1. Walt Whitman 1819-1892 Grew from Transcendentalist philosophy

2. Formal school only until 11 (printing office, reporter, editor) Strong stand against slavery – fired from editor job because of it Admired and wrote about Lincoln

3. Leaves of Grass Thin book of poems = major turning pt in Amr. Litr Originally 12; by 1892 there were 383 poems in its final addition Announced a new poetry: captures diversity of Amr. people

4. Leaves of Grass (cont.) 1. discarded traditional metrical patterns (rhyme) for free verse 2. Free content – subjects that had been previously ignored or ugly 3. Long lists, parallel forms – repetition 4. Emphasizes all senses

5. “I Hear America Singing” p352 Rare to find positive realism Parallel structure – rhythm instead of rhyme Look at occupations – what can we say about these? Why does he choose these? What does he leave out? How is this Realism/Regionalism?