The poem ‘Song of Myself’ by Walt Whitman has many different themes and focuses on various aspects of a person’s spiritual and physical life. However, the most prominent theme of this work is the manifestation of the author’s identity. Within the framework of his narrative, Whitman refers not only to himself, but also to many individual characters. Initially, it may seem that the plot of the poem is not holistic, but rather a set of distinct thoughts of the poet. Upon closer examination, the reader may find that the poem represents the author’s spiritual journey and mystical experience through the physical world. Whitman, through the presentation of the three parts of his identity, manifests himself as part of the universe, which is connected with all other people and objects that exist within it.
Whitman in his poem appeals to three elements of his identity, each of which is responsible for a certain area of his life. At the beginning of the poem, the reader may understand that the narrator seeks to turn to the inner self, without denying the presence of his physical identity. Whitman in the first section refers to his physical identity in the following stanza:
“My tongue, every atom of my blood, formâd from this soil, this air,
Born here of parents born here from parents the same, and their parents the same,
I, now thirty-seven years old in perfect health begin,
Hoping to cease not till death.”
Thus, the reader can understand that there is a real Whitman from flesh and blood who lives in the world. Additionally, the author describes being an American who has ancestors also born in this land. The author of the poem makes it clear to the reader that he will talk about a specific living person who is not an abstraction and exists in the physical world. The first element of his identity is ‘I’, thirty-seven-year-old Walt Whitman.
The author also notes that he is going to celebrate and sing himself, but does not reveal to the reader for what reason. It is noteworthy that the poet sees his soul not as part of his identity, but as an additional entity saying:
“I loafe and invite my soul,
I lean and loafe at my ease observing a spear of summer grass.”
Perhaps in this way, Whitman emphasizes that his spiritual life is, as it were, separate from his physical identity. Observing the grass in this case is a metaphor for describing how the soul of the author watches the world around him. However, this world has a spiritual rather than a physical origin. The summer grass may refer the author to calmness and peace in the soul, which are difficult to find being exclusively in the physical world. Thus, the ‘soul’ is the second element of the author’s identity, which is associated with the spiritual and probably imaginary world.
Further, Whitman describes everything that his ‘I’ is doing in the physical world. He notes that his time and attention is occupied by politics, newspapers, gossip and other daily activities. In the following stanza the author underlines that daily activities are not fully what he is:
“Apart from the pulling and hauling stands what I am,
Stands amused, complacent, compassionating, idle, unitary,
Looks down, is erect, or bends an arm on an impalpable certain rest,
Looking with side-curved head curious what will come next,
Both in and out of the game and watching and wondering at it.”
Whitman presents this side of his personality as separate, which simultaneously observes and participates in life. In this stanza, the poet refers to the soul as an element that also observes the physical body, which emphasizes their separation from one another. His soul is probably the side that is in the spiritual world, which extends beyond his physical capabilities. ‘Me myself’ can be a combination of these two aspects of personality, bringing together the physical and the spiritual. This element is the central one of the three, as it represents some kind of transition and connection of the physical and spiritual aspects of his life. Probably the author emphasizes that through ‘Me myself’ he can cognize the spiritual world in the physical and vice versa.
The entire poem takes place in the background of Whitman’s contemplation of the grass along with his soul. The author emphasizes that his soul is not expressed in words or in other ways familiar to a person. This allows the reader to understand that the soul is some kind of transcendental entity that is separated from the physical world and therefore allows interaction with the spiritual world:
“Loafe with me on the grass, loose the stop from your throat,
Not words, not music or rhyme I want, not custom or lecture, not even the best,
Only the lull I like, the hum of your valvèd voice.”
Thus, the poet emphasizes that the soul does not have a definite speech, it uses perhaps unknown melodies or sounds that allow it to express itself. The poet claims that the soul is a kind of sense organ for him, but not physical, but spiritual. The soul perceives and transmits what Whitman’s physical body cannot perceive.
Throughout the poem, the author associates himself with various characters through vignettes that appear in various parts of the work. In sections 8-16, Whitman presents the perspectives of various characters in various situations. From the following stanza the reader can understand that the narrator is part of everyone and everything:
“I am not an earth nor an adjunct of an earth,
I am the mate and companion of people, all just as immortal and fathomless as myself,
(They do not know how immortal, but I know.)”
The three components of his essence are combined into a universal identity that is simultaneously connected to all people on the planet. It is also extremely important that Whitman does not distinguish between himself and other people. He affirms that they are also immortal like him, emphasizing the commonality of all people on earth. In this stanza, the reader understands that the poem, although it is written on behalf of one person, applies to every living person.
The author affirms both his separate physical essence and his involvement in the universal order:
“Walt Whitman, a kosmos, of Manhattan the son,
Turbulent, fleshy, sensual, eating, drinking and breeding,
No sentimentalist, no stander above men and women or apart from them,
No more modest than immodest.”
Thus, the reader can understand that the poet, on the one hand, identifies himself as an American who was born and lives on this earth. At the same time, he associates himself with the universe, which is the community of all people. The author has units of his body and soul, which are expressed in his physical and spiritual manifestations. While ‘I’ exists in physical terms, ‘soul’ manifests itself in spiritual terms, ‘Me myself’ allows the author to comprehend mystical experience through the physical world through transcendence. This element is transitional and links Whitman the American Poet and Whitman the Kosmos.
Toward the end of the poem, the author addresses the reader on the basis of awareness of his unity with all humanity. Whitman associates himself with the universe, perhaps god or fate, saying in the following stanza:
“I know I have the best of time and space, and was never measured and never will be measured.”
He emphasizes that this transcendence and connection of a person with the world is expressed in the usual things of the physical world. Another stanza in the same section he invites the reader to take a journey:
“Not I, not any one else can travel that road for you,
You must travel it for yourself.”
Whitman refers to the life and life path of each person, which is intertwined with his own, but belongs to each individual separately. Thus, the poet emphasizes that all people in the world are united by a common path, but everyone passes it independently.
At the beginning of the poem, Whitman watched the grass with his own soul. In the last section of his work, he went through his life path. In the last section Whitman once again celebrates his ultimate oneness with the universe and the cycle of life that it represents to every person:
“I bequeath myself to the dirt to grow from the grass I love,
If you want me again look for me under your boot-soles.”
The poet is sure that everyone living on the planet is woven into the web of community and, ending his life, continues to exist as its part. Perhaps this element has an exclusively religious significance. Nevertheless, in the context of the entire poem, it can be concluded that the author emphasizes the commonality not only of people living today, but also of all people who previously lived in the world.
The poet’s transcendental experience based on the union of his three essences marks the author’s journey from realizing his physical ‘I’. Then he observes the world by listening to his ‘soul’, which is a guide to the spiritual world. ‘Me myself’ marks a key element of Whitman’s identity that allows him to experience mystical experiences through the physical world. This element is the unity of its spiritual and physical principles, which unites its individual physical body and the community of all people on earth within the universe. The author made a metaphorical journey from the beginning of his life to the realization of his belonging to the universal world. Through the representations of various characters, he manifests his own indulgence as part of a universal cosmos. Whitman emphasizes that each person has his own life that he lives in a physical body on earth, but his spiritual life is part of the community and never ends.
Work Cited
Whitman, Walt. Song of Myself. Poetry Foundation, 1892. Web.