Personal Project: YouTubing Whitman II — Selections of "Calamus"

(Finally, after annoying technical issues, here it is!)

I decided to take on the challenge of editing videos. Thanks to the support from my friends who helped me not only as actors but also for providing me with resources that gave me access to great sound and editing! I selected a few passages from "Calamus" and attempted to give a visual portrayal on those with plenty of imagery to follow up on.

So. To get into the production of the video and some thoughts.

Anthony Ghadieh. Best friend since the beginning of elementary school. He so happens to have been a Walt Whitman fan even before I heard much of the poet beyond mere mention in anthologies. He usually already even has a grizzly look going on, but still I was happy to hear that he was willing to take on the role as my subject for the project—bonus points for his experience in acting in school plays and musicals.

Sophia Sarnicola. Another best friend of mine, though we met at a later time during middle school years. In addition to being an awesome poet, she's also a great artist, musician (who plays the drums, cello, guitar, and bass), graphic designer, everything. Her experience with recording sound (not to mention her killer collection of equipment that includes a $100+ microphone) and also directing and editing videos was pretty much a beautiful package of awesome I needed to learn how to manage my own project. Plus, she makes for a great companion for my Whitmanian friend.

Myron Lam. Yet a third of my best friends whom I've had the pleasure of meeting in elementary school. Though he is away at UCI, he's taken his time to help Sophia and I fix our video issues and going over steps to not only solve the problem, but to also take part in fixing up the corrupt files. While he did not take part in the development of the project, nonetheless, he's just as much of a big help to me as my other two buddies. With his expertise in computers and experiences creating and editing videos (among his many other talents in classical music and composition) I couldn't ask for a better person to help me out.

As for myself, thanks to work experience as an intern for YBCA (in San Francisco) for the YAAW program and for the RYSE center in Richmond as a member of ArtsChange, I know how to create basic storyboards for how to plan out recording videos and set up stage directions, if you will.

The four of us have all attended the same elementary school (Ohlone Elementary in Hercules, CA) and, from time to time, we hang out in this hidden forest that hides behind our school's park. A handful of people know about it (boo to tagging on trees) but it's the perfect location to get many of the nature and isolation imagery found in "Calamus."

A lot of the detailed imagery is based on the forest—the location of isolation. Nature happens to be the main source of Whitman's imagery in all of his poems—even in his Specimen Days entries. Fortunate to have some sort of forest nearby, even though I was with friends shooting scenes, it's amazing how even then, there's only nature and it's openness—it's a world outside of time and the hustle and bustle of other human beings. There's even a sense of comfort to be beheld from Mother Nature as anything that takes place within the green and trees is practically secretive—mum's the word, I figure, and it makes me think of the "dark mother" found in "Lilacs". The primordial world revolves around the power of the female mother's of the Earth. Nature is the closest thing to pure cosmos and understanding the true world (over "seeing" to "believe), despite the fact that such knowledge is perhaps unobtainable to the human mind. Still, Whitman takes on this quest and finds it in the nearest and most available portal into the origins of Gaea. Even if the rest of the world shuns one, one typically can return to the arms of their mothers (Gaea) and feel better. But definitely, the fresh, green, aromatic, and overall natural feel of the forest imagery is not only a perfect, ideal world for Whitman, but also the fantasy realm the speaker of "Calamus" can escape into until he is ready to take on the (contrasting) industrialized, consumer-based, and conformist society. It's something interesting to me that there is definitely a lack of sensual images compared to those of nature.

I tried to get more light pouring in in later readings to signify the changing tone of the poem as the speaker rises to the occasion and learns to step out from his self-exile and back into the world where he openly expresses himself and his love for comrades—a moment of epiphanies and revelations. I found it hard to visualize the metaphors beyond the forest, and so I thought that the subtle lighting could at least present this, though, looking back, it's hard to say that the lighting was completely controlled (ain't no one tell the Sun what to do).

...

In the end, I really am happy to have had taken this class. As a first-year student at SFSU, it's refreshing to have gone outside of the usual classroom feel of high school and experience the hybrid of an online/in person class. I especially enjoy the fact that, rather than just writing formal responses to Whitman and turning in essays, class sessions were discussions where we can give our thoughts and feedback and overall have a full-on conversation about poetry—which I feel like is a great way to talk about something that isn't necessarily confined to one interpretation. It was also helpful to get some historical background information pertaining to the world of Walt Whitman, as that gave more dimension to his poetry (and how we read it according to his time and our own). Perhaps the title of the course should be changed to avoid garnering disappointed Frost fans. Then again, it's a cool way to have them embrace and get in contact with Whitman, despite false advertising, haha!

Guthrie and Whitman: Of Art and Politics

I guess to sort of go back into what I said during the Sandburg lecture, I recall learning in my Fables and Tales class that a lot of folklore and fables were written in times of social upheaval and change. Interestingly, a lot of these stories were written by people who were not of the reigning upper class. Aesop, for example, was a slave from Samos. Marie de France, a famous medieval poet, was a woman who wrote poems that defied the standards and traditions of the Church and ultimately gave women a more prominent stance, among other things. Many poets and artists use their craft to speak otherwise (in cases that threaten their lives) or to speak out loud to convey their perspectives of the world around them.

With that said, there are even many modern mediums of art that directly correlate to politics. A visual art example that can be considered is the famous image of Barack Obama of "Hope", designed by Shepard Fairey. It's become this iconic image that we associate with the election of our first black president—and that holds significance to many people, albeit for many different reasons. To go away from visual art, there's also the popular medium of spoken word poetry that includes youth and adults alike reciting lyrical and personal accounts that can often times call out to a large issue at hand.


Whitman represents the people via cataloging and listing. He calls upon the "greasy or pimpled—or that you was once drunk, or a thief, or diseased, or rheumatic, or a prostitute—or are so now—or from frivolity or impotence—or that you are no scholar, and never saw your name in print" in "Song of Occupations" and many more in "Song of the Open Road". Guthrie, on the other hand, does not specify, but I feel like he is just as inclusive by not doing so. The"migrants" of "Pastures of Plenty" and the "people" of "This Land is Your Land" are given context as being people deprived of their home(land) and being driven to labor for what they ought to already have. In a way, I can't help but think about how political figures want to specify and include as many demographic appeals as possible in gathering for support in regards to Whitman, but it's more of a comparison as to how each seek to reach out for their audience. As for Guthrie, besides being, to me, anyway, a parallel of the generality of music and its structure, he appeals to the masses without defining (risking exclusion) of those he hopes to speak for; it's clear that the farmers and migrants of the Great Depression are being described in the given text and, regardless of who they are, they are included in among a specific genus (rather than listed as many species, if you will follow this brief and strange word choice).


For Whitman, because he is a performer and a poet, among many, many other roles, he is similar to the modern day spoken word poet in that his poetry calls for more than just reading words off of a page. It calls for the audience to listen to someone who wants to share an experience, to connect with what he wants to say, and, ultimately, someone who desires for some change to take place. It's even obvious in many of his works' titles that he is emulating a song—spoken word poetry that flows through free verse and, in essence, free speech. Guthrie takes the "song" a bit further (and albeit a bit more traditionally) by creating and reciting lyrical works and music that project the ill effects of the Great Depression that are inflicted upon "the migrants".

