"A child said, What is the grass?" appears in the sixth department of Walt Whitman's widely known poem "Song of Myself". It is included in his collection of verse, Leaves of Grass. Through the championship of this piece, it becomes clear that this poem is featuring the main idea of the overall poetry collection, "Grass". The poetic speculation regarding the nature and class of the grass starts from this section and encapsulates the piece of work. In this slice, a child comes asking for what the grass is. In respond, what Whitman told the child is the essence of this beautiful and innocent gratuitous poesy.

  • Read the total text of "A child said, What is the grass?" below:
                  A child said, What is the grass?                  by                  Walt Whitman                  A kid said                  What is the grass?                  fetching it to me with full hands; How could I answer the kid? I do non know what information technology is whatsoever more than than he.  I judge it must be the flag of my disposition, out of hopeful green stuff woven.  Or I guess information technology is the handkerchief of the Lord, A scented souvenir and remembrancer designedly dropt, Begetting the owner'due south proper name someway in the corners, that we may run into and remark, and say                  Whose?                  Or I guess the grass is itself a child, the produced baby of the vegetation.  Or I guess it is a compatible hieroglyphic, And it means, Sprouting alike in broad zones and narrow zones, Growing among black folks equally among white, Kanuck, Tuckahoe, Congressman, Cuff, I requite them the same, I receive them the same.  And now it seems to me the cute uncut hair of graves.  Tenderly will I use you curling grass, Information technology may be you lot transpire from the breasts of young men, Information technology may be if I had known them I would have loved them, It may be you are from quondam people, or from offspring taken soon out of their mothers' laps, And here you are the mothers' laps.  This grass is very dark to be from the white heads of former mothers, Darker than the colorless beards of quondam men, Nighttime to come from under the faint red roofs of mouths.  O I perceive afterwards all so many uttering tongues, And I perceive they do not come from the roofs of mouths for nothing.  I wish I could interpret the hints nearly the dead young men and women, And the hints well-nigh old men and mothers, and the offspring taken soon out of their laps.  What do you think has get of the immature and quondam men? And what do you recollect has become of the women and children?  They are alive and well somewhere, The smallest sprout shows there is really no death, And if ever there was information technology led frontward life, and does not wait at the stop to arrest it, And ceas'd the moment life appear'd.  All goes onward and outward, naught collapses, And to die is different from what any one supposed, and luckier.  - from                  Leaves of Grass                  (1855)
A child said, What is the grass? by Walt Whitman

Summary

"A kid said, What is the grass?" Can readers reply the question in simple terms without using botanical jargon? Those who really want to know how Whitman's poetic eyes decoded the meaning of the elementary grass, have to go through the unabridged text. To summarize, how the poet thinks about it, he sees it as a symbol of both life and death. Information technology is the precursor of life and at the same time a sign of death.

At the first of this piece, an innocent child asks a rather confusing question. To quench the kid's thirst, Whitman, without being dislocated, goes on guessing what the grass really stands for. According to him, the grass bears the sign of his disposition, woven with "hopeful greenish stuff". It is the handkerchief of the Lord that he knowingly dropped in the nooks and corners of his creation to remind all the creatures of his existence.

The grass, the "babe of the vegetation", is a uniform hieroglyphic, growing everywhere. It does not differentiate betwixt whose land it is, be information technology white or black men. When Whitman looks closely at it, it seems to him as the "beautiful uncut hair of graves". Those who were buried there, have nourished the grass. And so, it bears the signs of their existence. However, in the end, the poet thinks, it cannot grow from the dead persons, as information technology had a far darker hue.

It makes him call back of another deeper idea that the kid naturally cannot decode. Co-ordinate to him, the grass is the precursor of life. If death ever existed, it too ceases to alive. Therefore, on this beautiful globe, there is no death. What is decease to the states, is the mere beginning of a new life, in the grade of a tender, piddling grass!

Meaning

The title of this piece "A child said, What is the grass?" is philosophical. It hints at the nature of children. Unremarkably, children are decumbent to ask some questions that are hard to respond for even an experienced person. In Whitman'southward case, he is as well in a like state of affairs where a child has come to him to know what the grass stands for. Is it just a creature that has grown out of the ground without whatever purpose? Or is it just a mere sign of life like others that are living?

To respond the kid's thoughtful query, Whitman does not give him a clear-cut reply. He transforms into a child and goes on asking what the grass really means. Each query of the poet is a footstep to reach the ultimate pregnant. As if a child is decoding mother nature with the aid of an experienced naturalist. The interesting thing is both entities exist within Whitman.

