Walt Whitman is an American poet who published his own book, “Leaves of Grass”, a book with
poems he wrote between the years 1855 and 1892. Walt Whitman’s poetry connected to his life in
many ways. Because Walt Whitman grew up when America was being established, most of his poetry is
based on the pioneers who began shaping America.
Whitman was born May 31, 1819 in Long Island in a village named West Hills, near New York. He
was also the second of nine children. His father was Walter Sr. Whitman, better known as Walt Sr.
Whitman and his mother was Louisa Van Velsor Whitman. Whitman’s father was bipolar, harsh, and a
heavy drinker; he was a tough guy to live with. Besides his weaknesses, Walt Sr. Whitman, was a
thoughtful man that enjoyed reading. Whitman did not have such close relationship with his father
because of his heavy attitude, but he did learn from his fathers’ thoughtful thoughts. His father taught
him that the people that do the work in the world were the best (farmers, laborers, craftsmen, etc.) and
the ones to acknowledge, rather than the rich and the powerful, which he called the enemy. Further on
you will be able to see the connection of this with his poetry. Whitman also expressed himself about his
mother in some of his poetry by praising his mother. Whitman expressed his mother as a strong women
because she was able to handle a tough economy with nine children and a bipolar, heavy drinker as a
husband.
Whitman spent part of his boyhood in Long Island and part in Brooklyn, New York; he lived in
Brooklyn for twenty –eight years. When the Whitmans moved into Brooklyn, it was only a village.
Whitman started school there at the age six, but did not last long because he left school at age eleven to
help his parents out by obtaining his own job. The school Whitman attended only had two teachers for
around two hundred students. Students were separated, the black students were segregated on the top
floor, the youngest students in the first floor, and the older white kids were taught in the basement. This
school was very strict. If the students did not obey the teacher, they would get beaten. Whitman really
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disliked the beaten. After Whitman dropped out of school, he then started working as a secretary boy at
a law firm and was able to contain asses to the library where he started his own education. Whitman
taught himself how to read and write. After being a secretary boy, he moved to a clerkship in a doctor’s
office. By the age of twelve, Whitman was working as a publisher for the world of newspapers. At the
age of thirteen, Whitman started working for a Brooklyn printer and then joined the weekly Long Island
Star as a compositor. After being established in this job for three years, he turned to setting type for a
printer in Manhattan. This helped Whitman by giving him a chance to print his first attempts in writing,
but his name was not signed in the printed copy.
“I Hear America Singing” is one of many poems written by Walt Whitman. This poem expresses
the jobs and voices of people in America. It expresses mechanics as happy and strong workers, the
carpenters measuring a plank or beam, the mason happily getting ready for work or leaving off work,
the boatman celebrating that he owns the boat, the deckhand happily cleaning, and it goes on by
showing the jobs of the people that shape America. This poem is reflected on what Whitman’s father
taught him. This poem is praising the people who do the jobs that shape America and that is exactly
what Whitman’s father taught him. “Whitman’s picture in "I Hear America Singing" of average people
singing their "varied carols" was more than just a metaphor. It reflected a pre-mass-media culture in
which Americans often entertained themselves and each other. Whitman’s spouting Shakespeare atop
omnibuses, declaiming Homer and Ossian at the seashore, and humming arias on the street typified
these performances in everyday life. His poetry tried to keep alive this participatory, dialogic spirit.” This
quote is from Walt Whitman’s America (New York: Knopf, 1995), 156. This quote is a critique from David
Reynolds.
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In the poem, “Miracles”, by Walt Whitman we are able to appreciate America in a new,
refreshing way. Since Whitman appreciated the little concepts in life, he was able to be more sensitive
and open minded in his poems. The simple things throughout the day and every moment in life are
miracles. “Miracles” shows how much Whitman appreciated America. “The commonplace things that
surround us and all that happens around us are rendered some meaning and significance by the poet in
the poem, Miracles. The ordinary experiences that we commonly ignore in our everyday life rise to an
extraordinary level. Without mentioning the name of God, Whitman has succeeded in creating a divine
atmosphere in this poem which speaks volumes about his great artistry.” This is a critique from Elite
Skills Classics. This critique explains more about how Whitman expressed himself over America.
