October 12th, 2009:

        Whitman’s  Love

        As a person, I always consider myself very pessimist character in life and struggle to be positive thinker.  And I always admire the people who can always think positive and full of joy even though some unpleasant experiences they  face. Since the beginning of the class, I am aware of one particular thing that Whitman is so full of love to life and people. Reading through some of his lines I sense that he can perceive the life and people around him with love and happiness. In other words, Whitman is a person who is able to see the beauty in everything he looks at. As an example of “Song of Occupation” part of “Leaves of Grass”, Whitman lines up all the occupations and details of these people and somehow connects his lines within a harmony.

             In contrast, as last class’ discussion Charles Dickens express his feelings hateful for New Yorkers and calls them pigs during the same time Whitman calls New Yorkers brothers and sisters. In my opinion, we should not connect these that Whitman, himself was a New Yorker and for sure he would be nice to his own people and Dickens was English and he was visiting New York and acted racist. Shortly, it is not the location where you come from. It is that what makes you hateful or loving is how the individual thinks. Briefly, I would say Whitman could be happy and loving in any part of the World. This was just in him that we were all the same. “Every atom belongs to you it belongs to me” . as he he said .In addition to this, Whitman enhance the way that he describes no one is better than other in lines of

“Souls of men and women! it is not you I call unseen, unheard,
untouchable and untouching,
It is not you I go argue pro and con about, and to settle whether
you are alive or no,
I own publicly who you are, if nobody else owns.

Grown, half-grown and babe, of this country and every country,
in-doors and out-doors, one just as much as the other, I see,
And all else behind or through them.

The wife, and she is not one jot less than the husband,
The daughter, and she is just as good as the son,
The mother, and she is every bit as much as the father”

                                                                                P93

       These lines remind me my favorite poetry Mevlana Rumi who lived on 13^th century. In his poems he mostly mentioned of loving universe, people and God. His most known poem started as  “Come whoever you are come…” that he was calling people to love each other, not discriminating one of the livings. Flowingly, I found some other lines of Whitman that we can witness how much passion he had for people and life and saw everyone friendly and lived life joyful. Even though he wasn’t wealthy and a person with family issues like his brother Eddie’s situation, he never gave up being positive.

“…Will you seek afar off? you surely come back at last,
In things best known to you finding the best, or as good as the best,
In folks nearest to you finding the sweetest, strongest, lovingest,
Happiness, knowledge, not in another place but this place, not for
another hour but this hour,
Man in the first you see or touch, always in friend, brother,
nighest neighbor–woman in mother, sister, wife,…” p101

        Whitman’s  Love

        As a person, I always consider myself very pessimist character in life and struggle to be positive thinker.  And I always admire the people who can always think positive and full of joy even though some unpleasant experiences they  face. Since the beginning of the class, I am aware of one particular thing that Whitman is so full of love to life and people. Reading through some of his lines I sense that he can perceive the life and people around him with love and happiness. In other words, Whitman is a person who is able to see the beauty in everything he looks at. As an example of “Song of Occupation” part of “Leaves of Grass”, Whitman lines up all the occupations and details of these people and somehow connects his lines within a harmony.

             In contrast, as last class’ discussion Charles Dickens express his feelings hateful for New Yorkers and calls them pigs during the same time Whitman calls New Yorkers brothers and sisters. In my opinion, we should not connect these that Whitman, himself was a New Yorker and for sure he would be nice to his own people and Dickens was English and he was visiting New York and acted racist. Shortly, it is not the location where you come from. It is that what makes you hateful or loving is how the individual thinks. Briefly, I would say Whitman could be happy and loving in any part of the World. This was just in him that we were all the same. “Every atom belongs to you it belongs to me” . as he he said .In addition to this, Whitman enhance the way that he describes no one is better than other in lines of

“Souls of men and women! it is not you I call unseen, unheard,
untouchable and untouching,
It is not you I go argue pro and con about, and to settle whether
you are alive or no,
I own publicly who you are, if nobody else owns.

