What Was The Difference Between Walt Whitman And Transcendentalism

    From looking at the titles of Walt Whitman's vast collection of poetry in Leaves of Grass one would be able to surmise that the great American poet wrote about many subjects -- expressing his ideas and thoughts about everything from religion to Abraham Lincoln. Quite the opposite is true, Walt Whitman wrote only about a single subject which was so powerful in the mind of the poet that it consumed him to the point that whatever he wrote echoed of that subject. The beliefs and tenets of transcendentalism were the subjects that caused Whitman to write and carried through not only in the wording and imagery of his poems, but also in the revolutionary way that he chose to write his poetry.

Whitman’s young life gives reason to this poem, as well as adding to its overall tragic story. He was born in 1819 in West Hills, Long Island, the second of nine kids; he was one of the few to be born in sound mental and physical condition. While Whitman isn’t the most

He was born in May 1819 in New York. Whitman “aimed to transcend traditional epics, eschew normal aesthetic form, and reflect the nature of the American experience and its democracy” ("Walt Whitman"). Whitman’s views on slavery are a little confusing. He initially called for the abolition of slavery but later viewed the Abolitionist Movement as a risk to democracy. In his poem Leaves of Grass he portrays African Americans as “beautiful, dignified, and intelligent” (Klammer). However in other poems, Whitman writes how he thought blacks were inferior and that he had little sympathy for them (Klammer). Whitman volunteered his time caring for wounded soldiers ("Walt Whitman"). He made 600 hospital visits and saw more than 100,000 patients ("Walt Whitman"). This encouraged him to return to poetry where he wrote about the realities of the Civil War. In the final years of Whitman’s life, he wrote that he was disappointed in the America that he saw emerge after the Civil War ("Walt

Walt Whitman, one of the world's greatest journalist and poets, touched the lives of many different and diverse cultures through his many works in which he placed his feet in the shoes of everyday people and the experiences they faced. However, his attitude towards slavery and abolitionism were never permanent as if he was constantly torn between how he really felt or how others who did not agree with him would judge his views. As the saying goes, "your first teachers are your parents." Whitman grew up in a racist environment, in which he was a descendent of slave owners. Therefore, he grew up embodying white prejudice and coming to a conclusion that blacks were shiftless and ignorant. However, as he grew older and became more educated on the

Introduction: Walt Whitman was an American poet from West Hills, Long Island New York. He wrote plenty of poems for the New York Times Journal newspaper also known for the famous book Leaves of Grass that had nine editions and is more than one book. The book Leaves of Grass was published in 1888 when he was finally done with all nine editions and he had passed after publishing the ninth edition.

Walt Whitman was born in 1819, a second son to a housebuilder and one of 9 children. He worked as a printer at an early age, this is where he became enamored with the written word. Working as a printer in New York until a fire devastated the printing section of the city he was self-taught reading the works of Homer, Dante and the Bible. Whitman worked as a teacher for several years before becoming a journalist, full-time and establishing the paper The Long Islander. He worked as an editor for several papers before moving to New Orleans to become the editor of The Crescent where he first experienced the reality of the slave trade. Returning to his hometown of Brooklyn in Long Island he founded the newspaper the Brooklyn Freeman and continued

The habit of going against the grain and rejecting long established ideas is often associated with America, this includes American literature as well. The Romantic Movement that took over both England and America during the early 19th century, resulted in response to Classicism, focusing more on emotion and valuing the individual and nature over society as a whole and the industrial cities. Transcendentalism, the movement that both Ralph Waldo Emerson and Walt Whitman belong to, while similar to Romanticism, promoted the idea that all humans were connected not only to each other, but also to nature and God. This movement gave artistic significance to everything. In his essay “The Poet”, Ralph Waldo Emerson

Poetry hydrates minds. The Transcendental time period was from the 1820 and 1830s. In this time, multiple poets shared their writing with the world while advocating for individualism.

American society has been drastically shaped through the strong beliefs of its poets, journalists and all around writers such as Jack Kerouac, Allen Gisnsberg, William S Burroughs and many more. Although each and every one of these writers are brilliant individuals, it is undeniable that they were highly influenced by the great Walt Whitman. Walt Whitman was a bright American individual who consistently crossed the conservative boundaries with his excellent writing skills. Walter “Walt” was an American poet, essayist and journalist. He was a big part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism and both of his views were apparent in his works. Walt Whitman's work was very controversial for his time period, especially his

Walt Whitman, born May 31, 1819, began his life as a humble student from Long Island. He was raised in a poor family with 6 brothers, and later left formal schooling at the age of eleven to try to find supplemental income for his family. He spent many years jumping from job to job working at newspapers, government posts, and

Walt Whitman changed poetry forever. His radical form of poetry changed how poetry was viewed. This is very similar to the rise of Hip Hop and how it has changed music forever.

In the view of the transcendentalists, nature was the template for the human world, which is a dominant theme in transcendentalist poetry, especially in the case of Whitman, for it forms the backbone of meaning in his writings. An increase in the exposure of transcendentalist elements in the 19th century led to a proliferation of literary themes dealing with democracy, equality, beauty, sex, the circle of life, and the value of interacting among the natural elements, presented in a new perspective that allowed society to grasp the elegance in the fundamental concepts of the human world. From a young age, Walt Whitman had a more liberal mindset than the rest of society in the early 1800s. Whitman had a passion for democracy, which can be partially attributed to his upbringing and his parents, who showed their own admiration for their country by naming Walt’s younger brothers after American heroes such as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Andrew Jackson. In 1846, Whitman became editor of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle; however, Whitman had different opinions from his bosses and his readers, giving him a bad reputation.

“We will walk on our own feet; we will work with our own hands; we will speak our own minds” This message encompasses the whole ideology of transcendentalism. The transcendentalist were a group of individuals attempting to pave their own path in the world. Without them the progression of women’s rights, anti-slavery laws and various religious movements would slow tremendously.

Walt Whitman, the poet who authored and narrates “Song of Myself,” an excerpt from Leaves of Grass, provides the transcendentalist notion that grass is a reincarnate of its human predecessors. After being asked about the origins of grass, Whitman describes the grass growing in between the graves of a cemetery: “Growing among black folks as among white,” and, “It may be you are from old people, or from offspring taken soon out of their mothers’ laps” (ll. 23, 29). He assumes that the grass originates from the cadaver of an individual that has passed, regardless of ethnic race or background, who were buried in the ground, not through decomposition, but through their spirit passing on into a new life. Furthermore, Whitman’s emphasis on the grass’

Walt Whitman, a civil war nurse was a self-taught poet in the 1800s. Whitman is known for using lists, anaphora, free verse, and other literary devices in his poems. In his works, he focuses on American workers, diversity, transcendent approaches to nature, and individualism. “Song of Myself,” a poem written by Whitman, explores themes of nature, sex, democracy, and spirituality. Whitman uses nature to fuel his creativity in using grass as a symbol of comparison to life by using imagery, metaphors, and analogies.