Construction & Form

This verse form is written in the fashion Whitman is famous for. It is a free-verse poem that does non conform to the conventional schema of poetry. The lines are beautifully arranged with the help of internal rhyming. Some brusque lines are packed with the long lines that give this piece an outlook of a prose poem. There are a total of 32 lines separated into nine stanzas. Whitman uses a one-line coda at the end of the second and third stanzas. Each section digresses from the idea of the previous section and introduces a new thought regarding the grass. Whitman makes use of several repetitions to create a resonance of similar sounds or phrase patterns.

What is more than interesting to note about the structure of this poem, is its childlike and innocent judgement construction. Like a child does non conform to any set standards. It e'er chooses the free-flowing style that fits its childish needs. Likewise, Whitman uses such a simplistic and heart-to-middle poetic structure to express his thoughts.

Literary Devices & Figurative Language

Let's explore the important literary devices used in Walt Whitman'south poem "A child said, What is the grass?":

Metaphor

Whitman uses a scattering of metaphors to describe the meaning of the grass. He enthralls readers by using this literary device at the very outset. For example:

I guess information technology must be the flag of my disposition, out of hopeful green stuff woven.

Here, Whitman uses ii metaphors. The first one is "the flag of my disposition". In this phrase, he compares his nature to that of grass and refers to it as a sign or symbol of himself.

While in the 2d phrase, he uses the "green" color as a symbol of hope. The grass is portrayed as a manifestation of hope. In this mode, Whitman implicitly shows what kind of a person he is.

In the following lines, in that location are some other metaphorical references:

Or I guess it is the handkerchief of the Lord,

A scented gift and remembrancer designedly dropt,

Here, the grass is compared to the handkerchief of God. God is portrayed as a lady who drops her handkerchief for her beloved as a sign of gift and remembrance. The grass keeps the humans reminding of God'southward very existence.

In the following lines, readers can find the use of this device in:

  • "babe of the vegetation"
  • "a uniform hieroglyphic"
  • "beautiful uncut hair of graves"
  • "the mothers' laps"

Repetition

Whitman uses several repetitions in the text. For example, in the first lines, he uses the phrase "Or I guess" thrice at the beginning of the stanzas. While, in the fourth stanza, the phrase "It may be" is repeated before beginning three consecutive lines. Through this repetition, Whitman interconnects his guesses regarding the nature of the grass.

Rhetorical Question

The poem begins with a rhetorical question in "What is the grass?" This device used at the very beginning grabs the reader's attention. Though the question seems simple, it has a magnetic force that attracts readers and makes them thoughtful.

He uses some other interrogation in the sixth line:

Begetting the owner's proper name someway in the corners, that we may see and remark, and say Whose?

In the seventh stanza, Whitman asks two consecutive rhetorical questions to the child:

What do you remember has become of the young and sometime men?

And what do you think has become of the women and children?

Anaphora

Anaphora occurs in the lines that begin with a like word. It is a kind of repetition that is used for the sake of emphasis. Readers can find the use of this device in lines vii and eight. Both of these lines begin with "Or I gauge".

They can also detect the use of anaphora in the following lines:

It may be yous transpire from the breasts of young men,

It may be y'all are from old people, or from offspring taken,

Information technology may be if I had known them I would have loved them, soon out of their mothers' laps,

(…)

And if ever there was it led forward life, and does not wait at the finish to abort it,

And ceas'd the moment life appear'd.

In the last two lines, beginning with the conjunction "and", Whitman uses another device called polysyndeton.

Enjambment

Whitman enjambs the lines by using the conjunction "and". For instance, information technology occurs in the following lines:

O I perceive afterwards all so many uttering tongues,

And I perceive they do not come up from the roofs of mouths for zippo.

As readers can see, here the poet connects both the lines and contrasts the ideas nowadays there.

Epigram

In "A child said What is the grass?", Whitman uses several epigrammatic ideas that wittily depict the nature of the grass. For example, he uses this device in the following lines, to talk about the egalitarian nature of the grass.

And it means, Sprouting alike in broad zones and narrow zones,

Growing among blackness folks as amid white,

Kanuck, Tuckahoe, Congressman, Cuff, I give them the aforementioned, I receive them the aforementioned.

