Walt Whitman: The Complete Poems (Penguin,
1986)
Notes on the poems: pp.
790-864 or 793-868 (depending on the edition)
Main Whitman Website:
www.jlc/net/~rwright/pages/ww.html
Assignment 1. Read the Introduction to
Walt Whitman by RWB Lewis on the REPRINT from Major Writers of America. Answer each of the questions below.
1.
In your own words, what does Lewis say Whitman did in the last 25 years of his
life, beginning around 1867?
2.
What has “recent scholarship” begun to do?
3. According to the second ¶ , how did Whitman achieve this concealment? What did he do to his book? Why?
4. What happened to Whitman’s poetry and identity or voice as a poet as the years went on?
5. What does Lewis say in the fourth ¶ one must do to “disentangle” Whitman and separate the poet from the posture, the real from the unpersuasive?
6. In which editions of Leaves of Grass is the “real Whitman” to be found?
7. What does Lewis say Whitman’s “best poems” are about?
8. What is the relationship between Whitman’s biography and his poetry? Is one important to the other?
9. Briefly describe Whitman’s background.
Was it conducive to becoming a poet?
10. Where did Whitman move to in 1841?
Where did he visit in 1848?
11. What were Whitman’s political views?
12. What is the relationship between all of Whitman’s various jobs, occupations, roles, etc., and his identity as a poet?
13. What is “Song of Myself”?
Lewis describes it as part what and part what?
14. What was Whitman the first American poet to break free from?
15. How does the tone or mood of the 1860 edition of Leaves of Grass differ from that of the 1855 and ‘56 editions?
Why is this so, according to most Whitman biographers? (pp. 576-577)
16. What was the “grand Romantic strategy”? How did Whitman employ it in the 1860 edition?
17. What poem is probably the best representative of Whitman’s conception of reality in 1860? (p. 578, top)
18. What event greatly influenced the 1867 edition? (Part IV)
19. What was Whitman’s involvement in the Civil War and how did this involvement begin?
20. How did Whitman support himself during his time in Washington, DC?
What problems did he encounter there? (p. 580, left)
21. Where did he live until his death?
22. What was The Good Gray Poet ? Who wrote it and why?
What did it actually end up doing to the “genuine Whitman for almost a century”?
23. What happened to Whitman’s poetry from 1867 on?
24. Which war poems (in general) are the most striking? (p. 581, left)
25. What did Whitman say about his work in the 1871-1872 Preface to Leaves of Grass ? (Part V)
26. What did the end of Whitman’s life consist of?
27. What elements characterized the 1881-1882 edition of Leaves of Grass ? (p. 582, right)
Assignment
2. American Experience: Walt Whitman. View the film in class or view it/read the transcript
at www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/whitman/program/and answer the questions below.
1. List five significant things you learned from this film that you DID NOT know from reading the introductory reprint for Assignment 1.
2. Of the things you listed, which seems the most important, and why?
3. What things in the introductory reprint were you better able to understand after watching this film?
Assignment 3. Letter from Emerson and the Preface to the 1856
Edition of Leaves of Grass. Read the Letter from Emerson and the Preface to the 1856 Edition (pp.
762-773 of Complete Poems) and answer
the following:
1. What, in general, did Emerson write to Whitman after reading the first edition?
2.
To
whom is this 1856 preface addressed?
3.
What
does Whitman say in the ¶ beginning “Swiftly, on limitless foundations...”
about the people to whom he is drawn, and who will be represented in his poems?
4.
In
the next ¶, what does Whitman say will be the characteristics of “our own” literature in America?
5.
What
ideas in the ¶ beginning “What else can happen” are in agreement with Emerson’s
views expressed in “The American Scholar”?
6.
In
the ¶ beginning “A profound person,” according to Whitman, which sorts of
people are traveling “straight for the slopes of dissolution”?
7.
What
does Whitman say about the development of America on p. 769 in the ¶ beginning,
“America, having duly conceived”?
8.
Read
pp. 770-771 carefully. What does Whitman say here about sexuality?
9.
What
does Whitman say about Emerson’s work towards the end of the Preface?
NOTE:
At several point is this Study Guide, you will be asked to use the notes at the
back of the book to find out information about certain poems, such as their
original titles, versions, or dates of publication. Here’s how to use the notes
in the back of Walt Whitman: The Complete
Poems
Ř To find out which poems were in the 1855 edition of Leaves of Grass and which ones were added in 1856, search through the notes pages (starting on p. 791 in newer editions and p. 789 in older ones) for the dates 1855 and 1856. If you see 1855, then the poem was in the first edition.
Ř If you see 1856 and NOT 1855, then the poem was added in 1856.
Ř If you see something like this
title] LG 1867
at the beginning of a note, it means the poem got its current TITLE in 1867; that‘s not the first time it was published, however. Read the rest of the note and find the earliest date.
Let’s
take the poem, “A Woman Waits for Me,” whose note, found on p. 797 or 801
depending on the edition, is reproduced below:
title] LG 1867; Poem of Procreation LG 1856; Enfans d’Adam, No. 4 LG 1860.