Ginsberg and Whitman

(Of personal note, I want to explore both of the poems in one question each, bringing them together for the final question -- otherwise, I would feel like I could not come to share my full thoughts on either in regards to the specific questions)

1. Ginsburg's "Howl" follows a pattern on lines that maintain a steady rhythm. The repetition of "who" within the structure of the poem connotes the title's act of "howling" or "yawping" -- it's a speech and a performance that seeks to express a higher message to its audience as it represents the people. Like Whitman, Ginsburg uses his poem "to recreate the syntax and measure of poor human prose and stand before you speechless and intelligent and shaking with shame, rejected yet confessing out the soul to conform to the rhythm of thought in his naked and endless head" ("Howl"). The "who", then, becomes the counterpart of "you" as the pronoun that brings in the reader, the people, as its subject. Unlike Whitman, however, Ginsburg focuses more on the "the best minds of my generation" as he lists out the many, many different characteristics and features that make up who they are and the experiences they encounter as "outcasts" of a capitalistic and conformist society. Also, each section that starts with who appears to have a sort of "beat" or rhythm to it as there's a momentum that leads the musicality to what sounds like iambic meter. Here, then, the syntax and form of the poem is more formal and in control as opposed to the free verse of Whitman that possessed its own varied rhythm and poetic feet. Nevertheless, especially after listening to Ginsburg read the poem, there is a speech-like, epic poetry style that can be traced to Whitman's style of performing his words, bending the role of poetry beyond paper -- beyond the standard, but distant relationship between reader and poet.

2. I thought I read "A Supermarket in California" somewhere recently, and it turned out that I took a look at it for the Whitman in Pop Culture assignment! Anyway, with some focus on the poem, one theme Ginsburg and Whitman share that stood out to me the most was the concept of isolation versus finding comradeship. The poem starts out with the speaker thinking of Whitman on a night stroll "with a headache subconscious". All the while, he notices Walt, "childless, lonely old grubber". When the two depart together, "solitary" is repeated a few times; their time together somehow does not erase the fact that "the trees add shade to shade, lights out in the houses, we'll both be lonely". Strangely, the all-embracing, intimate, and sensual Whitman seems to resemble the questioning, solemn Whitman of "Calamus". Going back to the title, it's as if the two men are observing from their distant, secluded place but also making a visit to the more open and populated supermarket where there are the most interactions made. Even more far-out is the reference to the ancient Greek Underworld and how the character of Whitman actually watched the ferryman of the Underworld steer the boat in a realm beyond human means. Perhaps Ginsburg hopes to evoke a sense of Whitman's situations of comradeship tending to thrive as outcasts of society, but needs to be openly expressed an shared -- though in Ginsburg's case it would be more subversive. To go more into the Greek mythology, I believe the River Lethe's waters cause forgetfulness. Could that suggest a desire to forget the rest of the world and remain in exile? Or rather, there is probably no choice -- otherwise, the two characters would have to conform to the unwilling society that rejects their camaraderie.

3. Ginsberg, a radical thinker of his time, voiced his thoughts and ideas through his poetry. As an opponent of capitalism and conformity, he writes as means to stir social unrest. Moreover, Ginsburg "the man" does not overextend as the main focus of each of these two poems -- in "Howl", he narrates and describes the stories of the outcasts who cannot openly express themselves while in "A Supermarket in California", he "interacts" with his muse representation of Whitman who serves as a representation of these similar outcasts. The poet, then, serves as the voice of these oppressed people and calls for reform.

A Look into Rukeyser's "The Book of the Dead" and Whitman's "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd"

Rukeyser's first five stanzas stand on this surface of seeing how people tend to fear and avoid death as a topic. Here, too, the "you" takes the people as a collective body going through the same experience. "The people", the readers, then are introduced to the dark cloud of gloom over death and the vague social taboo that prevents people from openly talking about the problem. Like Whitman, there's the sense of isolation, but the feeling is being sent to the reader as their own (and the narrator) as opposed to Whitman bearing this pain for himself but expressing it as a great grief over a great loss. In that regard, the message comes across, to me, as a reader, as a direct experience, whereas Whitman's poem becomes a personal, engaging encounter with the narration's sharing of his experience (as if I'm listening to a friend speak for himself and feeling what he feels).

On that note, Whitman goes from addressing a fellow mourner (perhaps "the people") of the dead to also directly confronting a metaphorical manifestation of Death. As the narration seeks to overcome grief, Death as a personification becomes a force to interact, encounter, antagonize, accept, and to converse and rejoice with. Something similar is also going on with the star in the night sky and the bird, as the struggle between being trapped by sorrow and praise for Death evolves into a final song -- the latter has won. To me, because Whitman writes of a direct conflict with the dead via these literary devices, somehow his mourning comes alive (ironic as that is), and becomes something that can be shared in an empathetic sort of way. One can feel the inner conflict between denial of the loss or feeling trapped by accepting death as some natural force that reigns our lives (and also as something that serves as a wonderful force, as much as we tend not to see the true face of our "dark mother") and celebrating the passing as freedom of suffering for the departed as also as a striking feature of life. On the other hand, I get the impression that the speaker in Rukeyser's poem also has a less despairing insight on death, but it is different from Whitman's message in that, the future is bright because there's "another day"for us as the living. Death still looms, but we must grow to accept it in the regard that, while we still hold the fate and the past dearly, there still is more to press on forward.

Carl Sandburg: Investigation and Discussion Questions

"Achelous and Hercules" by Thomas Hart Benton


Inspired by Whitman, the man of multitudes, of the cosmos, and self-proclaimed voice of the people, Carl Sandburg, in the world of 1930's Chicago, shares his own message and tells his own tale of the people. We are going to take a look at what his story evokes and involves and juxtapose it with our favorite loafer's Leaves of Grass.


Download the selected sections of The People, Yes and, while reading through them, consider and respond to the following set of questions:

1. (As worded by James) While reading select passages from Carl Sandburg’s The People, Yes, ask yourself how you think Sandburg views his function as a poet. Then, think about how these ideas ultimately define “The People, Yes” and its objective. Do these ideas differ from those that Whitman projects in poems like “Song of Myself” about his role as a poet? Does the objective of Leaves of Grass differ from the objective of The People, Yes? How so, or why not? (You might take a look at the concluding section of “Song of Myself.” Here, Whitman writes that he is “untranslatable.” What does Whitman mean when he says he is “untranslatable?” Would you consider Sandburg “untranslatable” from what you have read? Why or why not?)
2. (Considering also Casey's question) Take a closer look at Section 57 and notice how Sandburg introduces Abraham Lincoln into his poem and what sort of role he gives to him. Having considered the differences and similarities between the objectives of “The People, Yes” and “Leaves of Grass", how would you describe the methods by which the two poets represent Lincoln, and ultimately, their ideas? How may those processes be representative of their own worlds? What possible effects would these have on their readers?

For Thursday's discussion of these questions and Sandburg's The People, Yes, I probably am going to ask you all about what you think about each of the poet's "effectiveness" -- what do you think about how each of the two carried out their messages? Are you, as the reader, convinced by how and what they each say? This is something to just keep in mind, so don't worry about answering this in your blogs. Also, be sure to check out the other Sandburg posts, as there maybe some other things to keep track of like extra trinkets of information and thoughts to look out for to help further your understanding of Sandburg.

Investigation: 9/11 Poems + "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd"

"Hum" by Ann Lauterbach

Compared to Whitman's struggle to overcome loss as seen in "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd", I get the impression that Lauterbach's poem posesses a calm tone. The repeating lines of "the days are beautiful" seems assuring that things will be alright, despite the fact that "the towers are yesterday". The tone does dissipate for a moment when mentions of the towers and dust -- but even then, I feel like there's the impression that the changing scenery seems to be another "incidental" moment during the days. Following is the calming images of "the bridge over the water" -- as if the torment has calmed and is now under wraps as the days continue. By contrast, Whitman's poem has emotions ebb and flow -- he tries to figure out how to get over his mourning self whereas this poem has achieved this calm and acceptance. While Whitman's star is hidden by dark clouds, Lauterbach's scenery (weather) is hidden by dust. However, when these impediments are cleared, there is the contrast of hope in that Whitman sings of celebration (of moving on) while Lauterbach sees another day -- peace after the incident that so happened to take place. In terms of structure, Lauterbach's poem is consistent with it's two short lines, maintaining the continuous, repetitive tone of the poem -- not even the tragedy breaks the momentum, as it's part of the pattern. Whitman, being the free verse writer, is as varied as his intense emotions of suffering, mourning, contemplation and celebration. His poem describes the process of losing a loved one in its entirety, from initial suffering, to confusion/uncertainty, and finally, release from that pain. I feel it holds true and dearer to more readers as most would undergo this process and are unable to maintain their composure -- it would be pleasurable, then, in the end, to finally be able to let go and feel the remorse sting less or no more.