Grown, half-grown and babe, of this country and every country,
in-doors and out-doors, one just as much as the other, I see,
And all else behind or through them.

The wife, and she is not one jot less than the husband,
The daughter, and she is just as good as the son,
The mother, and she is every bit as much as the father”

                                                                                P93

       These lines remind me my favorite poetry Mevlana Rumi who lived on 13^th century. In his poems he mostly mentioned of loving universe, people and God. His most known poem started as  “Come whoever you are come…” that he was calling people to love each other, not discriminating one of the livings. Flowingly, I found some other lines of Whitman that we can witness how much passion he had for people and life and saw everyone friendly and lived life joyful. Even though he wasn’t wealthy and a person with family issues like his brother Eddie’s situation, he never gave up being positive.

“…Will you seek afar off? you surely come back at last,
In things best known to you finding the best, or as good as the best,
In folks nearest to you finding the sweetest, strongest, lovingest,
Happiness, knowledge, not in another place but this place, not for
another hour but this hour,
Man in the first you see or touch, always in friend, brother,
nighest neighbor–woman in mother, sister, wife,…” p101

             These short pieces seem to be purpose built snip-its from the war.  Whitman has created several prose peices all looking at the Civil War from different places, times, and perspectives, observing so many different people.  I find these pieces so visual, with quite a few themes running through them.  There is so much imagery of filth; the filth of the soldiers is explicated over and over again.  “Their clothes all saturated with the clay power filling the air — stirr’d up everywhere on the dry roads and trodden fields by the regiments, swarming wagons, artillery, &c — all the men with this coating of murk and sweat and rain… baffled, humiliated, panic-struck” (732).  The filth seems to go hand in hand with the chaos of the war. 

                There is also such a strong prescense of youth.  Whitman describes the soldiers of the war as youth, and talks about their age frequently. It seems as though it is always the youth of our nation losing their lives to fight for our rights.  “I am more and more surprised at the very great proportion of youngesters from fifteen to twenty-one in the army…” (738).  “Most of these sick or hurt are evidently young fellows from the country … (743).  “some indescribably horrid wounds in the face or head, all mutilated, sickening, torn, gouged out — some in the abdomen– some mere boys…” (747).   “The Soldiers are nearly all young men…” (751).  There are more and more of these quotes throughout the prose.  I think the horror, for Whitman, is heightened because so many of the soldiers are mere boys, and he is witnessing all of the youth of the nation arriving filthy, and wounded, and mutilated.

                       Whitman makes so many of the victims of the Civil War so human. It seems that sometimes the horrors of war and the losses that are happening during a war begin to get dulled.  The bodies become numbers instead of names, and the people behind the fighting are lost.  Whitman tells so many stories of small, personal requests from the people whom he is caring for which makes them so human for the reader; it makes the reader much more sympathetic with the dead and dying.  From the soldier who craves rice pudding to the one who wants pickels; from the amputee who munches away on a crack with not a care in the world, to the young Irish lad who came to the country just to fight, Whiman makes the reader sympathize with all of them. 

Whitman’s treatment of his Civil War prose, and the work that Whitman did with these soldiers in the hospital is incredible.  If one didn’t like Whitman already, he sure should now because he is a humanist to the core, caring for soldiers from both sides of the line with such a personal compassion.  These snip-its not only provide the reader with an inside look at the horrors of the civil war, but also provide the reader with an inside look at Whitman as a compassionate human being.

             These short pieces seem to be purpose built snip-its from the war.  Whitman has created several prose peices all looking at the Civil War from different places, times, and perspectives, observing so many different people.  I find these pieces so visual, with quite a few themes running through them.  There is so much imagery of filth; the filth of the soldiers is explicated over and over again.  “Their clothes all saturated with the clay power filling the air — stirr’d up everywhere on the dry roads and trodden fields by the regiments, swarming wagons, artillery, &c — all the men with this coating of murk and sweat and rain… baffled, humiliated, panic-struck” (732).  The filth seems to go hand in hand with the chaos of the war. 