In the last role, Whitman compares the grass to his humanitarian nature. Hither he tries to convey, he shares love through his poetry without discriminating his readers of dissimilar casts or colors, but like the grass grows everywhere without discriminating whose country it is.

There is some other of import epigram present in the last two lines:

All goes onward and outward, nothing collapses,

And to dice is different from what any ane supposed, and luckier.

In these lines, Whitman talks about how life never ends or collapses. Death is just a phase in the circle of life and oblivion. Information technology is a precursor of a new and luckier life. That'southward why death is unlike than what we supposed information technology to be.

If at that place's something more to add in this section, exercise share your valuable inputs in the comments section below. We'll be more than than happy to add your inputs here.

Line-past-Line Analysis & Caption

Line 1

A child said What is the grass? fetching it to me with full hands;

The title of the verse form is taken from the very get-go line of this verse form. It appears in section vi of Whitman's best-loved poem "Vocal of Myself" that is part of his poetry collection Leaves of Grass. From the title itself, Whitman implies what is the main idea of the poem is going to be. It is virtually a child who is asking Whitman about what the grass is. Unremarkably, children ask questions that cannot be answered hands. This child in the poem asked a simple question to the speaker. The child is trying to explore the meaning of a thing that can be seen growing everywhere.

How tin can one decode the meaning of grass? For Whitman, it is piece of cake as he has experienced a lot. But, he cannot share his experiences directly with the child as information technology may confuse the innocent mind. Therefore, he adopts a style that fits suitable for this purpose. What he does is guess possible meanings concerning the grass.

Line 2-3

How could I answer the child? I exercise not know what information technology is any more than than he.

I judge it must exist the flag of my disposition, out of hopeful green stuff woven.

The kid fetched a scattering of grass and asked him what it stands for. In reply, he poses another question to the child. He reveals his disability to respond his question. Simply "he" who has created this can tell what the grass really is. In this style, Whitman accepts his shortcoming to brand the kid realize it is standing at the aforementioned place as him. It is just a matter of years that has separated them. Otherwise, they are on the same page, heart-searching over the intricacies of nature, God's marvelous creation.

Similar a child, he guesses the grass must be a symbol of his own disposition that consists of hopeful light-green color. In this way, he shows a connexion he shares with the grass and all the living things existing in nature. The elements that made up the grass also institute Whitman'southward body. So, there is no such divergence between them. It is nada but a reflection of the poet.

Lines four-6

Or I guess it is the handkerchief of the Lord,

A scented souvenir and remembrancer designedly dropt,

Bearing the owner's proper name someway in the corners, that we may see and remark, and say Whose?

Whitman continues his guessing game just like an innocent kid does later on coming beyond an object, both interesting and unknown to it. He connects the previous line with the help of the conjunction "Or". It is a apply of enjambment.

As the poet has referred to the creator in the previous section, he alludes direct to Him here to establish a connexion betwixt his ideas. According to him, the grass is the handkerchief of God. Information technology is a scented gift and remembrancer from Him that he dropped for a specific purpose. Hither, readers can find alliteration in "designedly dropt".

The handkerchief or the grass bears the proper name someway in the corners merely like a handkerchief of a lady. Seeing it, we may guess whose handkerchief it is. Here, Whitman uses an interesting idea. He compares God to a lady who drops her handkerchief for her wooer. Information technology is meant for hinting at the fact that she loves the person for whom it was knowingly left behind. Too, God has created the grass to brand humans think near him. Information technology acts as a symbol of God's love for his creation likewise as proves his very existence.

Lines 7-8

Or I judge the grass is itself a child, the produced baby of the vegetation.

Or I gauge it is a uniform hieroglyphic,

In this poem, Whitman beautifully connects all ideas he mentions in the poem. As the kid has come to him asking well-nigh the grass. He knows the child is still there eagerly listening to him. To welcome it into his thought procedure, he remarks that the grass itself is a child similar it. It is the babe of vegetation. Here, Whitman personifies the grass and nature likewise. The one-time is the baby of the latter. Hence, nature or vegetation is compared to a female parent.

According to him, the grass is a "uniform" symbol or an enigmatic sign. He uses the term "hieroglyphics", used by the Egyptians, to metaphorically compare the grass to a type of sign that cannot exist decoded hands. In the following line, the poet's conviction is saying, "And information technology means …" highlights the fact that Whitman is well-versed in deciding natural signs.

