He was a vagabond, a reprobate, and his poems contain outbursts of erotomania so artlessly shameless that their parallel in literature could hardly be found with the author's name attached. For his fame he has to thank just those bestially sensual pieces which first drew him to the attention of all the pruriency of America. He is morally insane, and incapable of distinguishing between good and evil, virtue and crime.
~Max Nordau, Degeneration, 1895
Ouch! That's severe! But, actually, Nordau's assessment of Walt Whitman has held up in many circles for over 100 years. Of course many contemporary critics skewered him, too, including Francis Fisher Browne who noted in The Dial, in 1882, that "...his lack of sense of poetic fitness, his failure to understand the business of a poet, is clearly astounding." Beloved author Robert Louis Stevenson described him thusly, "Whitman, like a large shaggy dog, just unchained, scouring the beaches of the world and baying at the moon."
But the overwhelming response from authors all across the English speaking world praised his daring, innovative, bold strokes and common patterns of speech. You can read pages of contemporary critiques here. Since his death in 1892, he has been generally considered to be the most important American poet of the nineteenth century.
The Wikipedia bio is a good place to start for an excellent overview of Walt Whitman's life, literary works, philosophy, and impact. To read many of his most famous works in perhaps the most uncluttered venue for online literature [from many to choose from] check out this page from Readprint.com. But for the big-daddy mega source of the latest research on Whitman, the Whitman Archive is the winner hands down. I also found some extremely clever videos at YouTube. Here is the poet himself reciting "Captain, O My Captain," one of my favorites. Well, he's reciting it, sort of...
Love him or hate him -- Whitman has had that kind of affect on readers for well over a century. What do you think? Do you like Whitman or would you rather get a tetanus shot? LOL My own feeling -- I like a lot of his work. He could use some editing -- but hey, that's the pot calling the kettle black! LOL He was a poet. He was a man. He was an American. Nothing more to day... But what are your thoughts? Thanks for visiting!
Have a wonderful day!
4 comments:
I like Walt! I even used one of his quotes in my wedding vows. 20 years later I still like Walt though I'm not terribly crazy about the recipient of those vows, way back when. :))
Kate!! LOL -- I understand your situation. Too many of us have been there and done that! I'm glad you like Walt. Thanks for your comment! :D
LOL Kate!
I enjoy Walt, he is a poet you have to read over sometimes.
I loved the video, it portrayed the poem well.
Glynis!! You are absolutely right about having to read some of this poems over a few times. It's the pounding rhythm that first gets to me, then I have to examine the words for their meaning and eventually put it all together to understand what he's really trying to say in the poem. I'm glad you liked the video. I don't know how they did it, but it almost looks real. The actor read it well, too, so that helps make it seem "real." All that from one still photograph. Amazing! :D
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