Early Years & Education
Walt Whitman was born in 1819 to parents Walter and Louisa Whitman. He was the second of nine children and was raised in Long Island and Brooklyn, New York. In high school, Whitman studied English and excelled in his classes. His love for literature first emerged from reading poems by John Keats, William Cowper, and Edmund Spenser. In his youth, Whitman earned money by working as a newspaper editor, school teacher, and carpenter.
While Whitman’s formal education was limited, knowledge came naturally to him. He also drew on his life experience when crafting verse, regularly exploring topics related to mortality, time, guilt and empathy. In 1855, Whitman’s poetry collection Leaves of Grass was published, and he began to gain international recognition for his work.
Issues Important to Whitman
During the 19th century, Whitman advocated for an array of progressive reforms. He was particularly passionate about the abolition of slavery and rights for American workers. Whitman believed strongly in a unified and equal America, where everyone’s rights were respected and protected.
Whitman was a prominent figure in the LGBTQ community, expressing his desire for a more inclusive and accepting America. To him, America was a collective of different people unified by similar ideals. Whitman supported a wide range of social issues including women’s suffrage and Native American rights, and was a staunch believer of the ‘American Dream’. By the time he passed in 1892, he had become an icon for civil rights and liberty.
Influence Of Emerson
Another major figure who influenced the life and work of Walt Whitman was Ralph Waldo Emerson. Famous for his essay “Self-Reliance”, Emerson was a celebrated philosopher who championed individualism and free thought. Whitman shared many of the same beliefs and was greatly inspired by Emerson’s essay. In fact, when Whitman wrote ‘Leaves of Grass’, it was dedicated to Emerson.
In 1855, Emerson wrote to Whitman telling him how much he admired his work. This validation would prove a pivotal moment in Whitman’s career. The pair shared many conversations and became friends. It was the encouragement of Emerson that inspired Whitman to move away from his traditional view of writing and focus more on celebrating himself and his creative freedom.
The Significance of Greek Mythology
Greek mythological themes also feature heavily in the work of Walt Whitman. He was greatly inspired by the tales of gods and goddesses, particularly from the tragedies of Aeschylus and Sophocles. In the mid 1800s, Whitman was exposed to the works of mythologist Dr George Faber and Henry Thoreau’s translations of Aeschylus. By drawing on the themes and figures from Greek mythology, Whitman crafted his works to record what he had learned about society.
Influences of Democracy and Freedom
Writers and intellectuals of the 19th century such as Thomas Jefferson and Thomas Paine, played an important role in Whitman’s views on Government and democracy. Whitman admired their works, in particular the treatise of Thomas Paine, ‘Common Sense’, written in support of the American Revolution. He was obsessed with the idea of a new social order that equaled rights between the rich and poor and women and men, based on American values.
At the time there were fierce debates about the role of government and democracy. Whitman felt that existing governments had gone too far limitting rights and freedoms and this inspired Whitman to forge a vision of a free and just America based on the ideas of Jefferson and Paine. His spirit and unwavering belief in democracy is still celebrated today.
Political Unrest and Impact
The political tensions of the 19th century were an influence on Walt Whitman’s writing. In the dark days of the Civil War, resentment and grief formed the basis of Whitman’s work. Regardless of who was in power during his lifetime, Whitman always felt that American society oppressed those who had little power. In response, Whitman strove to push people to rise up, be liberated and fight against these injustices.
At his time, America was in flux. The post-Civil War era had created tensions between the north and the south, and tensions between Races also ran high. With his writing, Whitman highlighted his concerns about the way society treated ethnic and racial minorities. His examination of the capitalist structure of America and its implications for low earnings further illustrated his passions.
Romanticism and Nature
Walt Whitman was heavily influenced by the Romantic movement, a literary movement that flourished in the early 1800s and emphasised emotion and the beauty of nature. Through Romanticism, Whitman was exposed to the works of Shakespeare and Lord Byron, two poets he found particular inspiration in. Nature also played a significant role in Whitman’s writing, producing odes in praise of the beauty of the natural world.
Whitman found a spiritual peace while in nature, which he could not experience in the bustling cities of his time. In his poem ‘Song of Myself’, Whitman celebrates nature and its ability to bring joy to difficult days. He reflects on the importance of nature in his life and the solace it provided him.
Religion and its Impact
Walt Whitman was raised in a religious family and his parents were Methodists. His Christian beliefs and values had a great influence on his works, and he often fused them with his own ideologies to create thought provoking and reflective pieces. In many of his poems, Whitman emphasised the idea of self-transformation and evolving with life’s ever-changing nature.
Another aspect of Whitman’s religious exploration came from his interest in eastern philosophy and the teachings of Hinduism and Buddhism. This fuelled his focus on compassion and kindess, portrayed heavily in the poetry collection Drum-Taps. For Whitman, it was important to love and care for everyone noblessly, no matter their background.
The Unions and Impact of Trade
During the 19th century, trade unions were developed by workers as a method of collective bargaining. It was a risky move, particularly in a capitalist society, but one Walt Whitman was willing to support. Whitman believed that workers should unite and fight for better wages and recognition of labour rights. This was another area in which Whitman displayed his progressive thinking, forging a vision of an America that captured the potential for freedom for all.
Whitman was one of the first influential figures in America to throw his support behind the trade union movement. He continuously praised the rights of workers and encouraged them to push for their voices to be heard. To Whitman, the trade union was a symbol of hope in a society so often dominated by power, money, and the ruling elite.
