Search Results

giving others the same chances and rights as myself— As if it were not indis‑ indispensable pensable to my

—What seek you do you want among my haughty and jealous democracies of the north?

woman, or my flesh and blood.

—There are my officers and my courts.—At the Capitol is my Legislature.

—It is foreign to my usages, as to my eyes and ears.—Go back to the power that sent you.

free cities, or my teeming country towns, or along my rivers, or sea shore.— 19 But why do I babble

Isaac v Joseph Stephen & Jesse (my grandfather) sons of Nehemiah Whitman Phebe daughters Hannah Brush

See, for instance: "I take my place among you as much as among any," (1855, p. 48); "Nor do I understand

.; TThis manuscript bears some similarity in subject to the poem that became "Who Learns My Lesson Complete

Calamus 18. p 363 City of my walks and joys!

little you h You city : what do y you repay me for my daily walks joys Not these your crowded rows of

delicious athletic love fresh as nature's air and herbage— —offering me full repa respon ds se equal of my

my own, These repay me—Lovers, continual Lovers continu only repay me.— This manuscript is a draft of

City of my walks and joys

levee in life,— After death Now when I am looked back upon, I will I hold levee, after death, I lean on my

left elbow—I take ten thousand lovers, one after another, by my right hand.— I have all lives, all effects

4 To me I subject all the teachings of the schools, and all dicta and authority, to my the tests of myself

And myself,—and I encourage you to subject the same to the tests of yourself—and to subject me and my

meet and drawing their love in Never losing old friends, or new ones; and finding new on every day of my

Hear my fife!—I am a recruiter Who Come, who will join my troop?

first several lines of "Pictures" (not including this line) were eventually revised and published as "My

Hear my fife

first several lines of "Pictures" (not including this line) were eventually revised and published as "My

of the poem (not including this line) were revised and published in The American in October 1880 as "My

In a the garden, the world, I, a new Adam, again wander, Curious, here behold my resurrection after ages

is wondrous—I am myself most wondrous, The All is I have con I exist, I peer and penetrate still, By my

first several lines of "Pictures" (not including these lines) were eventually revised and published as "My

first several lines of "Pictures" (not including these lines) were eventually revised and published as "My

The first several lines of "Pictures" (not including this line) were revised and published as "My Picture-Gallery

O my body, that gives me identity! O my organs !

Underfoot, the divine soil— Overhead, the sun.— Afford foothold to my poems, you Nourish my poems, Earth

In Poem The earth, that is my model of poems model ?

The body of a man, is my model—I do not reject what I find in my body—I am not ashamed—Why should I be

My Darling (Now I am maternal— a child bearer— bea have from my womb borne a child, and observe it For

O laugh when my eyes settle the land The imagery and phrasing of these lines bears some resemblance to

similarity to the following line in the poem eventually titled "I Sing the Body Electric": "As I see my

and dwells serenely behind it.— When out of a feast I eat bread only corn and roast potatoes fo for my

dinner, through my own voluntary choice it is very well and I much content, but if some arrogant head

inspiration . . . . the beating of my heart . . . . the passing of blood and air through my lungs.

first poem of the 1855 edition of Leaves of Grass , later called "Song of Myself": "I do not trouble my

The first several lines of the notebook (not including this line) were revised and published as "My Picture-Gallery

just granting his request, with great commiseration, when an old lady from the gallery cries out "O my

to be found in these prurient pages and how any respectable House could publish the volume is beyond my

—My wife sends her warm regards to you. She desires much to see you. W.W.T.

If I worship any particular thing, it shall be some of the spread of my own body."—p. 55.

Cycles ferried my cradle, rowing and rowing like cheerful boatmen, For room to me stars kept aside in

All forces have been steadily employed to complete and delight me: Now I stand on this spot with my Soul

If I worship any particular thing, it shall be some of the spread of my own body."—p. 55.

My dear little wife wants to write you a letter, and will when the domestic gods are propitious, so that

—I reached out my hand to feel the life-blood thrill beneath my fingers—I was faint with transport.

arms above my head to catch the stray sunbeams;—hugged it to my bosom transported with extatic emotion

;—yet never came before my vision sensual forms or thought found place in my imagination;—Was I passionless

—the warm, sympathetic tears that crept from beneath my eyelids and rolled lovingly down my bosom, soothing

my beating heart?

O truth of things, I am determined to press my way toward you; Sound your voice!

I exclude you; Not till the waters refuse to glisten for you, and the leaves to rustle for you, do my

thereof—and no less in myself than the whole of the Mannahatta in itself, Singing the song of These, my

ever united lands—my body no more inevitably united, part to part, and made one identity, any more than

my lands are inevitably united, and made one identity, Nativities, climates, the grass of the great

I loafe and invite my Soul, I lean and loafe at my ease, observing a spear of summer grass.

The smoke of my own breath, Echoes, ripples, buzzed whispers, love-root, silk-thread, crotch and vine

, My respiration and inspiration, the beating of my heart, the passing of blood and air through my lungs

The sound of the belched words of my voice, words loosed to the eddies of the wind, A few light kisses

Our poet goes on to say (105): I know I am august, I do not trouble my spirit to vindicate itself or

since, after the closest inquiry, "I find no sweeter fat than sticks to my own bones."

If I worship any particular thing, it shall be some the spread of my own body."

As for Mine, Mine has the idea of my own, and what's Mine is my own, and my own is all Mine and believes

in your and my name, the Present time. 6.

I lie in the night air in my red shirt—the pervading hush is for my sake, Painless after all I lie, exhausted

I do not know what I carry in my arms pressed close to my side and bosom!

