Walt Whitman  “The Good Grey Poet”  “The Bard of Democracy”

Bio.  Trained to be a printer  Wrote for newspapers as well  Editor of BROOKLYN EAGLE; fired for his opposition to slavery  Hired in New Orleans; as he traveled, he observed the diversity of the American people.

Poetic style  Broke all traditional rules of rhyme and meter  Celebrated America and the common man  Innovator of free verse

LEAVES OF GRASS  First denounced  Published 1855  Critics hated the subject matter and lack of traditional poetic devices and forms.  Revised and reshaped until his death: #13, the “death bed edition”—contained 383 poems  Captures the diversity of the American people and conveys intensity and energy of all forms of life.  Published at his own expense

“The Bard of Democracy”  His poetry gave America her voice.  LEAVES OF GRASS: one of the most highly regarded collections ever written.

“The Good Grey Poet”  Brother wounded in Civil War  He went to help and stayed 3 years  Attended the wounded and read to them  Wrote of these experiences

Terms  Free Verse: irregular meter and line length. Re- creates cadences of natural speech; does not rhyme.  Diction: word choice and syntax (arrangement of words and sentence structure); these play a key role in Whitman’s voice.  Catalogs: long lists  Parallel forms: repetition of phrases or sentences with similar structures or meanings