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Oct 17th, 2009
by fabfab.
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“the big doors of the country-barn stand open and ready,

the dried grass of the harvest-time loads the slow-drawn wagon,

the clear light plyas on the brown gray and green intertinged,

the arm fuls are packed to the sagging mow.”

(pg36whitman(leaves))

87906963(gettyimages.com)

I study architecture, and when someone mentions any type of structure or building i picture it in my head, on page 36 of leaves of grass, Whitman is describing  big barn doors of a country-barn, i picture the image above. barns have always been a certain shape; big massive doors, large sloping roof, and mostly made of wood. when i read Whitman and picture the place he is speaking about i am transported there and visualize the event as a movie.

image gloss

Oct 17th, 2009
by fabfab.
Comments are off for this post

“the big doors of the country-barn stand open and ready,

the dried grass of the harvest-time loads the slow-drawn wagon,

the clear light plyas on the brown gray and green intertinged,

the arm fuls are packed to the sagging mow.”

(pg36whitman(leaves))

87906963 gettyimages.com)

I study architecture, and when someone mentions any type of structure or building i picture it in my head, on page 36 of leaves of grass, Whitman is describing  big barn doors of a country-barn, i picture the image above. barns have always been a certain shape; big massive doors, large sloping roof, and mostly made of wood. when i read Whitman and picture the place he is speaking about i am transported there and visualize the event as a movie.

Jennica’s Second Imagegloss on “keptwoman” and Ceniza’s article

Oct 6th, 2009
by jenny and walt.
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Example of a KeptWoman

I will not have a single person slighted or left away,
The keptwoman and sponger and thief are hereby invited
. . . . the heavy-lipped slave is invited . . . . the veneralee is invited,
There shall be no difference between them and the rest. (Whitman 44)

~*~*~*~*~

After looking through a couple of variations of “kept woman” on the Oxford English Dictionary (OED), I was not successful. However, when I typed in “kept,” here is what showed up:

kept, ppl. a.

In various senses derived from KEEP v.; spec.    

1. a. Maintained or supported by a paramour. Also of a man or boy maintained or supported in a homosexual relationship.
b. Financially supported by, and in consequence under the private control of, interested persons.

 So what exactly is a kept woman?

According to thefreedictionary.com, a kept woman is “an adulterous woman; a woman who has an ongoing extramarital sexual relationship with a man” (“kept woman”). In other words, this individual is someone who smooches off another financially (most likely through a sexual relationship). Therefore, this goes back to definition b of the OED.

~*~*~*~*~

Most interestingly enough, I thought this was perfect for one of the readings we had to do for our class: “Woman as a Theme in Whitman’s Writing“. This article by Sherry Ceniza speaks about the different voices that spoke out during Whitman’s time through 19th century women’s perspectives. Some praised Whitman’s representation of women of “the new woman, the democratic woman” in his writings (Ceniza 797); however, a few criticized him for his “lack of representation of woman working outside the home” (Ceniza 798). Still,the author claims that during Whitman’s time, “[t]hough Whitman’s representation of women in his writing is not consistently in touch with contemporary feminism, it must be put into its historical perspective;” “it is difficult to view Whitman’s literary representation of women as anything but positive” (Ceniza 797). So far, my take on this is neutral. Though I agree with Ceniza in some aspects, on the other note, I can’t say wholeheartedly that Whitman wasn’t biased towards women in every line of his works. Often times, he does portray women with a condescending overtone using specific diction or descriptions of women. For instance, in the Children of Adam poems, “A Woman Waits for Me,” Whitman makes women sound like some sort of baby-machines.

http://www.themonitor.ca/article-124086-Helping-pregnant-women-in-the-heart-of-NDGs-baby-machine.html

 Then, going back to my image gloss of a kept woman, Whitman is saying that even kept women are valued as equals. “There shall be no difference between them and the rest”. But if you think about it, what made me curious was his linking of kept women with spongers, thiefs, and heavy-lipped slaves. Maybe I am reading too much into it, but what may have been Whitman’s intention of grouping these individuals together?

Here are some interesting things I found on the web:

http://www.geekinheels.com/blog/2007/5/18/kept-women.html

Want to become a kept woman? Transform Me!