Information technology might have amazed the child in the poem. A person who can decode disquisitional puzzles within seconds is e'er liked by innocent children. Likewise, our poet tries to amaze the kid past saying that the grass is a sign and he knows what information technology ways.

Lines ix-xi

And it means, Sprouting alike in broad zones and narrow zones,

Growing among blackness folks every bit amidst white,

Kanuck, Tuckahoe, Congressman, Cuff, I give them the aforementioned, I receive them the same.

According to him, the grass conveys the message of egalitarianism. It grows everywhere, from broad to narrow zones. For the grass, black and white folks are all akin. They are the creations of God like it.

In the last two lines, Whitman becomes subjective and remarks virtually how he shares his dearest for humanity through his poesy. He sees anybody as human beings, not as people belonging to unlike casts, tribes, or political groups.

He says, "Kanuck, Tuckahoe, Congressman, Cuff, I give them the aforementioned, I receive them the same." Every bit readers can see, Whitman does non apply a conjunction in this line. It is a utilize of asyndeton that is used for achieving an creative consequence. Also, he uses alliteration in "Kanuck, Tuckahoe" and "Congressman, Cuff".

Lines 12-13

And at present it seems to me the beautiful uncut pilus of graves.

Tenderly will I use you crimper grass,

With a coda, Whitman digresses from what he has remarked near the grass. The child's question, "What is the grass?" is now answered from a different angle. The term "graves" changes the tone of the poem to a bit more serious and solemn.

Whitman says the grass is the "beautiful uncut pilus of graves". The "grave" is personified here. The grass growing around the graves appears to him as untidy hair. Nature has given information technology the liberty to grow just like a child (who is definitely close to nature) grows on its own.

In the following stanza, Whitman uses tactile imagery to convey the feelings associated with touching the tender grass-blades. As the kid has given a handful of grass to him while asking him about it, he is holding it in his easily now. He touches it and feels its common cold leaves. Information technology arouses speculation regarding its origin.

Lines 14-17

Information technology may be y'all transpire from the breasts of young men,

Information technology may be you are from former people, or from offspring taken,

It may be if I had known them I would accept loved them, soon out of their mothers' laps,

And hither you are the mothers' laps.

It appears to him equally if it has raised its caput from the graves of young men who have died before their prime. Possibly, it has grown out of the graves of one-time men or prematurely dead babies. In these lines, the mood becomes sad and depressing.

Whatsoever, the poet says, if he had known those who have died before him, he would take loved them with all his eye. Death did non spare the little ones and snatched them out of their mothers' laps. But, Whitman thinks zip can detach the infants from the cozy laps of mother nature. The grass has become the laps of mother nature. Those poor infants are now sleeping there. And then, it is clear that here Whitman is metaphorically comparing the grass to "mothers' laps".

Lines xviii-22

This grass is very night to be from the white heads of old mothers,

Darker than the colorless beards of one-time men,

Dark to come from under the faint red roofs of mouths.

O I perceive afterward all then many uttering tongues,

And I perceive they do non come from the roofs of mouths for zilch.

In these lines, the poet corrects his approach of looking at the grass by looking at its hue. The grass has a dark green color. It infers to the fact that it has not originated from something pale and dying. The hue shows its close proximity with vibrant colors of life.

According to him, the grass is very nighttime to be from the white heads of former mothers or the pale beards of old men. The grass's color is in stark contrast with the stake-white colors of former age. It is too nighttime to come from under the faint-ruddy roof of an infant's oral fissure. In this section, Whitman beautifully uses colors to portray the theme of life vs death. The pallid colors of death are assorted with the vibrancy of life's colors.

In the following section, readers tin notice some other digression. Now, he starts talking well-nigh the voices aural from the grass that has something important to tell him. Its utterance is not meaningless. Equally the poet had already mentioned the grass as a hieroglyphic of nature, its song signs hint at an of import idea.

The phrase "uttering tongues" contains a metonym. It is a reference to the human being vocalism. As the grass originates from the graves, information technology expresses the implied words of those buried below him. It becomes the vox of those who are no more than and converses with the poet. In this section, the poet uses auditory imagery to refer to the sound of the human voice.

Lines 23-26

I wish I could translate the hints nigh the dead immature men and women,

And the hints about old men and mothers, and the offspring taken soon out of their laps.

What do you think has get of the young and quondam men?

And what practise y'all think has become of the women and children?