"Boerum Hill, (September 2001)" by Kimiko Hahn

Like Lauterbach's poem, Hahn's poem follows the organization and structure of a predetermined follow, though, in this case, it is derived from the poetic form of the tanka (though even though it is labeled as such on the link, I'm not sure if it is actually following the 5-7-5-7-7 order -- oh well. Anyway, Hahn's tanka provides scenes of 9/11 and some parts of its aftermath. Here, like Whitman, the imagery evokes a sense of loss, the pain that comes from death, its funeral processions, and trying to overcome the loss and absence of people like the wife's husband that is mentioned. However, in Hahn's poem, the pain does not go away, in sections 22 and 25, the speaker of the poem seems to have a bitter resentment toward tourists -- they do not know the true nature of the tragedy, they do not know what it was like to mourn for loved ones, and they have the audacity to come to take pictures and marvel at what is supposed to represent and mark the memorial of the many deaths that took place on 9/11. In the end, there isn't that step from mourning to the acceptance of death and its following celebration. From Whitman, we can see that it is perhaps possible to move on, but naturally it may take time and involve suffering and denial of what has come to pass.

Project Development

I decided to go ahead and develop my first idea of a project more. After thinking about the questions Thursday's class, I realized that I would probably enjoy and benefit from it more. First, I'll just post the first "draft" of the project here:


1) YouTubing Whitman Remix
I'm not really savvy when it comes to taking and editing videos, but I feel  more welcome in the realm of photography. I really wanted to choose another location for my video, but couldn't due to lack of transportation and the will to walk half an hour on a cold day. That aside, I would love to take on a longer excerpt from the poem (if not the entire poem, if the project requires such ambition) and combine it with a slideshow of images taken by myself within the sphere of my hometown, the city of Hercules -- all to capture the natural essences that Whitman has entwined in "Song of Myself". I really love the idea of using images (or anything visual) to bring more out of a poem's imagery. It does feel sort of contradictory to go with "showing" rather that "feeling" what Whitman wants to convey; nevertheless, until it is possible for us to be able to actually be within the pictures we take, this will have to do! Whitman's details of natural scenery really do paint a beautiful picture and, at the same time, do not lose sight (or touch) of its reality; the beauty comes not from dreamy clouds or spores, but instead from solid soil and grassroots. Thus, if I can take on trekking to the beach by the bay, the hidden forest, the dirt paths near and across the train tracks, it would not only be a fun field day of taking digital pictures, but it would also feel like a rough adventure through nature. Or even, instead of "Song of Myself" I could also look into "Song of Occupations" or even "Calamus" (since it's a fresh new seed of thoughts in my mind). This could be even more helpful -- what kinds of images does Whitman evoke from nature to support his ground-breaking notions? Are they "consistent" (I say this rather objectively since a poet's style can change over time, but there's still that unique voice) with each other in other poems?


So, imagery (with emphasis on nature) is the main subject, and the overall presentation will be a slideshow. I probably will also record myself reading the lines, and so while I go out to various locations to get scenic photos, I'll also have to bring my laptop or something to record myself while there -- it would feel weird reading from my room and not getting sound effects in on what's supposed to be a sort of representation of the scenes found in the poem. In the end, my goal is to try to emulate the senses Whitman is evoking from his descriptions of nature and how they relate to his work as a whole -- or at least I hope that makes as much sense anyway as it does in my mind.

Tweet-a-Week: Peter Doyle

Doyle, born in Limerick City, Ireland, was a working man, conducting streetcars, serving as an artilleryman for the Confederacy, all the while supporting his mother and siblings. One stormy winter night in 1865, while on his shift operating the car, he had a fateful encounter with a man he would become extremely close to -- and ultimately become a significant figure in the older man's life.

A poetic muse.

Regardless of whether he was a lover, a very close friend, etc., Doyle is someone dear who inspired Whitman in ways that took the poet to learn, experience, and create ideas. Perhaps it's no wonder why Whitman marvels and beholds working men -- he happens to know a great one himself! We see the amiable qualities of supporting oneself through physical labor, shoveling through the rank of not only being a worker, but also out of the mere generalization of a worker -- the man behind the wheel, the gun, etc. Doyle represents the lovable, loyal family man that becomes linked with the workingman character in poems such as "Song of Myself" and especially so in "Song of Occupations". There's also his self-dubbed nickname, "Pete the Great", that shares the same "stance" and swagger as Whitman's message of "I am me and you are you" and "I am the cosmos" -- extended even more with Whitman describing him as a "hearty full-blooded everyday divinely generous working man: a hail-fellow-well-met".

There is also, to note, the notion that Doyle may have influenced Whitman's decision to remove certain poems from his 1867 version of Leaves of Grass. According to Streitmatter:

For some scholars, the strongest impact of the relationship is found in the works Whitman deleted from the 1867 edition. That is, Whitman removed a number of poems that had appeared in the previous edition and that critics characterize as expressing the poet’s earlier “self-doubt and despair.” They say that Whitman eliminated these works because he’d now found the love of his life and therefore was in a “more optimistic mood.” In the words of one scholar, “Walt’s new-found confidence in love was, in large measure, a result of his satisfying relationship with Pete.”

If this is the case, it really makes me wonder about the subtle changes in Whitman's poetry that came from knowing Doyle -- the subtle things only those two would have known, little inside jokes or sayings between them that may seem normal but hold more weight. The powers of such a muse are vast -- he is Pete the Great, in the end.

Digression.

I actually find the photo posted on the motherblog even more interesting after reading this from Veasey's article:

Whitman was a burly six feet tall; Doyle, a slender five foot eight. Their differences extended beyond the physical. Whitman was a government clerk, journalist, and a published poet; Doyle, a workingman supporting his widowed mother and younger siblings. Whitman prided himself on patriotism; his brother George was a Union soldier, and he’d spent the last two years nursing the wounded in Washington’s army hospitals. Doyle had been a Confederate artilleryman, who’d obtained release from federal prison by claiming to be a British subject (born in Limerick, Ireland, he and his family emigrated here when he was a child). Pete and Walt were living proof that opposites attract.


In the photo (if we just consider it true in its black and white form), the two's opposite appearances come out more. Here we have the older Whitman and younger Doyle, the light-hatted Whitman and dark-fedora-ed Doyle, the dark-coated Whitman and the light-coated Doyle, the bulkier Whitman and the slender Doyle, and even the front-facing Whitman and back-facing Doyle. It's funny to think how, really, opposites can attract (though I guess it doesn't always happen, when it does, it really sets off quite a spark and magnetism).










Streitmatter, Rodger. Outlaw Marriages ~ The Hidden Histories of Fifteen Extraordinary Same-Sex Couples. Beacon Press, 2012. Web. <http://www.lgbt-today.com/news-a-articles/featured-articles/171-walt-whitman-a-peter-doyle--a-gay-poet-a-his-muse->.


Veasey, Jack. "Gay History Project: Walt Whitman and Peter Doyle." Erie Gay News. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://www.eriegaynews.com/news/article.php?recordid=200910whitmandoyle>.

