Walt Whitman's Song Of Myself

"I sound my barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world" (Whitman, 74). This famous line from Walt Whitman 's "Song of Myself" is more than just a fun sounding piece of poetry. This line, like Whitman himself, contains multitudes and is indicative of the rest of the poem. Although you can read "Song of Myself" and take it as just a poem and nothing more, you would be missing the meaning behind each word, each stanza. "Song of Myself" is a call to arms, a manifesto, and a portrait of human life all at the same time. "Song of Myself" is not unlike a gift, wrapped up in pretty paper and nice to look at, but what is inside, and the reason behind what is inside, matters most. If the poet is, as Emerson says, the sayer, what is he saying? In "The Poet" Emerson says, "The poet does not wait for the hero or the sage, but, as they act and think primarily, so he writes primarily what will and must be spoken, reckoning the others, though primaries also, yet, in respect to him, secondaries and servants..." (Emerson). What he means is that while others follow the rule that actions speak louder than words, poets think the opposite. More important than the actions or thoughts of other men,
words can describe the depths of the world, can explain the feelings so few can describe. Within "Song of Myself" Whitman tries to do just that, explain and describe the entirety of the world and bring to light the best and worst parts of it. Whitman has a lot to say on the subject of life and death. "And as to you Death, and you bitter hug or mortality, it is idle to try to alarm me" (Whitman, 72). This line is indicative of Whitman 's view of death. Death is not something to fear, it is just the next step of life. If we are not scared of life, we should not be afraid of death. Whitman believed that after we die we become part of the world, the grass, the trees, the animals. Whitman 's view of life and death is quite like that of Eastern philosophies such as Buddhism. Whether Whitman heard of the idea and adopted it or he came up with it all on his own, his thinking was before his time. On the subject of America, Whitman has a lot to say. For most of the poem, Whitman shows us different scenes from around the country. Most of these scenes are simple and innocent views of the American life. But a few show the indecencies that are abundant throughout America. One of these scenes, in the eleventh section, is about a group of young men swimming in a lake. A woman looks on from a window, wishing she could join them. At first sight this seems to be a innocent, if a bit sexual, scene but it has amuch deeper meaning. This scene is a protest against sexism before most people were thinking about it. Whitman wished for equality not just among the sexes, but among different races aswell. Another scene depicts Whitman himself housing a runaway slave, feeding him, tending to his wounds, and helping him along his way. Whitman even makes a point of mentioning that his gun is off in a corner, showing that he does not feel threatened by this man who most people would be threatened by. Whitman 's ideas of equality were ahead of their time, very few were ready to stand behind him. Whitman 's "Song of Myself" is a call to arms against the normal poetic form. The very way the poem is written, without a normal meter or rhyme scheme, rails against what was considered the "right" way to construct poetry. Whitman beleives the poet is the true artist, writing what he sees and feels. Few are as noble as the poet. Manifest Destiny was integral in the writing of "Song of Myself".
Whitman may not be overtly against the idea of Manifest Destiny, but he was not for it either. Lines four and five of section one seem to show what Whitman thought of Manifest Destiny. "I loafe and invite my soul, I lean and loafe at my ease observing a spear of summer grass." What this seems to be saying is that the country as a whole should just sit back and relax, asking if conquering our way to the opposite shore really matters. Whitman obviously does not think so, he is happy lying in the grass, not caring whether America advances its borders or not. The first of these lines also seems to say that America should be looking inwards and dealing with more important things first, before we go grabbing up all the land we
can. With its lack of regulated poetic form and stance on equality and Manifest Destiny, "Song of Myself" is more than just a long poem. A call to arms on the subject of equality for all races and sexes, a manifesto on the subject of poetic form, and a portrait of life in America. Whitman 's "yawp" is more than just a noise, it is the combined power of his entire poem and all the messages held within it."Song of Myself" is more than just a poem, it is a guide on how to live life.

Works Cited
Baym, Nina, ed. Norton Anthology of American Literature, 1865-1914. Boston: W. W. Norton & Company, Incorporated, 2007.

"EMERSON - ESSAYS - THE POET." Virginia Commonwealth University. 24 Feb. 2009 .