem I found my brain drifting in the thoughts of the aspects of me that make me who I am and how these aspects relate to other. I am to the notion that if we are all created in the same manner, then that must me you are I, and I am You. We are one in the same, we both live to die and die to live. There are mothers and fathers that have come to pass, but in passing have left their sons and daughter to become mothers and fathers all the same. This constant, ever changing cycle of life and death, which then breathes life into the ground, bring us together. First, and foremost, I discovered that we identify as the embodiment of life itself. We are life and all life is different in some way or another. I am a young woman that has both a spirited personality and hunger for the knowledge necessary to be one with everyone. I seek to balance my life in such a way that I embrace both you and me as one and the same. If I had to choose one thing I learned from this poem that most impacted who I am as a person and how I identify myself, I would have to say that discovering my ability to accept myself as I am and the drive to use this ability to change even just a small aspect of the world, stuck with me the most. As Whitman says, “You will hardly know who I am or what I mean, but I shall be good

Show More
Related
573 Words | 3 Pages

This poem showed that anyone can be somebody no matter what background they came from or situation they're in. He then proceeded to say that people need

Read More
1255 Words | 6 Pages

This poem leaves you with a lot of questions and self interruption. Every aspect of the poem is symbolic to that exact

Read More
1968 Words | 8 Pages

Evaluate the argument that the Atlantic slave trade generated the capital that underwrote the industrial revolution The Industrial Revolution began as early as 1760 and continued to circa 1820 and 1840. It was a transition to new manufacturing processes, it was a period which saw great movement from hand production methods to machines, more efficient power sources and the rise of the factory system. This period saw great improvements in English standard of living including exponential growth in average income and population. Britain had been reliant on cottage industries, with little labour surplus as most people worked the land. Prior to the Industrial Revolution England’s population was eleven million people of which 80% lived in rural

Read More
802 Words | 4 Pages

In Walt Whitman’s “song of myself”, there is many reverences to himself. I am going to pick out some of the references to himself and explain what I believe that they mean to me. On the first line of the poem, “I celebrate myself, and sing myself” (Whitman 1330). Which says to me that Walt Whitman is proud out his accomplishments that he has achieved thought out his life. Even the accomplishments that were viewed as not good or not worthy of praise.

Read More
729 Words | 3 Pages

This poem made me paint a picture in my mind. At the ending of this poem was very clear to me. With the thought of loving and being true to one another, even though it might take some time but sooner than later the truth has to be spoken. The world basically is like us with many dreams, so many beautiful people, and carries most of our pain. The world is our own picture to look at every night we go to bed and every morning we have to wake up and face challenges everyday, but with the help of many families, and friends the job can be accomplished.

Read More
1094 Words | 5 Pages

This quote describes Whitman’s life because he was always alone and quiet and thus he enjoyed doing things quietly. This poem shows Whitman’s connection the Romantic Era through his connection to the

Read More
2326 Words | 10 Pages

By doing this Whitman introduces himself and at the same time identifies with the reader. He also states that he should be celebrated not only by himself, but also by the reader because they are the same. He also gives off a feeling that his writing is true and good, we get the feeling he is one of us and at the same time a poet. This leads to comparing Whitman with a preacher or public speaker of some sort, he wishes to be

Read More
1652 Words | 7 Pages

Whereas Emerson believes the self strictly exists in your soul, Whitman believes that sense of self is found in both your soul and your body. Whitman sees your soul and body as a point of connection and that you cannot have one without the other and that the two are equal. For instance, Whitman says, “I have said that the soul is not more than the body, And I have said that that body is not more than the soul, And nothing, not God is greater to one than one’s-self is” (Whitman 51). Whitman is illustrating that the soul and the body are equal to one another and that one is not more important than the other.

Read More
302 Words | 2 Pages

Both of Walt Whitman articles are transcendentalism; Mr. Whitman shows individualism and nature in “Song to Myself” which are qualities of transcendentalism. In “Song to myself” he mostly uses individualism as you can tell just by the title he is describing himself in a song. Mr.Whitman uses repetition in his poem “I celebrate myself”(Whitman 1). Throughout the poem he uses the word “I” to describe himself which shows individualism which is a romantic quality. Mr.Whitman also uses imagery in his “Song to Myself”.

Read More
1633 Words | 7 Pages

Throughout his poem, he constantly talks about the importance of coming together and merging. Whitman says, “I celebrate myself, and sing myself, And what I assume you shall assume, For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you” (Whitman 1). On the surface, this quote may appear to illustrate that Whitman thinks highly of himself, but it is more than this. The last part of this quote emphasizes that we are all connected and even though we are all individuals, we should not forget that we are connected to one another. Whitman also says, “Urge and urge and urge, Always the procreant urge of the world.

Read More
1496 Words | 6 Pages

Among them was Whitman who would take a radical stand in affirming that American identity was complex from a country’s central principle of sovereignty and equality. This is

Read More
463 Words | 2 Pages

In the end, the poem “Identity” by Julio Noboa Polanco talks about how it’s good to be unique, to be yourself. Julio Noboa Polanco uses the literary devices of alliteration, simile, and repetition. I think the message of the poem reflects certain things that happen in life. Like people can be someone but not

Read More
197 Words | 1 Pages

It is common for a person to admire the stars in the sky. Their brightness and arrangement is a fascinating sight, of course. On the other hand, people tend to forget or plainly ignore what is right under their feet. In “Song of Myself,” Walt Whitman focused on what he thought was truly important, details of the green grass. Whitman wrote, “I believe a leaf of grass is no less than the journey work of the stars” (663).

Read More
1125 Words | 5 Pages

In this grand poem, Whitman glorifies the unity of all people and life. He embraces the geographical diversity as well as the diversity of culture, work, as well as sexuality or beliefs. Whitman’s influence sets American dreams of freedom, independence, and self-fulfillment, and changes them for larger spiritual meaning. Whitman appreciates hard work as well as being simple and non-egotistical. His major ideas are things such as soul, good health, as well as the love of nature.

Read More
938 Words | 4 Pages

In Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself’, one can appreciate the poem properly by understanding the poem’s voice, imagery, figures of speech, symbols, word choice, and theme. To understand it though requires a great deal of thought to arrive to the meaning behind the writing. Especially since this poem was written in the nineteenth century and is written in a very loose structure and free verse. Firstly, the speaker of the poem is an individual, Walt Whitman himself, as seen by the repetition of “I” in the poem.

Read More

More about Walt Whitman Identity

Related Topics

Open Document