The audio that the grass makes tells something more than than it actually appears to the poet. Whitman is able to decode the sign language of the grass only he cannot decipher what the audio stands for. He wishes he could translate the hints about the expressionless young men, women, old men, old mothers, and the offspring taken presently out of their mothers' laps.

In these lines, the poet repeats the word "and" for the sake of emphasis and intertwining the ideas. The repetition of recurring ideas emphasizes that all those who have died somehow tries to communicate with someone like Whitman, versed in deciding natural signs, be it visual or auditory.

In the final two lines, he poses 2 rhetorical questions to the child every bit well as to the readers. Each interrogation contains references to those who take died (already mentioned above). He asks what has become of them. Have they ceased to exist?

Lines 27-32

They are live and well somewhere,

The smallest sprout shows there is really no death,

And if ever there was it led frontwards life, and does non await at the end to abort information technology,

And ceas'd the moment life appear'd.

All goes onward and outward, nothing collapses,

And to die is different from what any one supposed, and luckier.

The answer is, "No! nothing e'er ceases to be." Everything has its ain concrete time to continue a wheel. When the time comes to an cease, information technology takes a new form. Similar Einstein's theory of relativity, the interchangeable nature of life and expiry is mentioned hither.

Co-ordinate to Whitman, they are non dead. As we cannot meet them, it does non mean that they are not in that location. The "smallest sprout" raising its tiny head from the ground proves the fact that they exist. One cannot see the picayune heads of a sprout until it becomes a shoot. Likewise, we cannot say the soul does non exist as we cannot see them. Here, the poet uses the idea of transcendentalism.

According to him, if in that location is decease, the grass does not pb forward the chain reaction of life and does non await till the terminate to be arrested past it. It would cease the moment life appeared. Here, the poet is trying to say that death is nothing simply a part of the life cycle. Decease means a new beginning. Information technology is just a bespeak when it seems the movement of life is yet. In reality, it is eternal and never stops for a moment.

Null collapses. Life grows inwardly and outwardly. It goes on. Hence, decease is unlike from our supposition. According to Whitman, it is a luckier effect equally information technology makes mode for a new life.

Themes

Whitman explores the themes of life, decease, nature, spirituality, and innocence in his poem "A child said, What is the grass?" The main theme of this poem is the cycle of life and death. In the offset few sections, Whitmans solely portrays the theme of cosmos and kittenish innocence. Every bit the verse form moves to the eye, he introduces the chief theme. He starts talking nearly how death arrests life. Apparently, there seems to be a point when everything ceases to exist. But, on a deeper level, it is a new offset. The grass that grows from the graves, bears the signs of life. Those who are buried below supplied it sustenance to grow. Hence, even a dead affair contains the spark of life, helping other living entities to abound.

Tone & Mood

The tone of this piece is thoughtful, inspirational, innocent, and inquisitive. Whitman writes this slice implementing a tone that best suits his need to unravel the mysteries of nature. It tin only be accomplished from a childish, innocent, and simple point of view. For this reason, the poet introduces a character of a child who is the precursor of the overall poetic thinking process. Every bit the speaker talks with a child, he cannot talk with him in a serious and philosophical tone. For this reason, he writes in a tone that can make his philosophical thoughts more than pellucid to readers.

Historical Background

The poem "A kid said, What is the grass?" appears in the sixth section of Walt Whitman's "Song of Myself", previously not separated into sections. Information technology was included in his collection of poetry Leaves of Grass that Whitman continued to expand and revise until his expiry. According to Ezra Greenspan, "Vocal of Myself" represents "the core of Whitman's poetic vision." It was published as a collection of 12 untitled poems in the first edition of Leaves of Grass in 1855. Whitman published the get-go at his own expense. Public credence was irksome for this work. Afterward, it has become one of the all-time-loved poetry collections of all time.

Questions and Answers

How does Whitman answer the question "What is the grass?"?

To answer the question, Whitman plays a guessing game. He compares the grass to a diversity of ideas such as a hieroglyphic, a sign of the poet'south disposition, nature's lap, and untidy pilus of graves. In the end, he portrays it equally a symbol of life that highlights the fact that nothing really dies.

What is Walt Whitman's main message in "A kid said, What is the grass?"?

The master bulletin of the poem concerns the interchangeability of life and death. According to Whitman, cipher really dies. Those who have died are still live in the larger torso of the universe. They are just transmuted into other forms such as particles, energy, or entities.

When was "A kid said, What is the grass?" written?