Possible Projects

Ah, I can't help but feel like there are several possibilities to take on. So, because of my indecisiveness, I'll just list out the two ideas that I have:

1) YouTubing Whitman Remix -- Nature's Candy
Huh, the title sounds a lot more cutesy-cool than what it probably is. Anyway, I'm not really savvy when it comes to taking and editing videos, but I feel  more welcome in the realm of photography. I really wanted to choose another location for my video, but couldn't due to lack of transportation and the will to walk half an hour on a cold day. That aside, I would love to take on a longer excerpt from the poem (if not the entire poem, if the project requires such ambition) and combine it with a slideshow of images taken by myself within the sphere of my hometown, the city of Hercules -- all to capture the natural essences that Whitman has entwined in "Song of Myself". I really love the idea of using images (or anything visual) to bring more out of a poem's imagery. It does feel sort of contradictory to go with "showing" rather that "feeling" what Whitman wants to convey; nevertheless, until it is possible for us to be able to actually be within the pictures we take, this will have to do! Whitman's details of natural scenery really do paint a beautiful picture and, at the same time, do not lose sight (or touch) of its reality; the beauty comes not from dreamy clouds or spores, but instead from solid soil and grassroots. Thus, if I can take on trekking to the beach by the bay, the hidden forest, the dirt paths near and across the train tracks, it would not only be a fun field day of taking digital pictures, but it would also feel like a rough adventure through nature.

OR

Instead of "Song of Myself" I could also look into "Song of Occupations" or even "Calamus" (since it's a fresh new seed of thoughts in my mind). This could be even more helpful -- what kinds of images does Whitman evoke from nature to support his ground-breaking notions? Are they "consistent" (I say this rather objectively since a poet's style can change over time, but there's still that unique voice) with each other in other poems?

2) Motif: The Three Images of God
It may not seem that way, but I feel like there's plenty more to look into on this particular motif. When I did this project, I was looking for blunt and obvious mentions and references to God and religion, but what if there were subtle subtexts that relate without outright stating it? (What if any garden scenery could relate to the Garden of Eden?). I also want to include more stuff about the church and any roles it may play, and maybe, too, include some background information on how religion was practiced and thought of during this particular time -- and what about during, before, and after the Civil War, too? Overall, the treasure hunt of quotes feels unfulfilled and could use some more excavations -- the fun part about looking for quotes (or looking for artifacts) is finding new meanings and depths and explaining their signifying characteristics. In the end, if Whitman is claiming the cosmos and also explaining that one's own "specialness" is beyond that, then there may be a question of religion, and that spark may have set off flames -- that's also something to look into.

Tweet-a-Week: Martin F. Tupper

Tupper decided to try his luck sharing his work with the American public, falling flat on his face for not gaining popularity. However, when he published "Proverbial Philosophy", he garnered wide acclaim that, in newspaper reviews, swindled over time. If being considered "Tupperish" is essentially bad, and Tupper also had a piece of work called "The Crock of Gold", I sort of wonder of the phrase "crock-pot" relates to him in some way...that aside, after some quick glancing around, I'm still not quite sure what "Proverbial Philosophy"  is all about. Perhaps it's reputation became what people thought it to be, much like how Leaves of Grass turned out to be for some people.
According to Joseph L. Coulomb's ""To Destroy the Teacher": Whitman and Martin Farquhar Tupper's 1851 Trip to America", "Whitman openly admired the popular English author of "Proverbial Philosophy" (1838). Whitman had written in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle that, "the author, Mr. Tupper, is one of the rare men of the time." Tupper had received much backlash and overall public attention, and Whitman not only caught notice of the man's somewhat celebrity status via the newspaper accounts, but also used it to promote himself.
Critics even compared Tupper and Whitman several times, though it was usually in a negative light. For example, again, according to Coulomb's article, "a reviewer for the London Leader described Whitman's verse as 'wild, irregular, unrhymed, almost unmetrical 'lengths,' like the measured prose of Mr. Martin Farquhar Tupper's Proverbial Philisophy." Also "in the London Examiner, a critic supposed that, had Tupper been a self-satisfied backwoods auctioneer, 'reading and fancying himself not only an Emerson but a Carlyle and an American Shakespeare to bot,' then he would have written a 'book exactly like Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass", suggesting that the two are inter-related. Whitman had these two reviews included in his 1855 and 1856 editions of Leaves of Grass, again continuing his use on Tupper's reputation to garner his own attention. It's interesting that, sort of like Whitman, Tupper started out as a "nobody" in the United States known for poorly written work, and Whitman decided to use the scandalous image of Tupper to get himself out there -- to mix "outcast" with "outcast". Indeed, perhaps the outlandish and crude method did build up on his messages in Leaves of Grass or made him seem more lowly -- but in the end, it probably served Whitman's intentions no matter what.


Coulombe, Joseph L. ""To Destroy the Teacher": Whitman and Martin Farquhar Tupper’s 1851 Trip to America." Walt Whitman Quarterly Review. 1996: 199-209. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. <http://ir.uiowa.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1533&context=wwqr>.

Specimen Days: An Egotistical "Find"

An Egotistical "Find"

I wonder when Whitman had this moment -- had he known this message before he wrote "Leaves of Grass" or is this more along the lines of finding that his theory is true -- that, by testing his idea, he has found results that make it true? He has immersed himself in "primitive Nature" that consists of "broad handling and absolute uncrampedness" (marking the distinguishing feature of it versus the "advanced, but crowded and limited" civilization) for "hour after hour". He, again as in some other entries I have read, "painted" the scenery with images of "transparent browns, faint red and grays, towering sometimes a thousand, sometimes two or three thousand feet high -- at their tops now and then huge massed pois'd, and mixing with clouds, with only their outlines, hazed in misty lilac, visible". In particular, when one looks at the quote from the "old Dutch writer" and of Whitman's account, both acknowledge the idea of thinking how nature and its surroundings "may affect him or color his destinies"; the reference to color is definitely noticeable in that the mixture of different, natural scenes and forces create not only the universe, but also one's idea of what is universal.

Speaking of the quote, overall, at the same time, however, I feel like Whitman has become slightly distant from his original terms. In addition to the word alterations found in words like "pass'd", "untrammel'd", and "pois'd" that allude to "Shakespearean"/Biblical language, there's also the fact that he quotes "an old Dutch writer, an ecclesiastic", seems a bit strange as well. By recognizing someone who can be considered as among the upper-class, it almost seems unlike Whitman, unless this was written at a later time when Whitman seemed to have taken in to "sprucing himself up" in a mold of a typical poet. Still, the point about finding oneself in nature is found in the quote, just as it can be found in Whitman's account of this "egotistical 'find"'.

Investigation: Whitman in Pop Culture

1. Pearls Before Swine comic strip

(Image found from http://mikechasar.blogspot.com/) 

I was really happy to find that Stephan Pastis brought Walt Whitman into his comic -- something I find myself dabbling into whenever I come across a cute GIF of Pig. Regardless...
Rat, a narcissistic, sarcastic sort-of character who tends to be insulting and insensitive, at first, seems to really have done a mean thing to have messed with Whitman's poetry, especially making a sort of remark about the lack of brevity in his poems. Also, why restrain the expansive, fluid Whitman? One cannot tame such a beast. At the same time, however, would Whitman have been insulted? If his poetry had been "twittified", perhaps it could have made sharing his works and messages so much easier, gaining more readers and eyes -- culture and literary expectations, aside anyway, unless that same break from it is even more shock factor to his radicalism. After all, look at how absorbed many people are with "txt talk" and the like -- shortened messages are not only easier to write out, but they're more "portable", if you will, and are easier to share. Whether or not Rat was making a silly jab at Whitman's work or subversively suggesting that such compactness could have actually worked, there is a sense of reworking messages and text to the people and readers, and maybe Whitman would have seen humor or perhaps celebration to such a thing.