“When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d” is a poem that talks about Lincoln. Walt Whitman
loved and praised Lincoln. In this poem he does exactly that, he praises Lincoln, he refers Lincoln to lilacs
(a type of flower that stops blooming at a certain point) because Lincoln passed away and therefore, he
would never be able to bloom again. “When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d” is composed of three
separate yet simultaneous poems. One follows the progress of Lincoln’s coffin on its way to the
president’s burial. The second stays with the poet and his sprig of lilac, meant to be laid on the coffin in
tribute, as he ruminates on death and mourning. The third uses the symbols of a bird and a star to
develop an idea of a nature sympathetic to yet separate from humanity.” This critique comes from Spark
Notes.
Whitman loved to write notes on his everyday life. “I Hear America Singing”, “Miracles”, and
“When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d” are only three of his many poems. Whitman’s most famous
poems are “A Noiseless Patient Spider”, “Beat! Beat! Drums!”, “I Hear America Singing”, “I Sit and Look
Out”, “Miracles”, “O Captain! My Captain!”, “O Me! O Life!”, “On the Beach at Night”, “Reconciliation”,
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“There Was a Child Went Forth”, “To You”, and “When I Hear The Learn’d Astronomer”. These are the
most known poems by Whitman.
Whitman wrote “I Hear America Singing” because he grew up with the mentality that his dad
influenced him on. He also wrote “Miracles” to show his appreciation to America and “When Lilacs Last
in the Dooryard Bloom’d” in order to show his praise to Lincoln. Lincoln left an impact in America; he set
slaves free. Because Walt Whitman grew up when America was being established, most of his poetry is
based on the pioneers who began shaping America.
Later in Whitman’s life, his brother joined the war and he would write Whitman very detailed
letters about the war. Whitman later went to look for his brother, but once he got there he had lost his
wallet and had trouble finding him. When he found George, he found him with only a wound on his
cheek. While Whitman was there with George he was affected by seeing all of the wounded soldiers.
After this event, one of Whitman’s friends helped him obtain a part-time job at the army paymaster’s
office. Since Whitman had time, he volunteered as a nurse in the army hospitals.
In 1864, the Whitman family passed through some tough events. In September, Gorge was
captured by Confederates in Virginia. His other brother, Andrew Jackson, died from tuberculosis and
alcoholism in December. Around this time Whitman got a better-paying government post as a low-grade
clerk in the Bureau of Indian Affairs in the Department of the Interior, thanks to his friend William
Douglas O’Connor. Whitman later got fired from his job because it is believed that his boss found a book
of “Leaves of Grass” and disliked the fact that Whitman was the author. In the year of 1872, Whitman
spent most of his time taking care of his mom because she suffered from arthritis. Whitman had a stroke
the next year and moved from Washington to Camden, New Jersey to where his brother George lived.
That year his mother died from arthritis. These events caused Whitman to become depressed. He
remained living in his brother’s house with his mentally disordered brother Edward. Whitman then
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bought his own house when his brother and sister-in-law were forced to move for business reasons.
Mary Oakes Davis moved in with Whitman to be his housekeeper with the deal that she would have to
pay no rent, she was a neighbor of his. Preparing for his death, Whitman wrote his final copy of “Leaves
of Grass”. Whitman died on March 26, 1892; he died because of military tuberculosis and
parenchymatous nephritis. Whitman’s house is now a museum.
Whitman did not have a very joyful life, but he enjoyed writing all about it, especially about
America. America was a very important part of his life because he was raised there. Because Walt
Whitman grew up when America was being established, most of his poetry is based on the pioneers who
began shaping America. Throughout his poems Americans learn about America’s formation. He is known
for the best American poet that wrote in free verse.
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