The verse form "A child said, What is the grass?" appears in section 6 of "Vocal of Myself". It was first published in 1855.

What does "grass" symbolize in, "A kid said, What is the grass?"?

In this poem, the "grass" symbolizes the poet firsthand. Its dark-green color is a symbol of hope. Thus it is a sign of life. Too, Whitman portrays the grass as hieroglyphics of nature that only a well-versed interpreter tin empathise. Furthermore, he symbolizes information technology as nature'south infant.

How does grass testify "there is really no death"?

The grass growing on the graves of immature men, women, old men and mothers, and infants does not resemble the pallid hue of dead bodies. Though it grows from the graves, its color portrays the vibrancy of life. Therefore, it can be inferred that there is no death at all. What has died has only paused for a moment to begin a new journey. It is the bike of life that eternally revolving.

What metaphor is used to connect grass to life and death?

Whitman uses a metaphor in the phrase "the beautiful uncut pilus of graves" to connect the grass to both life and expiry. The grass grows on the graves, thus a office of expiry. At the same time, it has the ability to abound which is an important feature of life.

How does the image of grass represent the cycle of life and death?

Past the image of untidy grass growing near the graves similar the "uncut hair" of a person, Whitman represents the bicycle of life. The grass leads forrard life. It does non look till the end to be arrested by death.

What does the green color of grass symbolize in the poem?

The green colour of the grass symbolizes hope. Whitman describes the grass as women with "hopeful green stuff".

What does "And at present it seems to me the beautiful uncut hair of graves" hateful?

In the quoted line, Whitman uses a metaphor of "cute uncut pilus of graves" to compare it with the grass that grows in the graveyard in an untidy mode. Here, the "grass" stands for both life and decease. It does not contrast them simply establishes a connection between them.

What does "The smallest sprout shows there really is no death" mean?

This line refers to fact that there is no decease at all. Each living being transforms into a unlike entity, thus nothing ever dies. And then, death is just a stage of the life cycle. It is non an catastrophe point.

What does "the handkerchief of the Lord" mean?

The "handkerchief" stands for a remembrance or souvenir from a loved one who knowingly leaves it behind. Likewise, the grass is the handkerchief of God that he left on earth to remind humans of his dear and very existence.

What does "Or I guess the grass is itself a child, the produced baby of the vegetation" mean?

In this line, Whitman speculates the grass being the kid of mother nature or vegetation. For its tiny peak, it occurs to him equally an infant whom female parent nature gave birth to.

What practise the words "Kanuck," "Tuckahoe," and "Cuff" mean?

The term "Kanuck" or "Canuck" refers to Dutch or French Canadians. Canadians use information technology as an affectionate term for their nationality. A "Tuckahoe" is a person from the Virginian declension. The "Cuff" means an African American.

What does he wish he could translate or sympathise? What are the hints he is talking most?

Whitman wishes to translate the signs the dead are trying to convey with the aid of the grass. He is talking about the contrast between the grass'due south color and that of the dead bodies as a hint to know the real meaning of death.

What does "the flag of my disposition" mean?

"Disposition" means a person'due south inherent qualities of heed and character. The "flag" stands for a symbol of a nation or but a sign that reflects how a person is. Through this phrase, Whitman is comparing the "grass" as a token of his disposition.

Similar Poems about Nature

  • "The Wind" by James Reeves – It's about the immense power of the current of air.
  • "Something Told the Wild Geese" by Rachel Field – Information technology's nigh the autumn season, which reminds the wild geese of the budgeted winter.
  • "Morning Verse form" by Mary Oliver – Information technology'south about being cheerful and optimistic in all phases of life, embracing the beauty of nature, and finding happiness in pocket-size things.
  • "Listening" by Amy Lowell – This poem explores the musicality of the soul and nature.
  • "Deep in the Repose Wood" past James Weldon Johnson – It's about how the hustle of daily life restricts the soul and how the soul finds true solitude in the woods.

External Resources

  • Mark Doty on "A kid said, What is the grass?" — Explore poet Mark Doty's appreciation of Whitman'south poem.
  • Frontwards to "Song of Myself", Department six — Learn the meaning of the poem and Whitman's overall idea.
  • Total Text of "Song of Myself" — Read the full 1892 version of Whitman's best-loved poem.
  • About Walt Whitman — Learn nearly the poet's life and his works.
  • Walt Whitman: Poet Profile, Poems, & Essays — Explore more most the poet and read some of his well-known works.