On The Subway And Walt Whitman Analysis

Frances Willard and Walt Whitman are two significant nineteenth century American figures. Although Willard and Whitman are famous for different reasons, they do have one characteristic in common: they have both been accused of being homosexuals. However, most people do not know this because it is not put in history textbooks or taught in the classroom, for good reason. Public school students should not learn about Willard and Whitman’s homosexuality through their textbooks and teachers because it does not affect the significance of what these two Americans had accomplished. Not only does it not affect their importance in United States history, but it also cannot be proven. Teaching public school students that Willard and Whitman were homosexuals would be disrespectful to the brave and inspiring acts they have made towards the history of America.

In “I Hear America Singing,” Walt Whitman’s message of the American identity is that it is diverse and proud. The fact the American identity is diverse is proven best in the first line, which states, “I hear America singing, the varied carols I hear.” In this line, the word “varied” proves that it is diverse because if something is varied it has a variety of things amassing it. The American identity being proud is proven by the line, “Each singing what belongs to him or her and to none else.” This line proves that the American identity is proud because it is saying that we celebrate what only we have. This celebration evinces that we are proud of what we gain by working.

In “Song of Myself” Whitman attempts to speak on behalf of the entire American population. He tries to pull the reader into a world of many possibilities. Whitman makes a

The poems “The New Colossus” by Emma Lazarus and “I Hear America Singing” by Walt Whitman, exemplify the idea of American freedom in its purest form. While one poem talks about one most important symbols in American history, and another talks about the average American’s way of life, both poems convey the of American triumph and success.

America is a country that has been through many different times of trials. Wars and disease have spread across that nation several times. During times of depression, though, a group of people seems to always emerge from the destruction. That group of people are the poets and writers of America. Through trial and strife, writers are able to find inspiration for their works, and are able to give readers hope for a better day. Walt Whitman was an amazing writer who wrote several poems concerning the great United States of America, talking about the people that have built the nation up from the dust. But, a group of people that Whitman forgot to write about on most occasions were the slaves and black people of which America thrived. Langston Hughes was a black man in the 20th century that took note of Whitman's poems, and their lack of recognition towards his people. Whitman wrote a poem called, "I Hear America Singing," in which Hughes wrote the poem, "I, Too Sing America," in response. In the poem by Hughes, there are several different ways that the writing interlaces with Walt Whitman's.

In the poems "I, Too, Sing America" by Langston Hughes, and "I Hear America Singing" deriving from Walt Whitman's collection of "Leaves of Grass", both have idealistic views. In Whitman's piece of writing, it talks about how America is exceptional. Also, how wonderful all of the laborers in America are. They all sing and love their jobs, and when needed, come together to form the whole society of America. But he can see that one day, he will no longer have to hide. Rather, his owner and his guests will see how strong and beautiful he truly is. Clearly, in both of the poems, the authors see the idealism in America.

Set in America, the poem follows a man, potentially Walt Whitman, as he celebrates the pride found in an American citizen. Several careers are described throughout the poem in an effort to accentuate the amount of effort Americans put into their labor each day. Aside from no apparent significance to the structure and syntax of the poem, the author’s profound diction, such as blithe, melodious, delicious, and robust, emphasizes the honor the author feels towards Americans and their efforts. Whitman’s use of figurative language in his poem, “I Hear America Singing”, can be found through the individuals who are “singing”. Although the singing stated within the poem may be literal, it also demonstrates the passion and pride that the workers held

In the poem "I Hear America Singing" by Walt Whitman, the reader envisions a country of people working for the greater good of mankind. These people come together as part of the whole society developing industry and production. Each person has a different occupation, but each job is important to the bigger picture. The bigger picture and theme being that of a country in which everyone is working together to create a successful and harmonious civilization.

Written in the first half of the 20th century, “Let America Be America” is a poem that documents and responds to the oppressed state of the United States, in both the past and present. The poem is a plea for a return to the original principles of freedom that our country has seemingly forgotten. Additionally, the speaker sees America as the broken home to oppressed people who have lost sight of the ultimate goal of freedom and happiness. Although America is often perceived as the “land of the free,” Langston Hughes’s poem contradicts this ideology by not only painting a vivid picture of oppression in America but also by providing a desperate hope for the future.