 

Works Cited
Ceniza, Sherry.  “Women as a Theme in Whitman’s Writing.”  The Woman’s Rights Movement and Whitman. 
“kept, ppl. a.” The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. 1989. OED Online. Oxford University Press. 4 Apr. 2000 <http://dictionary.oed.com/cgi/entry/50126045>.

“kept woman.”  The Free Dictionary.  Princeton University, Farlex Inc.  2003-2008  <http://www.thefreedictionary.com/kept+woman>.

Jennica’s Second Imagegloss on “keptwoman” and Ceniza’s article

Oct 6th, 2009
by jenny and walt.
Comments are off for this post
Example of a KeptWoman

I will not have a single person slighted or left away,
The keptwoman and sponger and thief are hereby invited
. . . . the heavy-lipped slave is invited . . . . the veneralee is invited,
There shall be no difference between them and the rest. (Whitman 44)

~*~*~*~*~

After looking through a couple of variations of “kept woman” on the Oxford English Dictionary (OED), I was not successful. However, when I typed in “kept,” here is what showed up:

kept, ppl. a.

In various senses derived from KEEP v.; spec.    

1. a. Maintained or supported by a paramour. Also of a man or boy maintained or supported in a homosexual relationship.
b. Financially supported by, and in consequence under the private control of, interested persons.

 So what exactly is a kept woman?

According to thefreedictionary.com, a kept woman is “an adulterous woman; a woman who has an ongoing extramarital sexual relationship with a man” (”kept woman”). In other words, this individual is someone who smooches off another financially (most likely through a sexual relationship). Therefore, this goes back to definition b of the OED.

~*~*~*~*~

Most interestingly enough, I thought this was perfect for one of the readings we had to do for our class: “Woman as a Theme in Whitman’s Writing“. This article by Sherry Ceniza speaks about the different voices that spoke out during Whitman’s time through 19th century women’s perspectives. Some praised Whitman’s representation of women of “the new woman, the democratic woman” in his writings (Ceniza 797); however, a few criticized him for his “lack of representation of woman working outside the home” (Ceniza 798). Still,the author claims that during Whitman’s time, “[t]hough Whitman’s representation of women in his writing is not consistently in touch with contemporary feminism, it must be put into its historical perspective;” “it is difficult to view Whitman’s literary representation of women as anything but positive” (Ceniza 797). So far, my take on this is neutral. Though I agree with Ceniza in some aspects, on the other note, I can’t say wholeheartedly that Whitman wasn’t biased towards women in every line of his works. Often times, he does portray women with a condescending overtone using specific diction or descriptions of women. For instance, in the Children of Adam poems, “A Woman Waits for Me,” Whitman makes women sound like some sort of baby-machines.

http://www.themonitor.ca/article-124086-Helping-pregnant-women-in-the-heart-of-NDGs-baby-machine.html

 Then, going back to my image gloss of a kept woman, Whitman is saying that even kept women are valued as equals. “There shall be no difference between them and the rest”. But if you think about it, what made me curious was his linking of kept women with spongers, thiefs, and heavy-lipped slaves. Maybe I am reading too much into it, but what may have been Whitman’s intention of grouping these individuals together?

Here are some interesting things I found on the web:

http://www.geekinheels.com/blog/2007/5/18/kept-women.html

Want to become a kept woman? Transform Me!

 

Works Cited
Ceniza, Sherry.  “Women as a Theme in Whitman’s Writing.”  The Woman’s Rights Movement and Whitman. 
“kept, ppl. a.” The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. 1989. OED Online. Oxford University Press. 4 Apr. 2000 <http://dictionary.oed.com/cgi/entry/50126045>.

“kept woman.”  The Free Dictionary.  Princeton University, Farlex Inc.  2003-2008  <http://www.thefreedictionary.com/kept+woman>.

Jennica’s Second Imagegloss on “keptwoman” and Ceniza’s article

Oct 6th, 2009
by jenny and walt.
Comments are off for this post
Example of a KeptWoman

I will not have a single person slighted or left away,
The keptwoman and sponger and thief are hereby invited
. . . . the heavy-lipped slave is invited . . . . the veneralee is invited,
There shall be no difference between them and the rest. (Whitman 44)

~*~*~*~*~

After looking through a couple of variations of “kept woman” on the Oxford English Dictionary (OED), I was not successful. However, when I typed in “kept,” here is what showed up:

kept, ppl. a.

