Analysis Of Walt Whitman 's ' Crossing Brooklyn Ferry '

Walt Whitman is known for having some of the most distinct poems in history. His work is instantly recognizable due to his particular traits of: individuality, an emphasis on the natural world, constantly using free verse, usually encompassing numerous subjects in one poem, using personal details, and the speaker speaking for himself and the reader. Many have tried, but very few poets have mastered the techniques Whitman once did. He wrote with a stylistic freedom and proved he was worthy to be an American Poet.

“Crossing Brooklyn Ferry” is Walt Whitman’s way of personifying the everyday experiences of living in society; specifically, Whitman’s firsthand account of his routine crossing on the Brooklyn Ferry. To achieve this is his poem Whitman utilizes the use of repetition to emphasize specific points throughout the works. This is particularly evident in stanza six, here Whitman begins each statement with the phrase “I too”; in doing so Whitman exploits the device of repetition to consolidate the striking commonalities each individual share. By relating to such familiar commonalities such as “I too walk’d the streets of Manhattan, and bathed in its waters.”, the author brings the reader onto level ground and utilizes the familiar experiences of common

The idea of an equal America exists no more. Regardless of the fact that there is a plethora of varying perspectives dividing the country into two, there are words and phrases that are generally accepted in viewing our country from the rest of the world. First, the American Dream is regularly associated with equal opportunity, prosperity, and liberty. Walt Whitman, as well as many others, have written about this desired America for the socially accepted American. He is often referred to as “America’s Poet,” who amplifies the elegant qualities of America that we believe to be true. It is obvious that Whitman portrays America as an alive and colorful place full of chance and flourishment throughout his work. “I Hear America Singing” is a prime example of an America that is only seen from the surface, where Whitman clearly indicates that the United States is a country where all its citizens are able to achieve equality and liberty. Contradictory, Sharon Olds poem, “On the Subway,” proves the lack of individual liberty, which deteriorates the growth of the country, ultimately opposing the America, where personal freedom is the foundation. Olds’ poem pokes holes in the surface that shows the controversial interior that truly makes up America that Whitman painted beforehand. Olds and Whitman also illustrate varying insight regarding personal liberty and its importance in two opposing poems; one who proclaims it as easily attainable and necessary to the country and the other who

America has been home to two major races being whites from Europe and the Black from Africa

Walt Whitman was one of the best literary figures of that time and through history because people still love his books. After Whitman stopped writing he decided to become a nurse during the Civil War. His most famous book was Leaves of Grass; it is now a trademark book through history. He also wrote about the potential freedom in America.

Though the statue of liberty was finished in August of 1885, immigrants from many nations came to the United States even before the green lady was standing in the New York Harbor. The poem, The New Colossus by Emma Lazarus, was later added in 1903, to signify the “golden door” that to many immigrants who were escaping strife or looking for a better life thought would await them in America. Though the poem suggested that America was a land of flowing milk and honey, immigrants did not find such a warm welcome that was suggested by the torch holding lady. In Mario Puzo short story, Choosing a Dream, he describes America as a place where immigrants or anyone can achieve “some economic dignity and freedom”, however, this is not the case for

When I read a poem, I get an idea of what the author is trying to convey. When I read it again, it touches something within. The more times a poem is read, the more it grows within, until its very idea takes ground in some part or other in our mind, and only then is it fully understood. But because we all have different holds for the poem to grab on to, we all come from different backgrounds and even different times, how can we ever say “this is the correct way (to interpret it)”? The answer is we cannot, and so I can only do my best to argue my point of view in the following text, and hope that you, the reader, will bear with me.

Walt Whitman could be seen as a narcissist because of his confidence in knowing the “ways” of the world. He is confident in his theory that the physical self and the emotional self, or the soul, are equals in all aspects. But I’m unsure if this is such a bad thing, as narcissism has negative connotations. On the other hand, the object of a visionary poet is not to sway people a certain way or impress them but to be able to reveal a moment or feeling in time and share their findings, which Walt does. Through his work he isn’t saying look at me and all I know. He is sharing his self-discovery and soul searching with the reader to show how magical it can be. He shares his uncertainties, what it’s like to love and what it’s like to be at peace

The new colossus reflects on the american dream by welcoming “ the tired, the poor, and the huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” The new immigrants came from Europe to find hospitality. “ I lift my lamp beside the golden door.” The new colossus is welcoming the European immigrants to find freedom and liberty.

Walt Whitman, a great American poet to be compared to Emily Dickinson and Edgar Allan Poe, exists at the heart of American culture. Whitman’s work has not lost its appeal because it still applies to America in the new millennia; America is still deeply troubled by issues of division, hypocrisy, and racism—much unlike the America of inclusion and forbearance Whitman envisioned for American in Leaves of Grass. Although Leaves of Grass is often considered Whitman’s most influential work, Whitman spent eighty-five chapters of his autobiography discussing his war experiences, even though his life through 1860 seemed to be the years crucial to the background of Leaves. When considering Whitman’s view that the war

Crossing Brooklyn Ferry, by Walt Whitman, is a poem about a man who takes the Brooklyn ferry home after his work day. At first glance one may say “How can this long poem really be about a ferry?” Once you get reading you realized there is much more to it then riding the Brooklyn Ferry. This poem deals with the idea that all humans are united in the harmonies of life because we all share the same land. This poem describes the relationship between human beings.

The ferry serves as a metaphor throughout the poem, representing the span of one’s life and what they do during that time. The overarching theme being the shared human spiritual experience, crossing the river by the ferry. Whitman draws from the nature around him on the ferry and all the quiet small details that no one typically notices and made them sound extraordinary, all the things that he looks at every day, the creation of God. He wants to put emphasis on the fact that even though time continues to pass and society is continually changing, nature will never change. Wind will always be wind, the sun will always be the sun and so on. Whitman focuses on the everlasting connection between mankind and nature, expressing that through the line, “a hundred years hence, or ever so many hundred years hence, others will see them, will enjoy the sunset, the pouring-in of the flood-tide, the falling-back to the sea of the

“Crossing Brooklyn Ferry” by Walt Whitman depicts the experiences and emotions he goes through when riding the ferry. In today’s time we tend to stereotype people we judge quickly, we are selfish just like Whitman’s judgmental behavior towards the people on the ferry. In the first three lines of the first stanza, Whitman is giving us a picture of where he is located and the occurrences he goes through. It appears that he immediately isolates himself from the men and women, who are with him sailing on the ferry: “Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes,” (1, 3)

The “American Dream” is a notion that every single person who comes to this country strives for. The image of an a house in the suburbs with a white picket fence, the father is smiling going off to work a steady job, the mother is smiling and waving her husband off while she tells her son to stop getting dirty chasing the dog, and the daughter is playing with her dolls by the front porch and most of all being happy with what you have and are doing. In both, Long Day’s Journey into Night by Eugene O'Neill and Moby Dick by Herman Melville, present aspects that relate to the American Dream. Both show financial contentment and love for family.

In Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself”, the poet showcases his feelings of people and himself by using literary descriptors to convey his thoughts on these and various other subjects. In section 20, Whitman’s purpose is to showcase self-assuredness regardless of what the world tries to state otherwise by maintaining his resolute happiness in being himself. This is what sets him apart from being like the other people in the world.