To further elaborate, the self, for Whitman, is additionally divine due to its sensational connection with all walks of life. Acting as the Christian figurehead, Jesus Christ, who preached on loving all, Whitman claims that “I love him,/ though I do not know him;” (Whitman 15). Although in this certain context the object of Whitman’s admiration is known, this level of affections extends to a deeper level of morals and virtues. This is illustrated when Whitman has a “runaway slave/ sit next me at the table” (Whitman 10). The event is extremely significant because during the time this poem was written people were discriminated based on their skin color which would lead them to be viewed as unequals. Yet, with Whitman, everyone is viewed as an
