Yesterday in English, we discussed the poem "Song of Myself" by Walt Whitman. I'll admit that when I first read it (and man is it a long poem!) I didn't really read it to thouroughly since I had other work to get done and I knew we would be discussing it in class. Well, during the discussion, my professor mentioned that this poem could really change a person's life and I feel like something along those lines is happening.
I didn't really remember much about Walt Whitman since the last time I studied him was sophomore year English during high school a whole 5 years ago! During the discussion, Professor Irmscher presented a slide show with photographs of a very laid-back looking Whitman with a huge bushy beard and the top two buttons of his shirt undone; a major fashion faux pas during the Victorian era. He told us of how Whitman was completely against the Civil War and hated the ideals behind slavery. He wanted everyone to live openly and honestly with each other and be open to new people and ideas.
Whitman was all about globalization and was totally before his time. In section 24 of "Song of Myself," Whitman gets extremely explicit and starts talking about his body and about sex; also way before his time as these things were not publically discussed. As it is now known that Whitman was gay, it is unclear whether his mention of sexual experiences is with a man or a woman, which I think adds to the allure of the poem as well as shows just how accepting Whitman was.
A part of the poem that I particularly like is when he says: "Unscrew the locks from the doors!/Unscres the doors themselves from their jambs!," which makes me feel like he really wanted everyone to be neighborly and friendly and open. As someone who considers herself to be very accepting and refers to herself as a global citizen, I really relate to Whitman's sentiments. "Whoever degrade another degrades me," Whitman writes. I just love the simplicity of his language and the message behind it. I think that everyone in the world should read this poem and try to embrace it's meaning.
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i love his poetry and words too. i think his ideas and messages are quite motivating and inspiring for all of us as humans
here is a blog where i used one of his poems, read it if you want to and you get a chance to
http://www.progressiveu.org/074550-stranger-and-friend-i-want-to-meet-yo...
"Things have a life of their own. It's just a matter of waking up their souls."
--Gabriel García Márquez
http://www.progressiveu.org/231615-this-is-a-muslim-girls-plight