Ř This means the poem got its current title in the 1867 edition of Leaves of Grass; it was called “Poem of Procreation” when it was published in the1856 edition of Leaves of Grass; it was called “Enfans d’Adam” No. 4 in the 1860 edition of Leaves of Grass.
Ř So this poem was first published in 1856; we can tell this because there is no earlier date given in the note.
You can tell where to find a note on a particular poem by seeing what page number the poem is on and then going to the section of notes that includes the page. The same goes for sections of poems and the notes on the sections, such as Children of Adam or Calamus.
Assignment
4. Poems from Inscriptions
What is the closest definition of “inscription” as Whitman uses it HERE (don’t just put down any old definition)?
“When I Read the Book” (p.
43)
1. When did this poem first appear in Leaves of Grass ? When did it first appear in the Inscriptions section?
2. What was the original text of the poem?
3. What type of book does this poem concern?
4. What does Whitman imply about his own life?
“Shut Not Your Doors” (p. 48)
1. When was the poem first written?
2. When was it first published in Leaves of Grass?
3. When was it put into Inscriptions?
4. What does Whitman say he will bring to libraries?
5. Why might they shut their doors to his work?
6. What might Whitman have meant by: “The words of my book nothing, the drift of it everything”?
7. According to the last line, which people will “thrill to every page”? (Put the answer in your own words!)
8. How does the theme of this poem relate to what Whitman said, in the 1856 Preface ( pp. 763-774), he wanted to do?
“Thou Reader” (p. 49)
1. What is the reason Whitman gives here for having written the poems that are about to follow in his book?
Assignment
5. Poems from “Song of Myself” (pp. 63-124)
Reminder: USE THE NOTES in the back of the book as you read. LOOK UP ANY UNFAMILIAR WORDS NOT INCLUDED IN THESE NOTES.
Poem 1:
1. What personal information does Whitman give about himself in this poem?
2. What is a “creed”?
3. What does “abeyance” mean?
4. What comes to mind when you see the word “school”?
5. What, then, is the message sent by Whitman when he says he wants to keep “creeds and schools in abeyance”?
Poem 2:
Note: A strophe (stro-fe) is each group of lines. A line begins with a capital letter.
1. Which of the five senses is used most in the first strophe?
Is this an effective technique? Explain.
2. What does Whitman say he wants to do in the first strophe?
3. What images (mental pictures) do you see in the second strophe?
4. What tone is Whitman using when he ask the reader in the third strophe, “Have you felt so proud to get at the meaning of poems”?
5. When Whitman tells the reader in the fourth strophe: “You shall not look through my eyes either, nor take things from me: /You shall listen to all sides, and filter them from yourself,” what is he instructing us NOT to do?
What should we do instead?
Poem 5: [Ms. Culliton’s personal favorite Song of
Myself poem]
1. Who or what is Whitman speaking to in this poem?
2. What form does the soul seem to take?
3. What images do you see in the second and third strophes?
4. What is Whitman’s tone in the last strophe (beginning, “Swiftly arose …”)?
What seems to have happened between him, his soul, and the rest of humanity?
5. What impression do you get of Whitman as a person from reading poems 1, 2, and 5 above?
Poem 10:
1. List the images of American life depicted in poem 10.
2. In what ways does this poem differ quite a bit from poems 1, 2, and 5?
Assignment
6. Poems from the Children of Adam (Enfans d’Adam) section
“I Sing the Body Electric”
(p. 127)
1. When was this poem first published?
2. What was its first title?
When was its current title given?
3. Transcendental philosophy held that nature was divine and that human nature was divine. Whitman was much influenced by the transcendentalists, especially by Emerson. Does this poem reflect a similar belief in the divinity of nature and of the human soul or human nature? Does it also regard the physical body as divine? Explain.
4. Look at section 4. What does Whitman say here about associating with other people?
5. Explain what this poem has to say on the topics of racial and gender equality.
6. What writing technique does Whitman use in section 9?
Is it effective, in your opinion? Explain.
“A Woman Waits for Me” (p.
136)
1. What was the original title of this poem?
When was it first published?
2. What type of woman does the speaker prefer? What type does he not prefer?
How does this preference relate to what Whitman wrote in the 1856 preface?
3. What rather odd statement does the speaker make in line 14 (“I see that they are worthy…”)?
4. Taken as a whole, does the poem present the speaker as a romantic man who would be effective at wooing women? Explain, using specific references to lines in the poem.
5. What is the relationship between sex/procreation and the United States put forth in this poem (see its last strophe especially)?
“Native Moments” (p. 143)
1. When was this poem first published?
2. In a few words of your own, explain what the speaker is planning on doing.
3. What sort of people will he being doing this with?
4. Explain the meaning of line 9.
5. Why should this poem probably be in the Calamus section?
“Once I pass’d Through a
Populous City” (p. 144)
1. What / who was the original subject of this poem in the unpublished manuscript version (see the note on it)?
2. Is the change from manuscript to published version a major change or a minor one? Explain.
3. Why might Whitman have made such a change? Was he hypocritical in so doing, considering the ideals in which he professed to believe?