                There is also such a strong prescense of youth.  Whitman describes the soldiers of the war as youth, and talks about their age frequently. It seems as though it is always the youth of our nation losing their lives to fight for our rights.  “I am more and more surprised at the very great proportion of youngesters from fifteen to twenty-one in the army…” (738).  “Most of these sick or hurt are evidently young fellows from the country … (743).  “some indescribably horrid wounds in the face or head, all mutilated, sickening, torn, gouged out — some in the abdomen– some mere boys…” (747).   “The Soldiers are nearly all young men…” (751).  There are more and more of these quotes throughout the prose.  I think the horror, for Whitman, is heightened because so many of the soldiers are mere boys, and he is witnessing all of the youth of the nation arriving filthy, and wounded, and mutilated.

                       Whitman makes so many of the victims of the Civil War so human. It seems that sometimes the horrors of war and the losses that are happening during a war begin to get dulled.  The bodies become numbers instead of names, and the people behind the fighting are lost.  Whitman tells so many stories of small, personal requests from the people whom he is caring for which makes them so human for the reader; it makes the reader much more sympathetic with the dead and dying.  From the soldier who craves rice pudding to the one who wants pickels; from the amputee who munches away on a crack with not a care in the world, to the young Irish lad who came to the country just to fight, Whiman makes the reader sympathize with all of them. 

Whitman’s treatment of his Civil War prose, and the work that Whitman did with these soldiers in the hospital is incredible.  If one didn’t like Whitman already, he sure should now because he is a humanist to the core, caring for soldiers from both sides of the line with such a personal compassion.  These snip-its not only provide the reader with an inside look at the horrors of the civil war, but also provide the reader with an inside look at Whitman as a compassionate human being.

Walt Whitman and Charles Dickens wrote very different versions of the same story, the story of New York. Whitman, a native New Yorker, wrote with an insider’s mindset to an audience of insiders.  Dickens, A native of Great Britain, wrote from an outside perspective to an audience of other British outsiders. Because of this, the tones of these two texts are very different. Walt Whitman had a very positive view of New York. He saw New York as a united city, a great city. In the first paragraph of Song of Myself he writes, “For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you”(33). New York for Whitman represented diversity and equality simultaneously and harmoniously. His view of the city was positive, celebrating the culture and humans, celebrating the culmination of perfection, “There was never any more than there is now, Nor any more youth or age than there is now, And will never be any more perfection than there is now,” (35).

Dickens, on the other hand, wrote a much more bleak review. Although his review in From American Notes for General Circulation begins with a middling to positive review, “Was there ever such a sunny street as Broadway?” and “Heaven save the ladies, how they dress!” (52), it quickly degenerates into a darker and more scathing attitude of New York. Where Whitman focuses on human advancement, Dickens chooses to write about the slums and a holding prison called The Tomb. The guards of The Tomb are described as having a laissez-faire attitude. When asked about the prisoners’ right to exercise, the guard replies, “Well, they do without it pretty much”(55). The prison is dark, unkempt, and named The Tombs for a very specific reason. Upon questioning the guard about the origin of the name, Dickens receives this reply, “Some suicides happened here, when it was first built. I expect it come about from that.” (57). The source of the prison’s name is not the only thing that horrifies Dickens; he also takes time to write about both the fact that the prisoners’ clothes are kept strewn about the floor because of the lack of hooks, and also about a boy who is being held in the prison, not because he has committed a crime, but because he is being held as a witness against his father. This last bit of information contrasts sharply against the picture of a civilized city painted by Walt Whitman.

