Walt Whitman

Walt Whitman Walt Whitman's work "Leaves of Grass" shows that he was a poet of democracy. Whitman was interested in becoming the inclusive voice of his generation. He used free verse (as opposed to rhyme) and very expansive lines. Whitman was known as a "public" poet, intensely interested in civic issues. And yet, he was a poet of the "self," deeply concerned with the individual. From Leaves on Grass 1900. Please read: 183. Passage to India As commentary, please also read: Walt Whitman and the Development of Leaves of Grass In "Passage to India," Whitman's orientation to technology and change on the global stage becomes clear. Whitman is making a powerful statement about how the individual is affected by major technical change (e.g., the Suez Canal, railroad, and the like). Ernest Hemingway In many ways, Hemingway was the opposite of Whitman. For one thing, Whitman was gay, and Hemingway was totally, obsessively straight. Their styles of writing provide an equally stark contrast. Ernest Hemingway's novel, In Our Time, is written in the brutal, abrupt style that characterized his work. Read CHAPTER IV of the novel, The Three Day Blow This Chapter of the book explores the relationship of two men in today's world. Case Assignment How does Whitman see the individual "soul" in relation to the new world of technology? Is he optimistic or fearful? By contrast, explain the relationship the two men share in Hemingway's novel. and how it reflects their attitudes toward the technology of the world in which they live. Assignment Expectations Stay close to the text. Cite specific passages and interpret what YOU think Whitman means. Feel free to use your own experience and your own views to make sense of the poem. In particular, think of yourself as an individual, and abou how all today's technology affects you as an individual. Is it harder to be a unique individual today, given the technology around us? In what ways are we forced to conform? (refer to module 2 if you like as this builds on Emerson's sense of self-reliance as a fundamental American ethic) Feel free to use personal experiences and your own understanding of things to explain what you see. Again, we are asking how technology changes us as individuals. How we have fun, how we work has been changed by all the technology around us. Build on what you have learned so far to comment on what Hemingway's characters tell you about your own life.