I turn my steps to "Zion's Mill" a cemetery.

My womb is clean and pure. It is ready for thy child my love.

how lovingly will I cherish and guard it, our child my love. Thine the pleasure my love.

My motives are pure and holy. Our boy my love! Do you not already love him?

more foolish than the rest of the volume:— "I too am not a bit tamed—I too am untranslatable, I sound my

The last scud of day holds back for me, It flings my likeness, after the rest, and true as any, on the

I depart as air—I shake my white locks at the run-away sun, I effuse my flesh in eddies, and drift it

To prepare for sleep, for bed—to look on my rose-coloured flesh, To be conscious of my body, so amorous

Have you learned the physiology, phrenology, politics, geography, pride, freedom, friendship, of my land

Earth of the limpid grey of clouds, brighter and clearer for my sake! Far-swooping elbowed Earth!

But I take back my promise. For if you are not sane what will writing avail?

It is a waste of breath for my friend to tell me I am healthy when my pulse records the circumstance

because, being a woman, and having read the uncharitable and bitter attacks upon the book, I wish to give my

There are few poems which I can read with so intense a thrill of exultation at the greatness of my destiny

death with the dying, and birth with the new-washed new- washed babe, and am not contained between my

hat and my boots.

I know perfectly well my own egotism.

strong in the knees, and of an inquiring and communicative disposi- tion disposition Also instructive in my

My wife was indignant , and I should not wonder if she wrote a reply to it. W. W.

I rubbed my eyes a little to see if this sunbeam were no illusion; but the solid sense of the book is

I wish to see my benefactor, and have felt much like striking my tasks and visiting New York to pay you

my respects.

I could not shut my eyes to their wild, rough beauty nor close my soul to the truths they expressed.

I write simply to express my unqualified disgust with the portions I have read.

They look at me, and my eyes start out of my head; they speak to me, and I yell with de- light delight

; they touch me, and the flesh crawls off my bones.

heaven, it bears me beyond the stars, I tread upon the air, I sail upon the ether, I spread myself my

O my soul! O your soul, which is no better than my soul, and no worse, but just the same!

O my eye! 1247. These things are not in Webster's Dictionary— Unabridged, Pictorial.

The package came safe to hand on Friday, containing my 20 purchased L. of G. and 20 to give away at discretion

their dead songs about dead Europe, and its stupid monks and priests, its chivalry, and its thing a-my-bobs

I know perfectly well my own egotism. . . .

I will put in my poems, that with you is heroism, upon land and sea. . . .

On my way a moment I pause, Here for you! And here for America!

of my own, And that all the men ever born are also my brothers, and the women my sisters and lovers,

Earth of the limpid gray of clouds, brighter and clear- er clearer for my sake!

by the indolent waves, I am exposed, cut by bitter and poisoned hail Steeped amid honeyed morphine , my

darkness Our vessel riddled and slowly sinking—preparations to pass to the one we had conquered— The captain

Monday May 14, '60 My dear Walt : I spent much time yesterday reading your poems, and am more charmed

I want to do great things for you with the book, and as soon as I get over my immediate troubles will

My dear Walt, The books are duly delivered.

Meanwhile I am up to my eyes—and over my eyes even to blindness—in the slough of a fearful road to that

plainer English I am fighting like a thousand Humans to establish the Saturday Press, and have for my

My brother George will deliver this. He is of the right stamp. In haste Henry Clapp.

them to give me the copy to make some little corrections—which I did effectually by going straight to my

And how goes it with you, my dear? I watched the N.

allow themselves to be squeezed into the stereotype mould, and wear straight collars and hats, and say "my

could go dead head if I was to apply—Jeff, I feel as if things had taken a turn with me, at last—Give my

love to Mat, and all my dear brothers, especially Georgie.

New York April 30th 18 60 Walt, I was very glad indeed to hear from you in answer to my last, and you

to find your business was progressing so favorably, — In accordance with not only your wishes, but my

My excuse for writing to you is, that it is a matter of the utmost importance to a client of mine.

I am now back again in my old position at 168 Broadway, behind the desk. —So please address me here.

Friend Walter— I design bearly to say How do you do, while you are in Boston, & to express my own pleasure

I know what is your mental fare in Boston from my own past personal experience and without wishing to

intrude myself above my true level I could wish I were, at least, a stander-by.

How shall I rise to life (action), is, now, my all pressing & all urgent question.

Accept my affectionate regards. O. K. Sammis To Walt Whitman. O. K.

Walter it is so strange you hav e not got my letter I sent one last friday Friday morning and should

and have had all you have sent and come very acceptable I had got down to 10 cents you must have got my

told him I had hired so much of the house out he would have to hire his board write Walt if you got my

institutionalizing Jesse because, according to her December 25, 1863 letter, she "could not find it in my

Dear Brother, I have just finished a letter to mother, and while my hand is in, I will write you a line

I enclose in my letter to Mother, a note from Hyde —nothing at all in it, except that Han is well, and

, it seems to me, like relieving me of a great weight—or removing a great obstacle that has been in my

go-ahead fellows, and don't seem to have the least doubt they are bound to make a good spec. out of my

I am very well, and hold my own about as usual.

As I know you would like to hear from me, my dear friend, I will not yet go to bed—but sit down to write

to you, that I have been here in Boston, to-day is a fortnight, and that my book is well under way.

I was going to put into the book—just took me to the stereotype foundry, and given orders to follow my

It will be out in a month—a great relief to me to have the thing off my mind.

I send my love to Helen and Emmy. Walt. Walt Whitman to Abby H. Price, 29 March 1860