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Song Of Myself Poem Analysis

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“Song of Myself” is one of Walt Whitman’s most famous works. It is one of the original twelve pieces in the first edition of Leaves of Grass. In 1855 the poem had no title, in 1856 it was called “A Poem of Walt Whitman an American” and in 1860 it was changed to “Walt Whitman”. Finally in 1881, Whitman changed the title of the poem to “Song of Myself”. The changes with the name of the poem are important about indicating the growth of the meaning of the poem. In the poem, there are three major themes: the idea of the self, the identification of self within other selves, and the narrators relationship and connection with the elements of nature and the universe. The poem contains a central symbol that represents the divinity contained in all living things, and that symbol is grass. Whitman talks about the self a lot throughout the poem. The self is both individual and universal. Individual self is one that a man has, while the world has a universal self. The poet wishes to merge his individual self with the universal self. The concept of self is one of the most significant parts of Whitman’s mind and art. The self is perceived as a spiritual entity which remains permanent throughout the changing ideas and experiences in life. This poem celebrates the poets self. While “I” is the poet himself, at the same time it is universalized. In section 1, the poet lays on the grass and asks his soul to appear, he then relates that he was “form’d from this soil”, he was born there

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