2. Breaking Bad quoting of Walt Whitman's poem, "When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer"

(Video found from http://mikechasar.blogspot.com/)

While I have never heard of this show before I found this clip, I get the feeling that the characters have reached a new bond after the recitation of the poem. From what I found, here, the main character, Walter White, a high school chemistry teacher diagnosed with lung cancer, has acquainted himself with Gale, a lab assistant for a meth lab of a drug kingpin. Walt has turned to selling the drug as a way to secure his family's financial future for when he dies. As the two men converse and Gale looks back to his thoughts of how he got to where he is, they begin to relate to each other about the magic of chemistry, a passion each of them share -- that sets the stage for Gale's recitation of the poem.
The poem itself seems to make a distinction between the rules, lessons, figures, and details of the mathematics and the awe-inspiring wonder of one experiencing the vastness of the subject -- between the inside and outside, to experience things with one's own senses, to reach that higher level of understanding etc. Walt and Gale seem to share that desire and perspective to embrace the magic of chemistry and marvel at its wonder, and from there the two bond and become closer to each other. It is here that Whitman sort of brings in that "Disney magic" without breaking into song, as blogger Mike Chasar would say. I feel like, here, Whitman's message of people coming together and also of finding the beauty in the universe -- sure, meth isn't exactly natural, but chemistry does root from taking sources and forces that sort of come from it first.

3. Allen Ginsburg's poem, "A Supermarket in California"

Ginsburg, one of the leading poets of the "Beat Generation", drew plenty of inspiration from Walt Whitman for his poetry, including for one of his famous pieces, "Howl". In a way, he was regarded as the American poet of his time, emulating a similar feel of being free and to find the truth of experience in the world.

I feel like, in this poem, Ginsburg relates to Whitman as an equal, close family figure or a close friend. Together, they go through a sort of adventure through a supermarket within the dreams of the speaker just from having touched Whitman's book. While Whitman may feel quiet and almost even a mundane sort of figure, there is still the otherworldly wonder he possess in finding meaning in getting intimate with his surroundings. There is also a respect for the poet, as the speaker regards Whitman as "dear father, graybeard, lonely old courage-teacher"; while again a bit calm and tame for the radical and yawping figure, nevertheless, Ginsburg acknowledges his utmost point of having looked up to Whitman as a source of inspiration, a phenomenal role model for American poets, and also a figure that shares the same radical views Ginsburg may have.

Investigation: Reviews of Leaves of Grass

Dana, Charles A. --The New York Daily Tribune's [Review of Leaves of Grass (1855)]

In regards to "Leaves of Grass", this critic seems to focus on the language and how it reflects Whitman, "the natural poet." Dana remarks that the poems "are certainly original in their external form, have been shaped on no pre-existent model out of the author's own brain". After reading this review a second time, I caught notice of the overall elevated language of the critique itself -- something linked to the traditional and respected view of poets in this time. I would figure, too, that "The New York Daily Tribune" also carries some prestige, and that would also explain the style and diction. It's almost like an older tree-parent (if such things existed) was giving its perspective on the young saplings that are growing from their traditional views; by saying that his nature may be "coarse and defiant" while his language may come from a "naive unconsciousness", it gives the impression that the traditional old fogeys -- the elitist, aristocratic scholars and writers -- view Whitman sort of like their own teenage son whose thoughts, ideas, and style is something they feel is caused by inexperience or lack of proper "literary grooming", if you will. It's bluntly stated, thus, in this way: "His words might have passed between Adam and Even in Paradise, before the want of fig-leaves brought no shame; but they are quite out of place amid the decorum of modern society, and will justly prevent his volume from free circulation in scrupulous circles". Until Whitman "cultivates" himself into the "decorum", then he may be left out of the "prestigious tree circles, and possibly forests of the literature world". Nevertheless, there is recognition of the idea that Whitman aspires to share enlightening to the reader from every core of his being and that, throughout the poem, there is this "genuine intimacy with Nature and a keen appreciation of beauty" -- that sensuality that brings everyone beyond knowledge, but that seems to have been missed by this critic at least partially if not the other acknowledgment of "bold, stirring thoughts".

Anonymous -- Life Illustrated's [A curious title]

This curious reader took the leap into the "unconnected, curious, and original" "Leaves of Grass" and seems to have found "striking truth and beauty". Here, it is noted that, though Whitman may be a loafer, he is "thoughtful", "amiable", and "able", someone who is not limited by his "occupation" as a loafer but who transcends into respectable thought. Perhaps this reader is one of the "free-souled persons" mentioned who "read and chuckle[d] over with real delight as the expression of their own best feelings", noticing, probably, the beauty of nature, of the equal, yet different divine qualities of each and every person, the sensuality of experience through the senses -- something that struck the reader that isn't specifically mentioned besides the "independent sentences" and "rhythmical prose". By giving the alternative title, American Life, from a Poetical Loafer's Point of View, the critic, maybe, saw "Leaves of Grass" as the fresh, newly surfacing perspective (after being denied due to the presence of the respected traditional aristocratic view) that brought to light the democratic pride that needs to be addressed and embraced.

Somehow, the comparison between the book, "Leaves of Grass" and a small atlas stood out to me, especially so when, at the end of the critique, there's the remarks that it "was printed by the author's own hands, and that he is philosophically indifferent to its sale. It pleased him to write so, and the public may take it or let it alone, just as they prefer". To me, it almost seemed like the critic is saying Whitman made this sort of map to the world around us, but this map is almost like that of a treasure map in that it's something he left behind for those curious to search and explore its "new and peculiar" contents. However, is Whitman completely indifferent? After all, he puts himself out to the world by setting himself apart from the aristocratic literary contemporaries of the time by taking on the image of "a perfect loafer", and thus wants that attention to be on him and his messages.

However, just as curious as this claim is, so is this curious critic, indeed -- why be anonymous? Perhaps this person fears backlash from those who do not share his/her sentiments about the "unconnected, curious, and original" Whitman? Maybe it is because this person pretty much divides the "respectable people" from those who would find beauty in "Leaves of Grass" and thus, including the first suggestion, brings to light the inevitable social pressures and norms with some question and criticism -- that the elite can only see nonsense in such an original collection?

Anonymous -- Punch Magazine's [A Strange Blade]

This critic refers to Fanny Fern who also has her own critique featured  in The New York Ledger; it can be assumed that Punch's critic couples her with Whitman because of their similarities in literary style, representations of middle-class, and perhaps for their lack of conformity with the norm -- basically, different equals bad, says the anonymous speaker, who also so happens to have not much to say besides calling "Leaves of Grass" a "mad book". Perhaps, by referring to Whitman's claim of being the "Kosmos," this reader saw Whitman as an arrogant loafer who thinks himself bigger than he really is, for what kind of "American Rough" would dare express such defiance toward the norm? But, if that's the case, did the person completely miss out on the message that all are equally different and powerful? What is it about "Leaves of Grass" that has this person compare it to a weed that needs to be removed from "the fields of American Literature"? Was it the colloquial language that seemed to be unclassy? Was it the fact that the image of Whitman just became this stereotyped image in the Anon's head that rendered him from taking the text seriously or under the same light as well-respected contemporaries? Why be anonymous in the first place if it's okay to consider Whitman's work something bad? Going back to Fern's work and the label of "green stuff", this critic must have kept traditional styles too close to heart, for anything "new" seems to be inferior -- these new blades need to be cut before they ruin the fields of well-respected writers. Overall, it just feels like this reader had nothing constructive to say and just expressed his/her initial reaction to the radical book, leaving no room for acceptance of the new form or new poet, even though, with time and new experiences, that there will come new perspectives and takes on not just poetry and literature, but everything as well.

Tweet-a-week: Frances Wright (1795 - 1852)

Born in Scotland, Frances Wright was a woman who supported the abolitionist movement and who possessed her own radical ideas that she aspired to share with the world (that's one thinking pose in the picture). In 1825, she founded her own utopian community called Nashoba where she had slaves work for money so that they would raise enough for their own emancipation. As part of the commune, she advocated for free love and sexual freedom, a decree that was quite controversial for the suggestion of interracial marriage -- an institution that defiled the marriage standard of the time. Nevertheless, her eagerness to promote equality among all connects well with Whitman's message that all are equally unique and of great significance. All should embrace each other and be open to "touch" (both literally and figuratively), regardless of anything that may label one inferior to the other. With that said, Wright was also a prominent advocate for women's rights. However, her stance and lectures were unpopular with many people (just look at this caricature from http://www.sparecandy.com/2010/07/in-history-frances-wright.html).