But Dickens’ does not stop with the depressing description of The Tombs; he even goes so far as to describe the inhabitants of New York as different types of animals. The working classes become “pigs” who are only concerned with their own well being and recognize each other by sight instead of conversation. Alongside the pigs are the “dogs”, which one is led to believe are the criminals of New York. Wall Street’s portrayal is particularly poignant presently as Dickens’ writes, “Many a rapid fortune has been made in this street, and many a no less rapid ruin” (53). In conclusion, although Dickens and his literary ability were welcomed to New York with pomp and celebration, he did a great disservice to the city by describing only the negative aspects and generally ignoring the positive sides described exhaustively by Whitman.

Walt Whitman and Charles Dickens wrote very different versions of the same story, the story of New York. Whitman, a native New Yorker, wrote with an insider’s mindset to an audience of insiders.  Dickens, A native of Great Britain, wrote from an outside perspective to an audience of other British outsiders. Because of this, the tones of these two texts are very different. Walt Whitman had a very positive view of New York. He saw New York as a united city, a great city. In the first paragraph of Song of Myself he writes, “For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you”(33). New York for Whitman represented diversity and equality simultaneously and harmoniously. His view of the city was positive, celebrating the culture and humans, celebrating the culmination of perfection, “There was never any more than there is now, Nor any more youth or age than there is now, And will never be any more perfection than there is now,” (35).

Dickens, on the other hand, wrote a much more bleak review. Although his review in From American Notes for General Circulation begins with a middling to positive review, “Was there ever such a sunny street as Broadway?” and “Heaven save the ladies, how they dress!” (52), it quickly degenerates into a darker and more scathing attitude of New York. Where Whitman focuses on human advancement, Dickens chooses to write about the slums and a holding prison called The Tomb. The guards of The Tomb are described as having a laissez-faire attitude. When asked about the prisoners’ right to exercise, the guard replies, “Well, they do without it pretty much”(55). The prison is dark, unkempt, and named The Tombs for a very specific reason. Upon questioning the guard about the origin of the name, Dickens receives this reply, “Some suicides happened here, when it was first built. I expect it come about from that.” (57). The source of the prison’s name is not the only thing that horrifies Dickens; he also takes time to write about both the fact that the prisoners’ clothes are kept strewn about the floor because of the lack of hooks, and also about a boy who is being held in the prison, not because he has committed a crime, but because he is being held as a witness against his father. This last bit of information contrasts sharply against the picture of a civilized city painted by Walt Whitman.

But Dickens’ does not stop with the depressing description of The Tombs; he even goes so far as to describe the inhabitants of New York as different types of animals. The working classes become “pigs” who are only concerned with their own well being and recognize each other by sight instead of conversation. Alongside the pigs are the “dogs”, which one is led to believe are the criminals of New York. Wall Street’s portrayal is particularly poignant presently as Dickens’ writes, “Many a rapid fortune has been made in this street, and many a no less rapid ruin” (53). In conclusion, although Dickens and his literary ability were welcomed to New York with pomp and celebration, he did a great disservice to the city by describing only the negative aspects and generally ignoring the positive sides described exhaustively by Whitman.

Walt Whitman and Charles Dickens wrote very different versions of the same story, the story of New York. Whitman, a native New Yorker, wrote with an insider’s mindset to an audience of insiders.  Dickens, A native of Great Britain, wrote from an outside perspective to an audience of other British outsiders. Because of this, the tones of these two texts are very different. Walt Whitman had a very positive view of New York. He saw New York as a united city, a great city. In the first paragraph of Song of Myself he writes, “For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you”(33). New York for Whitman represented diversity and equality simultaneously and harmoniously. His view of the city was positive, celebrating the culture and humans, celebrating the culmination of perfection, “There was never any more than there is now, Nor any more youth or age than there is now, And will never be any more perfection than there is now,” (35).

