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[The poem of “Nothing to Wear”]

About This Item

  • Title: [The poem of “Nothing to Wear”]
  • Date: 18 November 1857
  • Creator(s): Walt Whitman
  • Whitman Archive ID: per.01228
  • Source: Brooklyn Daily Times, 18 November 1857: 2. Our transcription is based on a digital image of a microfilm scan of the original issue. Microfilm of original issue held at Pennsylvania State University Libraries. For a description of the editorial rationale behind our treatment of the journalism, see our statement of editorial policy.
  • Editorial note: This piece is unsigned, as was the case for most of Whitman's journalism. However, this editorial is part of a series of texts that deal with a coherent theme that has been identified by the Whitman Archive journalism team as likely authored by Whitman. This decision is based on a combination of historical and (auto)biographical accounts, similarity to contemporary Whitman writings, a history of scholarly attribution, extant clippings retained by Whitman, computational stylometric analysis, and, in some cases, manuscript evidence in Whitman’s hand.
  • Contributors to digital file: Thara Michaelis Jamie DeRousse Jason Stacy Karie Cobb Stephanie Blalock
  • Cite this page: Whitman, Walt. "[The poem of “Nothing to Wear”]." The Walt Whitman Archive. Gen. ed. Matt Cohen, Ed Folsom, & Kenneth M. Price. Accessed 16 July 2024. <http://www.whitmanarchive.org>.
  • Source File: per.01228.xml (TEI)
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☞ The poem of “Nothing to Wear”1 has been published in the newspapers of the Sandwich Islands. The wide spread popularity of this clever but common-place effusion, shows how much more quickly the ephemeral and superficial in literature is appreciated by the public than that which bears the imprint of the highest genius. A hundred persons would read, understand and admire “Nothing to Wear,” to whom “Annabel Lee” or “The Raven," would be caviare.

Notes:

1. "Nothing to Wear" is a satirical poem written by William Allen Butler, published in 1857. [back]

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