As a contemporary, Whitman even attended many of her lectures, and he had this to say:

"In those days I frequented the anti-slavery halls, in New York — heard many of their speakers — people of all qualities, styles — always interesting, always suggestive. It was there I heard Fanny Wright ... a woman of the noblest make-up whose orbit was a great deal larger than theirs — too large to be tolerated for long by them: a most maligned, lied-about character — one of the best in history though also one of the least understood. She had a varied career here and in France — married a damned scoundrel, lost her fortune, faced the world with her usual courage. Her crowning sorrow was when the infernal whelp who had been her husband tried in France, through the aid of a priest, to take from her her daughter, charging that the child needed to be protected from the danger of her mother's infidelistic teachings. Think of it! ... The scoundrel, through the aid of the French law, which is of all law probably the least favorable to women, got nearly her whole fortune, perhaps the whole of it, so that at the last, when she needed five thousand dollars or so, she had to beg it of him, he even then making the concession reluctantly. But my remembrance of her all centers about New York. She spoke in the old Tammany Hall there, every Sunday, about all sorts of reforms. Her views were very broad — she touched the widest range of themes — spoke informally, colloquially. She published while there the Free Inquirer, which my daddy took and I often read. She has always been to me one of the sweetest of sweet memories: we all loved her: fell down before her: her very appearance seemed to enthrall us. I had a picture of her about here — it is probably somewhere in the house still: a sitting figure — graceful, deer-like: and her countenance! oh! it was very serene."

He can related to her colloquial style of speaking and her open-minded views on many aspects of life -- all of which are characteristics of his own work in poems such as "Song of Myself" and "A Song for Occupations". He sympathized with the shared view of aiming toward a more Democratic America where equality reigns, regardless of race or gender. It is especially admirable that, even though there are people who do not agree with her and her radical ideas, she continued to press onward with getting her thoughts out there (the feminist movement of the 20th century used her ideas as part of their self-expression). She also possesses true benevolence for his fellow man, for, even though her project at Nashoba did not work out, she still had the remaining slaves transported to the freshly independent land of Haiti where they could live as free men and women -- a good Samaritan act that shares the same communal qualities as Whitman which can be referred to the treatment of the runaway slave in "Song of Myself".


After all, "She had all of Ingersoll's magnetism and perhaps more than his tact. ...She was a brilliant woman, of beauty and estate, who was never satisfied unless she was busy doing good — public good, private good." -- Walt Whitman

Sources:

"Frances Wright." eNotes. The Library Company of Philadelphia, n.d. Web. <http://www.librarycompany.org/women/portraits/wright.htm>.

"Frances Wright." Wikiquote. Wikiquote, 12 Aug 2011. Web. 1 Mar 2012. <http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Frances_Wright>.

"Fanny Wright." Spartacus International. N.p., 07 May 2002. Web. <http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/REwright.htm>.


"Portraits of American Women Writers -- Frances Wright." The Library Company of Philadelphia. The Library Company of Philadelphia, n.d. Web. <http://www.librarycompany.org/women/portraits/wright.htm>.

Specimen Days: Colors -- A Contrast

Colors -- A Contrast

This entry feels overall so poetic. The imagery plays with colors -- "such a play of colors and lights" -- and other art-related ideas ("faint-tinged", use of "lines", "landscape", "sapphire and gold", "dark green", "gray", "dull hues", "emerald", and "light yellow"; it's like, in addition to the scenes of nature, there's a blending of colors that contribute a whole new sense of self for each scenery, while still holding true to their beauty. Whitman creates his out masterpiece-of-a picture of nature of remarkable beauty with the simple features of details that hardly have the "purple prose" terms of fancy elitist writers. The appreciation of the world around him can be found through the actual experience of watching the sun set and from being among trees and other greens of nature -- any time, even for "another day" -- it will always be there as long as one goes out for oneself. 

In regards to colors, it seems as if most of the color words fit more along the lines of "dark" and "dull" colors. They may refer to the darkness that comes from after sunset; thus the lastly mentioned "light yellow" would then serve as a ending with the sun returning (either for the new day or "after rain). Of course, this cycle will repeat itself, much like how, in the evolutions of "Song of Myself" and "A Song of Occupations" include changes and returns of older ideas with the new -- or colors, if you will.

Investigation: The Evolution of "A Song for Occupations"

1855

The poem took on its first form as "A Song for Occupations", a piece of work that branches from the larger roots of "Song of Myself" and begins to let the idea of the "celebrated me" reach out to embrace and procreate with the hopefully-to-become the "celebrated you". It may be the time that this poem was read that may contribute to this, but the poem is refreshing in that it gives the reader a sense of uplifting and purpose, for it's a lovely reminder that, as proclaimed in "Song of Myself", that all are equally divine and wonderful in their own ways, and that it's important to remember that no one can be better than yourself.  This song is a verse of the message from "Song of Myself" that makes call and reference to many members of the working class (the misunderstood folks), and aspires to bring them all together along with the all aspects of life and with the speaker. ("I intend to reach them my hand and make as much of them as I do of men and women." (p.52))

1856 -- "Poem of the Daily Work of Workmen and Workwomen of These States"

It's only been a year, but Whitman, much like in "Song of Myself", polishes this poem into fitting the structure of a more formal poem. He cleans up some punctuation, replacing ellipses with dashes, commas, and semicolons. However, one part that strikes me in particular is the following section:
"The wife, and she is not one jot less than the
         husband!"
The daughter, and she is just as good as the
         son!"
The mother, and she is every bit as much as the
         father!"


As it is compared to the 1855 version:
"The wife -- and she is not one jot less than the husband,
The daughter -- and she is just as good as the son,
The mother -- and she is every bit as much as the father." (p.46)

Here, besides the changes from arrangement of lines and boldness derived from the inclusion of the exclamation points, there is this new emphasis of "husband", "son", and "father" from the two changes that bring in a new perspective. The title refers to not just "workmen" but "workwomen"; Whitman acknowledges all people, regardless of gender, and makes this more clear with the alterations. Around this time and earlier from the late 18th century to the 20th century, the women's rights movement sought for women's suffrage.

In addition to referring to the working class in the title, the section that lists out many, many, aspects of working life, here in the 1856 version, has been expanded to include not only more features and types of labor, but some more details in regards to the mentioned task. Whitman is making sure to include all (or as many as possible) forces of the working class into the poem, and portraying details to exhibit a sense of sharing the task and sharing understanding and ability with the equally understanding and able people.

Whitman, in this poem as a whole, introduces and supports the notion that people ought to look beyond the social norms and structures created artificially by the elite and see that they, themselves, are worth more than they think. Just as Whitman arranges the male-figure words so that they're about parallel to the female-figure words, he maintains his original voice as he poses parallels throughout the poem to unite all among the communal universe.

1860 -- "Chants Democratic. 3."

The poem has become a member of a larger group of poems under "Chants Democratic and Native American". It feels as though, here, Whitman has stripped the individuality of the poem and has brought it into an almost anonymous being. Perhaps this is done to give the character of being "anyone" to the poem among a large "chant" of people banded together. Taking a Greek and Roman Mythology class, this, to me, also reflects Nietzsche's idea of the Dionysian, that, to be engaging, amorphous, irrational, full of emotion to channel through, there's the sense of giving up one's individuality to join oneself with the communal cosmic order -- to embrace madness to become one with a divine source, something that can't be achieved with artificial, stable, Apollonian rationality alone.

