“Song of Myself” is Whitman’s masterpiece, and that’s not an exaggeration. First published in 1855 as the opening poem of Leaves of Grass, it runs 52 sections and over 1,300 lines of Whitman celebrating himself, America, democracy, the body, the soul, and basically everything he can think of. It’s ambitious, sprawling, contradictory, brilliant, and occasionally … Read more
“I Sing the Body Electric” is Whitman at his boldest, and that’s saying something. First published in the 1855 edition of Leaves of Grass, this poem is basically Whitman standing up and yelling that the human body is sacred. Not metaphorically sacred. Actually sacred. In the 1850s, this was shocking. Most poetry tiptoed around the … Read more
“When I Heard the Learn’d Astronomer” is one of Whitman’s shortest poems, clocking in at just eight lines, but it captures a feeling a lot of people have had: that moment when facts and figures kill the wonder of something beautiful. Published in 1865, it’s about sitting through a lecture on astronomy, getting overwhelmed by … Read more
“A Noiseless Patient Spider” is one of Whitman’s shortest poems, but it packs a lot into just ten lines. First published in the 1891 edition of Leaves of Grass (basically the final version he worked on before he died), it takes this tiny moment from nature and turns it into a metaphor for the human … Read more