Walt Whitman synthesizes the concept of freedom and joy, using the country's working class and culture diversity, in his work. In his poem, "I Hear America Singing", narrator states, in his liberated tone, "The carpenter singing his as he measure his plank or beam"(Whitman 12) implying that carpenter is enjoying his blue collar work and is singing with pride. Here, Whitman alludes the free life of carpenter, who is merry with his desirable job. The way Whitman gives an example of the carpenter enjoying his job, shows that immigrants have the freedom to choose the work they

Ever since Americans began to see themselves as members of an independent nation, they have struggled to identify the essence of the American culture. In his poem “I Hear America Singing”, Walt Whitman determines the single most important aspect of America to be the unification of all Americans through honest work. However, as time passed and the customs of America evolved, writers such as Allen Ginsberg became increasingly disillusioned with Whitman’s view of the nation. In Ginsberg’s “A Supermarket in California”, he speaks directly to Whitman, demanding to know how Whitman’s America could possibly have become the America of Ginsberg’s own time. Although it was written over six decades ago, Ginsberg’s poem is remarkably pertinent even in

In the story “ On the Subway” two different races are brought up as different worlds. The author uses tone, imagery imagery and organization of the poem to develop and convey the different sides.

If one listens closely, they can hear America’s song. The words, like thunder, comprise the groans of the slave, the cheers of the free, and the unmistakable sounds of the brave. The music rings out as clear as day; it is composed by the growing children and the dying men. Walt Whitman and Langston Hughes captured the essence of these songs in their respective works, “I Hear America Singing” and “I, Too, Sing America.” The first describes the melodies of a working nation, the “the wood-cutter’s song” and the “delicious singing of the mother” (Whitman 7-8). The quiet musings of a young African American make up the latter; it is a hymn of hushed hope for tomorrow. Although the two poems stand alone, both Whitman’s and Hughes's works powerfully capture the song of America through the sense of pride found in each piece, the uses of different literary elements, and their individual views of the nation.

“I celebrate myself, and sing myself / and what I shall assume you shall assume” (Whitman 1-2). These lines not only open up the beginning of one the best poems of the American Romantic period, but they also represent a prominent theme of one of this period’s best poet, Walt Whitman. In Walt Whitman’s Song of Myself, Whitman deals with his time period’s most prominent theme of democracy. Whitman tells readers that they must not only observe the democratic life but they must become one with it. As Whitman states, “For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you” (3). Democracy provides a connection with all people. It is as if Joseph Stella felt this connection and decided to depict it in his collection of paintings entitled “Americans in the Rough.” The individual is of no greater or lesser worth than anyone else. Beatrice Marovich states that, “It is a song for fellow Americans, about the American body politic” (349). An analysis of Song of Myself portrays that understanding and becoming one with democracy through political collectivity essentially sets the stage for the American democratic self. Joseph Stella does a great job of interpreting and depicting Whitman’s ideals of democracy through his illustrations representing every facet of an American democratic life.

America by Allen Ginsburg. In this poem, Walt Whitman is upset with America. In the specific lines Walt Whitman talk about his anger towards the government and more. He then goes on to talk about how America once inspired him to become a saint. When he says such, he starts to refer to the American dream. America inspired him to become pure by doing the opposite of what the country was doing. The speaker energy changes in throughout the stanza. Instead of ranting he just wants to come to a mutual agreement with the U.S. Then he refers to another writer William Burroughs who was known for being a good writer, killing his wife during a drunken game, and being a drug addict. The speaker does this to express how his close friend moved to Tangiers to get away. However, when he went he continued to write and do drugs, in other words, he continued to sin. Mr. Ginsburg is asking if America is sinister like Mr. Burroughs. At the end, the speaker has not come to his point, however he’s getting closer to doing so. This stanza shows how the speaker switches from being upset with America to bringing other countries into the