But beyond that (or perhaps related), Whitman has introduced a new beginning to the poem. Here, he adds stanzas beckoning "Male and Female!" before the lines "I pass so poorly with paper and types, I must pass with the contacts of bodies and souls"; he includes "American masses!" to introduce the lines "I do not thank you  for liking me as I am, and liking the touch of me -- I know that it is good for you to do so"; finally, he addresses "Workmen and workwomen!" before the lines that follow. Here, the voice of a chanting fellow is emphasized as one calling out, one calling for unity.

Which then raises an interesting note of the lines I quoted from before. In this poem, the lines revert to a similar punctuation as the version that comes from "A Song of Occupations", though maintains the new, formalized line structure (that creates parallels) of the 1860 version (though oddly this would only apply to the first and second lines). The exclamatory voice of 1856 has quieted as the chant leads into a almost chorus-like tone that is not just the speaker speaking, but a sense of many people taking on the persona of the speaker -- that coming together and merging that follows one person introducing the chant into becoming one with many to chant.

1871-72 -- "Carol of Occupations"

To me, a carol bears the connotation of more than one person singing to a song, and it's this collective participation that makes the song/poem give it's true meaning of bonds. In regards to its earlier source, "A Song for Occupations", it returns to the ideas of the working class who are occupied with their trades. As the 1856's title labels the poem's service to reach out to these people, a new line from this poem serves the same function:

"This is the carol of occupations;
In the labor of engines and trades, and the labor of
         fields, I find the developments,
And find the eternal meanings."

In addition to serving as an introduction, these lines do well to conclude and round up the essence of the poem's meaning -- the reader dives through the poem and take in the many details of labor, the ideas of being worth something more, and have them reverberate throughout to take in the words Whitman wants to share.

This poem, however, has strayed even farther from its roots, (even "Walt Whitman" a version of "Song of Myself" no longer follows the introduction). There's also the editing of "-ed" verbs becoming "'d" verbs, perhaps alluding to the old, widely respected texts and tones from poets such as Shakespeare. The lines of the gender figures now include a semicolon dividing the sentences, showing not only a separation of thoughts between them but also a new sense of organization in syntax that comes from a "higher" sense of writing -- being "learnt".

But a very noticeable change to the poem comes from the ending stanza of the previous aforementioned versions being moved to (and having one line completely changed) a section closer to the middle, with a whole new ending replacing it with another stanza:

Happiness, knowledge, not in another place, but this          place—not for another hour, but this hour;

Man in the first you see or touch—always in friend,          brother, nighest neighbor—Woman in mother,          lover, wife;

The popular tastes and employments taking precedence          in poems or any where,

You workwomen and workmen of These States having          your own divine and strong life,

And all else giving place to men and women like you.

Several of these lines come from version of the poems as earliest as the 1860 version, as if, over time, Whitman brings new ideas together to create this new ending, a new ending that refreshingly reaffirms his true message of every person, especially to the working class who may not see this, that there's this sense of being that is far greater than anything, within all.

1881-82 & 1891-92 -- "A Song for Occupations"

The cycling of thought brings us back to the original title after all these years. It's peculiar to note as well that these last two versions of "Leaves of Grass" are oddly similar, as if there was hardly any changes between the two. The poem is found close to the beginning middle of the entire collection, distant from it's roots, "Song of Myself" (which has also returned to it's former title).

The poems, here, strangely, revert back to the original ending, as if Whitman may wanted to return to the roots of showing that, regardless of anything, he'll be out there with open arms to all people. But he keeps the new ending as a penultimate lead into the ending, maintaining the conclusion's message. The cycle blends the exclamations of older versions, the higher use of poetic format from later versions, the chanting individualistic voice that beckons all from 1860, and the communal carol with all as one from 1871, essentially bringing all voices into this latest version, symbolically taking all parts into a new whole.

Tweet-a-week: Bowery B'hoy

The Bowery B'hoys, were a group of young men that hail from the working-class of New York in the Five Points District in the Bowery section. Their presence was prominent at around the late 1840s during the Pre-Civil War period. They dressed to impress; their suits, hats, cravats, and overall style resembled that of a gentleman, but their swagger and overall "badass" hook was in their "swing" in their walk and demeanor. They were not push-overs by any means and had pride for their independence and being able to do as he pleases for himself; they also were adventurous and daring, motivated to impress their equally flamboyant g'hals. After fulfilling their commitments to their jobs, family, and friends, they enjoyed unwinding in saloons and brothels and let loose.


It has been said that these men were "patriotically chauvinistic" (thought not nativists, per se, according to Tyler Anbinder) but, besides their "day-time" jobs lives, one could say they're also the rugged, city version of a countryside loafer. Their clothes, while seemingly aristocratic and maybe too tight for their skins, so to speak, are more like their red flag, calling all eyes on them and their swagger. Definitely a sort of character that can and possibly relate with Whitman. While there's the pleasure in being the rebel outside social norms who also enjoys grabbing some beer after working in the smith shop or farm and lying on the grass daring the world to look him in the eye, there's also that pride and freedom from being a slave to said social norms. Gangs and loafers aren't exactly the pretty picture history would like to share, but they're part of that time's (and even now) culture and story.

Anbinder, Tyler. Five Points: the 19th-century New York City neighborhood that invented tap dance, stole elections, and became the world's most notorious slum. New York: The Free Press, 2001. Web. <http://books.google.com/books?id=NbQa9adIJfkC&pg=PA178&lpg=PA178&dq=bowery b'hoy&source=bl&ots=4ecV9ds4aX&sig=BAhNUmgZ-Pweegx02aU0fyN-sRE&hl=en&sa=X&ei=zs5FT86NF8zciQK40M3tCA&ved=0CFcQ6AEwBg

Evolution of Leaves of Grass (1855, 1860, & 1867)

Wow, the 1860 volume of Leaves of Grass got a lot more Whitman into it. I feel like "Proto-leaf" -- like a prototype of "Leaves of Grass" -- served really well as an introduction into "Walt Whitman" ("Song of Myself") as it, in a way, summarizes and introduces what lies ahead in the adventures of his poetry. There's plenty of mentions of "Earth-based" elements -- soil, space, specific places, prairies, and just overall geographical features. Grass can be found just about everywhere, evenly spreading around to all places. O definitely Whitman, and a way to build up from the roots of what message he wants to get across and into the surface -- "to the leaves of grass".

I can't help but not notice the overall format change of "Walt Whitman" ("Song of Myself") -- the line arrangement, actually. The 1855 version seems to have sentences and phrases run off until they are complete or have complete thoughts and ideas (based on the pieces of sentences that can stand alone or are a complete fragment). Looking at it at first seemed almost overwhelming -- such long lines, I thought, that seemed similar in format to reading a book. Cue the 1860 version, however, and then the poem comes more alive. To me, Whitman changes the lines so that, not only do they seem "short", but his rhyme and rhythm come out at you and I was able to see what sort of musicality Whitman had in mind for the poem. While punctuation serves as the main "musical notes" in poetry as they tell you where and how to pause (and Whitman really does change from the long, drawn-out yawns of ellipses to the sort of curled but surely smooth commas and semicolons and the staccato snaps of hyphens), there's also the subtle pauses found at the ends of lines as you bring your eyes along to the next line down. Through the new arrangement of lines, Whitman brings out these new subtle breaks of silence that bring out a new meaning from the text. For example, from the passage that I read for the Youtube video assignment, I noticed that, from reading the 1860 version, that there are entirely different meanings just from small changes in line arrangement. It feels more breathy, as if one really is taking the time to slow down and take in the air, as opposed to long winded-ness that may have come from me not recognizing these subtle tones and pitches from the more extended lines.