Entire Section
Read through the rest of the poems in this section. Choose ONE, note its title below, and write a brief reflection on / analysis of it.
Assignment
7. Poems from the Calamus section
“Hours Continuing Long, Sore,
and Heavy-Hearted” (Calamus #19) (p. 609)
1. What is the only edition of L of G in which this poem appeared?
2. What image do you derive from the first two lines? (A “line” begins with a capital letter.)
3. What image do you derive from the third line?
4. What do we finally find out in the fourth line?
5. In the sixth line, (“Sullen and suffering…”), how does the speaker feel about himself?
What could “I am what I am” refer to?
What may be the reason for putting these words in parentheses?
6. What does the speaker wonder in the next two lines, beginning: “Hours of torment…” and “Is there even…”?
(It does NOT have to do with his former lover.)
7. In the last four lines, what does the speaker try to imagine (it is NOT his former lover!)?
8. What purpose did Whitman hope to achieve (see the last line) by writing/publishing this poem?
9. As noted, Whitman rejected this poem after publishing it only once. Why do you suppose he did so?
As a reader, do you see major faults in this poem, especially compared to poems Whitman retined in L of G ? Explain.
“Whoever You Are Holding Me
Now in Hand” (Calamus #3) (p. 148)
(Answers to Questions 2 & 3 should contain quotations as well as your own explanations / interpretations.)
1. Define these words as each is used in the poem:
leaves:
novitiate:
to con (verb):
2. Where and how does Whitman make reading a book seem like a sensual act? Cite at least two places and quote the lines.
3. How does he make reading Leaves of Grass seem like a nonconformist act for which the reader may be whipped by society’s displeasure, to coin a phrase of Emerson’s? Cite at least two places and quote the lines.
4. “Me” and “I” are both Walt and Walt’s book. How does he portray himself and his work in relation to the reader, “you” (who is both reader and lover)? In the end, what command does he issue?
“When I Heard at the Close of
the Day” (Calamus #11) (p. 155)
1. What did the speaker hear regarding himself?
Did it make him happy?
And by the way, how do we know that the speaker is a man, other than that Whitman’s poetry is more often than not autobiographical; think of the time period in which the poem was written?
2. What is important to the speaker, what does make him happy or make a day a good day?
3. What image concludes the poem?
4. What technique did Whitman use here to make an old theme — a lover’s bringing happiness — still seem fresh and vivid?
“Sometimes with One I Love”
(Calamus #39) (p. 165)
1. What is Whitman saying here about the value of life experience in creating art such as poetry?
“You Whom I Often and
Silently Come” (Calamus #43) (p. 167)
1. What feeling is Whitman describing in this poem?
2. What images do you picture while reading this poem?
Assignment
8. A poem from the Sea-Drift section
“Out of the Cradle Endlessly
Rocking” (p. 275)
1. What was the poem’s title in 1860, and how did its content differ somewhat?
Do you prefer the original or revised lines? Why?
2. What two living things are presented in the first five lines?
3. What is the setting of the poem (place, time)?
4. The boy now a man, the speaker, calls the mockingbird “sad brother” (line 9). Why?
How are the bird and man related? (Read the whole poem before answering.)
5. From what perspective is the poem told?
It is a “reminiscence”—of what?
6. The italicized lines are those of the bird, the regular lines those of the speaker (boy/man). Describe what the speaker saw that time on Paumonok (Long Island), and what he heard. Go step by step through the poem.
7. In line 144, the speaker suggests that the bird is a demon. What did the bird do to the speaker as a boy that causes him to say “…I that was a child…Never more shall I escape…Never again leave me to be the peaceful child…”? As an adult, what did the experience come to mean for the speaker—into what did it initiate him? What is “…the sweet hell within …the destiny of me…”?
Assignment
9. A Poem from the Drum–Taps section
“The Wound Dresser” (p. 333)
1. What is the biographical and historical background of this poem?
2. From what perspective is Whitman telling his story?
3. To whom is he addressing the poem?
4. What sorts of stories do those who are his audience expect to hear? (part I, lines 9-12)
5. What indication does Whitman give in part I that he sympathized with both sides in the war?
6. Name the five most vivid images, to you, in “The Wound Dresser.”
7. List at least three quotations in which Whitman demonstrates how the wounded men affected him emotionally.
8. How does this poem support Emerson’s contention that “drudgery, calamity, exasperation, and want are instructors in eloquence and wisdom” and that life experience is essential to creativity?
9. What were your feelings / reactions upon reading this poem?
Mini-project:
Create a small
(no larger than 12 X 18 inches) collage of BOTH words (quotations from the
poems) AND images (could be drawn by you, could be from magazines, could be
photos, etc.); you should also include objects (things, pieces of STUFF). The
collage should express the general spirit of Whitman’s work as well as
communicate some of the specific themes, images and messages you chose from his
work. You may choose to concentrate on a particular poem, a particular grouping
of poems, or on several disparate works. Include the title(s) of the work(s)
somewhere in the collage.