Walt Whitman

1、Walt Whitmanthe father of American modern poetriesGroup members:乔海飞 袁珠王薇 谢正锋任嘉莹Brief IntroductionWalt Whitman(May 31, 1819 March 26, 1892)was an American poet, essayist and journalist. He was born in Huntington on Long Island. He was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism. Ea

2、rly lifeBorn on May 31, 1819, in We s t H i l l s , To w n o f Huntington, Long IslandHaving an unhappy child hood due to his familys difficult economic statusSeeking employment for further income for his familyEarly careerPublishing some of his earliest anonymouslyMoving to New York City to work as

3、 a compositorRejoining his family and teaching at schools though he was not satisfied as a teacherCivil war years Publishing his poem “Beat! Beat! Drums!” Publishing Drum-Taps on May 1, 1865 Publishing a biased and exaggerated biographical study, The Good Gray Poet on July 1, 1865 Publishing “O Capt

4、ain! My Captain!” in January 1866Main worksFranklin Evans (1842)Leaves of Grass (1855, the first of seven editions through 1891)Drum-Taps (1865)Democratic Vistas (1871)Memoranda During the War (1876)Specimen Days (1882) Lifestyle and beliefsAlocholWhitman was a vocal proponent of temperance and in h

5、is youth rarely drank alcohol. Years later Whitman claimed he was embarrassed by the bookFranklin Evans, and called it a damned rot.He dismissed it by saying he wrote the novel in three days solely for money while he was under the influence of alcohol himself. Later in life he was more liberal with

6、alcohol, enjoying local wines RegionWhitman was deeply influenced by deism. He denied any one faith was more important than another, and embraced all religions equally.Whitman was a religious skeptic: though he accepted all churches, he believed in none.God, to Whitman, was both immanent and transce

7、ndent and the human soul was immortal and in a state of progressive development. American Philosophy: An Encyclopedia classes him as one of several figures who took a more pantheist or pandeist approach by rejecting views of God as separate from the world.SexualityWhitmans sexual orientation is gene

8、rally assumed to be homosexual or bisexual, on the basis of his poetry, though this assumption has been disputed.Whitman had intense friendships with many men and boys throughout his life.Whitman and Peter Doyle, one of the men with whom Whitman was believed to have had an intimate relationship of L

9、eaves of Grass (poetic style + language style.)To dramatize the nature if these new poetical feelings , Whitman employed brand-new means in his poetry: poetic style +language style.The Artistic Features “Free verse”Whitman is also radically innovative in the terms of the form of his poetry. What he

10、prefers fro his new subject and new poetic feelings is “free verse,” that is, poetry without a fixed beat or regular rhyme scheme. By means of “free verse”, Whitman believed he had turned the poem into an open field, an area of vital possibility where the reader could allow his own imagination to pl

11、ay. FeaturesA. a looser and more open-ended syntactical structure;B. few compound sentences;C. conversational and casual, in the fluid, expansive, and unstructured style of talking, like one of the ordinary men.D. to create a different wave of feelings by cataloguing concrete things.E. Musicality: a

12、 strong sense of rhythm + parallelism + phonetic recurrence.16 2)language style Contrary to the rhetoric of traditional poetry, Whitmans is simple and rather crude. Most of the pictures he painted with words are honest, undistorted images of different aspects of America of the day. Unifying images o

13、f the body, the crowd the sexuality are pervasive in his poems. Not INot Godcan travel this road for you.It is not far, it is within the stretch of your thumb; perhaps you shall find it every where over the ocean and over the land, when you once have the vision to behold it.-Walt Whitman Leaves of G

14、rass is a poetry collection by Walt Whitman. Though the first edition was published in 1855, Whitman spent most of his professional life writing and re-writing Leaves of Grass, revising it multiple times until his death. This resulted in vastly different editions over four decadesthe first a small b

15、ook of twelve poems and the last a compilation of over 400 poems.Leaves of GrassThe poems of Leaves of Grass are loosely connected and each represents Whitmans celebration of his philosophy of life and humanity. This book is notable for its discussion of delight in sensual pleasures during a time wh

16、en such candid displays were considered immoral.InfluencelWalt Whitman has been claimed as Americas first poet of democracy, a title meant to reflect his ability to write in a singularly American character. His influence over modern poetry is great in the world as well as in America. His best work h

17、as become part of the commen property of western culture. Whitman has been compared to a mountain in American literary history.Contemporary American poetry, whatever school or form, bears witness to his great influence. On May 16, 1957, the Walt Whitman Bridge, which crosses the Delaware River near

18、his home in Camden, was opened. In 1997, the Walt Whitman Community School opened, becoming the first private high school catering to LGBT youth. In 2009, Whitman was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame. In 2013, Whitman was inducted into the Legacy Walk, an outdoor public display that celebra

19、tes LGBT history and people.Whitman was honored on a Famous Americans SeriesPostal issue, in 1940Seleted ReadingFranklin Evans (1842) 富兰克林埃文斯Leaves of Grass (1855) 草叶集Drum-Taps (1865) 桴鼓集Memoranda During the War 战争回忆录Specimen Days (1882)典型的日子Song of Myself 自我之歌O Captain, My Captain! 哦 船长，我的船长I Hear

20、America Singing 我听见美国在唱歌O Captain, My Captain! Oh Captain! MyCaptain! Our fearful trip is done,The ship has weatherd every rack, the prize we sought is won,The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting,While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring;哦，船长，我的船长！我们险恶的哦，船长，我的

21、船长！我们险恶的航程已经告终，航程已经告终，我们的船安渡过惊涛骇浪，我们寻我们的船安渡过惊涛骇浪，我们寻求的奖赏已赢得手中。求的奖赏已赢得手中。港口已经不远，钟声我已听见，万港口已经不远，钟声我已听见，万千人众在欢呼呐喊，千人众在欢呼呐喊，目迎着我们的船从容返航，我们的目迎着我们的船从容返航，我们的船威严而且勇敢。船威严而且勇敢。But Oh heart! heart! heart!Oh the bleeding drops of red!Where on the deck my Captain lies,Fallen cold and dead.可是，心啊！心啊！心啊！可是，心啊！心啊！心啊

22、！哦，殷红的血滴流泻，哦，殷红的血滴流泻，在甲板上，那里躺着我的船长，在甲板上，那里躺着我的船长，他已倒下，已死去，已冷却。他已倒下，已死去，已冷却。Oh Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells;Rise up -for you the flag is flung -for you the bugle trills,For you bouquets and ribbond wreaths-for you the shores crowding,For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turing;哦，船长，我的船长！起来吧，请哦，船长，我的船长！起来吧，请听听这钟声，听听这钟声，起来，起来，旌旗，为你招展旌旗，为你招展号号角，为你长鸣。角，为你长鸣。为你，岸上挤满了人群为你，岸上挤满了人群为你，为你，无数花束、彩带、花环。无数花束、彩带、花环。为你熙攘的群众在呼唤，转动着多为你熙攘的群众在呼唤，转动着多少殷切的脸。少殷切的脸。Here, Captain! dear father!This arm beneath your head;It is some dream that on the deckYo