From the blue notes etchings, I couldn't help but notice the seemingly small edits of some words. One small change original in the 1867 version is noted in the words "cool-breath'd", "elbow'd", and "apple-blossom'd". In his notes, Whitman marked of the "e"'s and kept them off in the newer remake of the poem. Why did Whitman opt for the "-'d" edit over the traditional "-ed"? There are many, many instances of this throughout the more recent version. The first conclusion that I reach is that the "-'d" is so much more "dude-ranch cowboy" like -- rugged. It breaks from the formal way of spelling and pronunciation and introduces the casual, loafer's colloquial dialect. I wonder why Whitman didn't go with this a lot sooner, especially since there's the play of the "German-French-Latin" distinction of language through his diction.

Specimen Days: A Winter Day on the Sea-Beach

A Winter Day on the Sea-Beach

This post is like a poetic experience of Whitman's account. There's lots of imagery (of course relating to nature) that gives emphasis to the beauty and splendor of nature. There's a lot of sensuality going on during that day; Whitman tastes the breakfast his sister makes and delights in the flavor, he smells the "sedgy perfume" of the meadows and prairies along the trail and the breezes of the beach's wind, the sound of the waves, and the sight of the overall scenery of the ocean and of, later, the "reception-room of an old bath-house range".

And yet, Whitman describes the sea and its shore as simple. While there is so much to experience and sense in the area, Whitman seems to comment that nature in itself is of a simple space that has no boundaries or definitions to it that ornament over its beauty -- no artificial perfumes (I thought it was odd that he described the grassy scent as a "sedgy perfume", but perfume does has more euphony and does connotate a lovely smell as opposed to just being something man-made), seasonings, spices, fancy decorations, etc. make nature what it is, and thus its simplicity is beautiful. There is the "absence of art, books, talk, elegance" -- nothing from man-established society that gives too verbose or too bland of a definition to the ocean and its experience.

Leaves of Grass is all about taking in the world around us through the senses and not having things defined for us -- seeing is believing, but what better is it than to experience it for yourself? The beach in itself is open range, and the even more expansive force, the sea, is with open arms and waves, beckoning to all to embrace its flexible bonds. Whitman spends his afternoon almost conversing with the water as he was "in sight of the ocean, listening to its hoarse murmur and inhaling the bracing and welcome breezes" -- getting to know the ocean and its "striking emotional, impalpable depths". Nothing can put it into words -- not even the man-made creativity found in poetry and music -- nothing is like the actual thing.

YouTubing Whitman

Tweet-a-week: Oneida Community

The Oneida Community, situated in Oneida, New York, was crafted to serve as an utopian society in the eyes of its founder, John Humphrey Noyes. The community upheld the values of self-perfectionism and communalism. This led to the larger, but few houses to accommodate the "group-family" and the overall practices that involved the entire community giving back to each other. Their economic base was agricultural and industrial, focusing on what they reaped from the land (farming, handicrafts, etc.) Diving further in, however, many criticize the community for its rogue approach to Christianity, but most of all, its doctrine of Complex Marriage (all are married to each other and may have sex with each other so long as no two people are attached to each other exclusively).

In some ways, the community upheld the idea of humanism. They sought to better themselves (self-perfectionism) by working together as a community. Ideally, this relates to Whitman's stance on celebrating oneself while also helping and appreciating others because we are all different, but equally divine. Everyone is assigned a task according to one's skills and abilities, taking advantage of one's personal contributions to the community in ways that also take advantage of one's potential. In particular, the doctrine, Equality of the Sexes, was drawn from the community's belief that all men and women were equal and shared participation in committees and activities -- women even wore pants under their dresses!

Such equality brings the community together as one while they banded to become live to be the best they could be.

And yet, the doctrine of Mutual Criticism, where someone is criticized by the community in hopes to remedy their "bad traits" for the sake of the whole of the people, while it seems to help improve oneself, also seems to strike at the self negatively in a way that cuts one down to size in comparison to others, maybe drawing a line within their union -- and this is probably not okay from Whitman's point of view. Nevertheless, most of community seemed to have appreciated the feedback so that they could better themselves.


Hillebrand, Randall. "The Oneida Community." New York History Net. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Feb 2012. <http://www.nyhistory.com/central/oneida.htm>


"The Oneida Story." Oneida. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Feb 2012. <http://www.oneida.com/aboutoneida/the-oneida-story/>.

Two peers of Whitman: Elizabeth Oakes Smith and William Cullen Bryant

The first things I notice from Elizabeth Oakes Smith's "An Incident" and William Cullen Bryant's "Thanatopsis" are strong feels of images of nature, especially so in Bryant's poem. The speaker in Smith's poem encounters a force of nature -- the noble eagle -- that drops a part of itself (a feather) that she finds. There is a sort of disconnection between the speaker and the eagle, for she is unlike the creature and "would not soar like thee, in loneliness to pine". She herself feels that she cannot be as expansive, which is a contrast to Whitman's open, great reign to be one with nature and himself.  In Bryant's poem, he personifies nature and mentions how one may bond and "hold Communion with her visible forms". There is a familiarity with nature, just like how Whitman advocates one to embrace nature for him/herself by submerging oneself with it and experiencing it all for oneself; to let the Earth supply one with a state of being not found outside of its grasp, as "Earth, that nourished thee, shall claim thy growth, to be resolved to earth again, and, lost each human trace, surrendering up thing individual being, shalt thou go to mix for ever with elements,  to be a brother to the insensible rock and to the sluggish clod, which the rude swain turns with his share, and treads upon."

In regards to form, both poems, like Whitman's "Song of Myself," possess a form in which the first word of every (complete) line is always capitalized. Perhaps this was the standard norm for poetry, as it begins a new idea/image/thought/etc. within the text. Smith's and Bryant's poems have some sort of rhyme scheme taking place; while Smith's is more prominent and straightforward (following that of a Shakespearean sonnet; meter is similar to that sonnet as well following some iambic pentameter that's played straight), Bryant's resembles more like Whitman's with perhaps more rhyming to appear -- yet there's no pattern, just the prevalence of some rhyme. Free verse, something that is more common in the present, suggests the openness to freedom and perhaps reflects that bond between open nature and oneself.

Tweet-a-week: Barnum's American Museum

Behold the unusual, the strange, the wondrous, educational, and surely exciting and fun realm of Barnum's American Museum! By no means did it reflect the sort of museums that we see today -- in addition to exhibits of wax scenes, strange oddities/specimens, and live "freak shows", the museum had its own lecture hall and space for performers such as acrobats, jugglers, and magicians for acts. It was a very popular attraction in New York and became a hot-spot for the time it stood before it fell to a fire.

Whitman not only interviewed the man behind the museum, Phineas T. Barnum before, but he at least frequented the place from time to time either living, visiting or working there. Museums were places to learn interesting things about life's mysteries and strangeness, and the American Museum was full of unusual things that may have been interesting and inspiring. While the museum may not have had the reputation of having definitely true displays (it seemed to have catered more toward entertainment and urban culture, though it did yield some things to education), the museum garnered curiosity and interest for unexplained phenomena, something that Whitman may have found to be exciting to behold. In particular, it is said that the museum had some exhibits where one could approach and touch things (as mentioned in Barney's text, one attraction allowed people to "touch the [bearded lady's] beard"). To be able to fully embrace and understand these strange things, Whitman may have felt close to the museum in that he was allowed to get the full experience of live specimens or anything there -- to fully experience for himself the strange creations of the universe that is offered to the public here at Barnum's American Museum. "Song of Myself" is all about engaging with nature, after all.

Barney, Brett. "Walt Whitman: Nineteenth-century Popular Culture." DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. Faculty Publications, UNL Librarie, 02 Apr 2006. Web. 9 Feb 2012. <http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1117&context=libraryscience>.


"The Greatest Attraction in New York City: The American Museum, Phineas Barnum's famed establishment in New York City.." About.com - 19th Century History. n. page. Web. 9 Feb. 2012. <http://history1800s.about.com/od/americanoriginals/ig/Images-of-Phineas-T--Barnum/Barnum-s-American-Museum.htm>.