1 / 9

Walt Whitman

Walt Whitman. Unconventional American Poet. Whitman’s Early Life and Career. He was born May 31, 1819 in New York. He was almost entirely self-educated and an admirer of Shakespeare and Homer. He was editor of The Brooklyn Eagle , but was fired for his outspoken opposition to slavery.

lavi
Download Presentation

Walt Whitman

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Walt Whitman Unconventional American Poet

  2. Whitman’s Early Life and Career • He was born May 31, 1819 in New York. • He was almost entirely self-educated and an admirer of Shakespeare and Homer. • He was editor of The Brooklyn Eagle, but was fired for his outspoken opposition to slavery. • He served as a nurse during the Civil War and his notes during the war inspired many of his poems.

  3. Unconventional Poet • Whitman did not follow the traditions of the poets before him. • His collection of poems Leaves of • Grassdisplays these nontraditional elements: • Long lines to capture the rhythm of natural speech. • Vocabulary from everyday speech. • Based on reality. • Free verse.

  4. Unpopular Poet • Other writers and critics were shocked by Whitman’s poetry and criticized him severely. • Traditional writers were shocked by his lack of regular rhyme and use of free verse. • His subject matter was also very shocking and he rejected conventional themes.

  5. “O Captain! My Captain!” • “O Captain! My Captain!” is in memory of Abraham Lincoln and celebrates him as a great man.

  6. “O Captain! My Captain!” O CAPTAIN! my Captain! our fearful trip is done; The ship has weather’d 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: But O heart! heart! heart! O the bleeding drops of red, Where on the deck my Captain lies, Fallen cold and dead.

  7. “O Captain! My Captain!” cont. O 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 ribbon’d wreaths—for you the shores a-crowding; For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning; Here Captain! dear father! This arm beneath your head; It is some dream that on the deck, You’ve fallen cold and dead.

  8. “O Captain! My Captain!” cont. My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still; My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will; The ship is anchor’d safe and sound, its voyage closed and done; From fearful trip, the victor ship, comes in with object won; Exult, O shores, and ring, O bells! But I, with mournful tread, Walk the deck my Captain lies, Fallen cold and dead.

  9. “When I heard the Learn’d Astronomer” INSTRUCTIONS: Answer the following questions about Whitman’s poem and its relation to Dead Poets Society. Use complete sentences to respond. • What is the theme of this poem? • How does the theme of this poem connect to Mr. Keating’s teaching style? • How is Walt Whitman embodied by Mr. Keating’s character in Dead Poets Society?

More Related