In various senses derived from KEEP v.; spec.    

1. a. Maintained or supported by a paramour. Also of a man or boy maintained or supported in a homosexual relationship.
b. Financially supported by, and in consequence under the private control of, interested persons.

 So what exactly is a kept woman?

According to thefreedictionary.com, a kept woman is “an adulterous woman; a woman who has an ongoing extramarital sexual relationship with a man” (”kept woman”). In other words, this individual is someone who smooches off another financially (most likely through a sexual relationship). Therefore, this goes back to definition b of the OED.

~*~*~*~*~

Most interestingly enough, I thought this was perfect for one of the readings we had to do for our class: “Woman as a Theme in Whitman’s Writing“. This article by Sherry Ceniza speaks about the different voices that spoke out during Whitman’s time through 19th century women’s perspectives. Some praised Whitman’s representation of women of “the new woman, the democratic woman” in his writings (Ceniza 797); however, a few criticized him for his “lack of representation of woman working outside the home” (Ceniza 798). Still,the author claims that during Whitman’s time, “[t]hough Whitman’s representation of women in his writing is not consistently in touch with contemporary feminism, it must be put into its historical perspective;” “it is difficult to view Whitman’s literary representation of women as anything but positive” (Ceniza 797). So far, my take on this is neutral. Though I agree with Ceniza in some aspects, on the other note, I can’t say wholeheartedly that Whitman wasn’t biased towards women in every line of his works. Often times, he does portray women with a condescending overtone using specific diction or descriptions of women. For instance, in the Children of Adam poems, “A Woman Waits for Me,” Whitman makes women sound like some sort of baby-machines.

http://www.themonitor.ca/article-124086-Helping-pregnant-women-in-the-heart-of-NDGs-baby-machine.html

 Then, going back to my image gloss of a kept woman, Whitman is saying that even kept women are valued as equals. “There shall be no difference between them and the rest”. But if you think about it, what made me curious was his linking of kept women with spongers, thiefs, and heavy-lipped slaves. Maybe I am reading too much into it, but what may have been Whitman’s intention of grouping these individuals together?

Here are some interesting things I found on the web:

http://www.geekinheels.com/blog/2007/5/18/kept-women.html

Want to become a kept woman? Transform Me!

 

Works Cited
Ceniza, Sherry.  “Women as a Theme in Whitman’s Writing.”  The Woman’s Rights Movement and Whitman. 
“kept, ppl. a.” The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. 1989. OED Online. Oxford University Press. 4 Apr. 2000 <http://dictionary.oed.com/cgi/entry/50126045>.

“kept woman.”  The Free Dictionary.  Princeton University, Farlex Inc.  2003-2008  <http://www.thefreedictionary.com/kept+woman>.

Image Gloss

Sep 24th, 2009
by jackieg.
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In one of Whitman’s “laundry lists”, so to speak, in Song of Myself he mentions
“Over the western Persimmion…”
Since I, like so many people, rely on my mind’s eye to illustrate what I’m reading, it occured to me that persimmion was something that I couldn’t picture at all. I had heard the word before, but I really didn’t know what it was until now.

flowerfruit

A persimmion is known as “the fruit of the Gods” and is found on many species of trees in the ebony wood family. The name comes Powhatan, which is an Algonquian language and means “a dry fruit”.  In chinese medicine, persimmions are used to regulate ch’i.

I just thought that it was interesting that Whitman would include the fruit of the Gods in his poem that is so saturated with his own egotism. However, I don’t necessarily think that his egotism is a bad thing in his work, I think that it would be more accurate to say that he is celebrating himself and suggesting that we celebrate our own selves as well. It’s just interesting to see the kind’s of things that he manages to slip into his work that we might, more often that not, overlook.

:)

Image Gloss 9-17-09_Nadia

Sep 17th, 2009
by .
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3yfFOq_CFQ

I hear the chorus—it is a grand opera;  Ah, this indeed is music! This suits me.

A tenor large and fresh as the creation fills me;  The orbic flex of his mouth is pouring and filling me full.

