Walt Whitman was an American poet, teacher, and journalist that lived from 1819 to 1892 (PBS). The themes of his work were heavily influenced by social and political events as well as experiences from his own life. Individualism and American idealism were two of the major themes that Whitman used in his poems. Events like the abolitionist movement, the Civil War, and the migration of pioneer families to the newly acquired Western portion of the United States also influenced his work (Poets). Events from Whitman’s own life and the major events that were taking place in America influenced his poetry which mainly focused on the individual spirit and American idealism. Whitman was born in West Hills, New York outside of Long Island to Walter and
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Whitman was viewed as a voice for the individual American and the abolitionist movement helped fuel the idea that enslaved African Americans deserved to be treated as respected individuals. Whitman’s poem “[I celebrate myself, and sing myself ] 1855” (Norton 721) is a good example of his thoughts on individualism. The poem is a celebration of what it means to be an individual. Whitman expresses his pride of being himself but also expresses his delight in knowing that every other person is just as lucky to be themselves. The line “For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you.” (line 3) can be viewed as Whitman understanding that every person is equally important. Whitman is basically saying that being yourself is what makes each one of us unique and we should embrace our individualistic …show more content…
Whitman describes how he believes that exploration can make any person of any age feel like a child because of the unknown certainties that exploring entails. The poem reflects on where our species originated and the events we went through to get to where we were at when he wrote the poem. The migration of families westward probably made Whitman reflect on how far we have come as a people and as a nation. “Now I face home again, very pleased and joyous;”(line 9) is a line that best describes Whitman’s feelings towards the nations progress and the pride he has in the individual
Whitman was viewed as a voice for the individual American and the abolitionist movement helped fuel the idea that enslaved African Americans deserved to be treated as respected individuals. Whitman’s poem “[I celebrate myself, and sing myself ] 1855” (Norton 721) is a good example of his thoughts on individualism. The poem is a celebration of what it means to be an individual. Whitman expresses his pride of being himself but also expresses his delight in knowing that every other person is just as lucky to be themselves. The line “For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you.” (line 3) can be viewed as Whitman understanding that every person is equally important. Whitman is basically saying that being yourself is what makes each one of us unique and we should embrace our individualistic …show more content…
Whitman describes how he believes that exploration can make any person of any age feel like a child because of the unknown certainties that exploring entails. The poem reflects on where our species originated and the events we went through to get to where we were at when he wrote the poem. The migration of families westward probably made Whitman reflect on how far we have come as a people and as a nation. “Now I face home again, very pleased and joyous;”(line 9) is a line that best describes Whitman’s feelings towards the nations progress and the pride he has in the individual