Dickens, on the other hand, wrote a much more bleak review. Although his review in From American Notes for General Circulation begins with a middling to positive review, “Was there ever such a sunny street as Broadway?” and “Heaven save the ladies, how they dress!” (52), it quickly degenerates into a darker and more scathing attitude of New York. Where Whitman focuses on human advancement, Dickens chooses to write about the slums and a holding prison called The Tomb. The guards of The Tomb are described as having a laissez-faire attitude. When asked about the prisoners’ right to exercise, the guard replies, “Well, they do without it pretty much”(55). The prison is dark, unkempt, and named The Tombs for a very specific reason. Upon questioning the guard about the origin of the name, Dickens receives this reply, “Some suicides happened here, when it was first built. I expect it come about from that.” (57). The source of the prison’s name is not the only thing that horrifies Dickens; he also takes time to write about both the fact that the prisoners’ clothes are kept strewn about the floor because of the lack of hooks, and also about a boy who is being held in the prison, not because he has committed a crime, but because he is being held as a witness against his father. This last bit of information contrasts sharply against the picture of a civilized city painted by Walt Whitman.

But Dickens’ does not stop with the depressing description of The Tombs; he even goes so far as to describe the inhabitants of New York as different types of animals. The working classes become “pigs” who are only concerned with their own well being and recognize each other by sight instead of conversation. Alongside the pigs are the “dogs”, which one is led to believe are the criminals of New York. Wall Street’s portrayal is particularly poignant presently as Dickens’ writes, “Many a rapid fortune has been made in this street, and many a no less rapid ruin” (53). In conclusion, although Dickens and his literary ability were welcomed to New York with pomp and celebration, he did a great disservice to the city by describing only the negative aspects and generally ignoring the positive sides described exhaustively by Whitman.

Walt Whitman and Charles Dickens wrote very different versions of the same story, the story of New York. Whitman, a native New Yorker, wrote with an insider’s mindset to an audience of insiders.  Dickens, A native of Great Britain, wrote from an outside perspective to an audience of other British outsiders. Because of this, the tones of these two texts are very different. Walt Whitman had a very positive view of New York. He saw New York as a united city, a great city. In the first paragraph of Song of Myself he writes, “For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you”(33). New York for Whitman represented diversity and equality simultaneously and harmoniously. His view of the city was positive, celebrating the culture and humans, celebrating the culmination of perfection, “There was never any more than there is now, Nor any more youth or age than there is now, And will never be any more perfection than there is now,” (35).

Dickens, on the other hand, wrote a much more bleak review. Although his review in From American Notes for General Circulation begins with a middling to positive review, “Was there ever such a sunny street as Broadway?” and “Heaven save the ladies, how they dress!” (52), it quickly degenerates into a darker and more scathing attitude of New York. Where Whitman focuses on human advancement, Dickens chooses to write about the slums and a holding prison called The Tomb. The guards of The Tomb are described as having a laissez-faire attitude. When asked about the prisoners’ right to exercise, the guard replies, “Well, they do without it pretty much”(55). The prison is dark, unkempt, and named The Tombs for a very specific reason. Upon questioning the guard about the origin of the name, Dickens receives this reply, “Some suicides happened here, when it was first built. I expect it come about from that.” (57). The source of the prison’s name is not the only thing that horrifies Dickens; he also takes time to write about both the fact that the prisoners’ clothes are kept strewn about the floor because of the lack of hooks, and also about a boy who is being held in the prison, not because he has committed a crime, but because he is being held as a witness against his father. This last bit of information contrasts sharply against the picture of a civilized city painted by Walt Whitman.

But Dickens’ does not stop with the depressing description of The Tombs; he even goes so far as to describe the inhabitants of New York as different types of animals. The working classes become “pigs” who are only concerned with their own well being and recognize each other by sight instead of conversation. Alongside the pigs are the “dogs”, which one is led to believe are the criminals of New York. Wall Street’s portrayal is particularly poignant presently as Dickens’ writes, “Many a rapid fortune has been made in this street, and many a no less rapid ruin” (53). In conclusion, although Dickens and his literary ability were welcomed to New York with pomp and celebration, he did a great disservice to the city by describing only the negative aspects and generally ignoring the positive sides described exhaustively by Whitman.