I hear the train’d soprano—(what work, with hers, is this?) 600 The orchestra whirls me wider than Uranus flies;  It wrenches such ardors from me, I did not know I possess’d them;  It sails me—I dab with bare feet—they are lick’d by the indolent waves;  I am exposed, cut by bitter and angry hail—I lose my breath,  Steep’d amid honey’d morphine, my windpipe throttled in fakes of death; 605 At length let up again to feel the puzzle of puzzles,  And that we call BEING.

The reason why i chose this about singing and the opera is because i love it myself. i was born into the world of music. I myself am a soprano singing so the sound makes me feel good. its hard to describe.  so I hope this piece from Vitas does the same.

Image Gloss

Sep 17th, 2009
by jayroc.
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“What is commonest and chapest and nearest and easiest is Me,

Me going in for my chances, spending for vast returns,

Adorning myself to bestow myself on the first that will take me,

Not asking the sky to come down to my goodwill,

Scattering it freely forever.

The pure contralto sins in the organloft…”

-Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass (1855) p. 39

Contralto refers to the deepest singing voice a woman can have and is in between a tenor and a mezzo-soprano in terms of range. Contralto singers are usually referenced in terms of Opera even  though they are rarely used since most female parts call for much higher singing voice. When contralto singers are used they are typically given the parts that were originally intended for castrato singers.

The use of this reference gives a very dramatic feel to the stanzas which surround it while also giving some sexual ambiguity. The fact that most contralto singers sing the parts of castrated men gives an odd picture of sexuality and identity which it seems Whitman was a huge fan of . Furthermore, If you listen to a contralto singer singing something like “Ebarma Dich” while reading through the bottom of page thirty eight and thirty nine you get a a feeling of somber happiness. I feel that this audio helps to give another dimension to the many images that Whitman presents to us in Song Of Myself.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Image Gloss

Sep 17th, 2009
by jayroc.
Comments are off for this post

“What is commonest and chapest and nearest and easiest is Me,

Me going in for my chances, spending for vast returns,

Adorning myself to bestow myself on the first that will take me,

Not asking the sky to come down to my goodwill,

Scattering it freely forever.

The pure contralto sins in the organloft…”

-Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass (1855) p. 39

Contralto refers to the deepest singing voice a woman can have and is in between a tenor and a mezzo-soprano in terms of range. Contralto singers are usually referenced in terms of Opera even  though they are rarely used since most female parts call for much higher singing voice. When contralto singers are used they are typically given the parts that were originally intended for castrato singers.

The use of this reference gives a very dramatic feel to the stanzas which surround it while also giving some sexual ambiguity. The fact that most contralto singers sing the parts of castrated men gives an odd picture of sexuality and identity which it seems Whitman was a huge fan of . Furthermore, If you listen to a contralto singer singing something like “Ebarma Dich” while reading through the bottom of page thirty eight and thirty nine you get a a feeling of somber happiness. I feel that this audio helps to give another dimension to the many images that Whitman presents to us in Song Of Myself.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Image Gloss

Sep 17th, 2009
by jayroc.
Comments are off for this post

“What is commonest and chapest and nearest and easiest is Me,

Me going in for my chances, spending for vast returns,

Adorning myself to bestow myself on the first that will take me,

Not asking the sky to come down to my goodwill,

Scattering it freely forever.

The pure contralto sins in the organloft…”

-Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass (1855) p. 39

Contralto refers to the deepest singing voice a woman can have and is in between a tenor and a mezzo-soprano in terms of range. Contralto singers are usually referenced in terms of Opera even  though they are rarely used since most female parts call for much higher singing voice. When contralto singers are used they are typically given the parts that were originally intended for castrato singers.

The use of this reference gives a very dramatic feel to the stanzas which surround it while also giving some sexual ambiguity. The fact that most contralto singers sing the parts of castrated men gives an odd picture of sexuality and identity which it seems Whitman was a huge fan of . Furthermore, If you listen to a contralto singer singing something like “Ebarma Dich” while reading through the bottom of page thirty eight and thirty nine you get a a feeling of somber happiness. I feel that this audio helps to give another dimension to the many images that Whitman presents to us in Song Of Myself.

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