The thing to remember about Leaves of Grass is that, to Whitman, it was always a work in progress. He was continually revising, adding to, and deleting from it, publishing different editions throughout his life. The first 1855 edition is a vastly different work than the deathbed 1891-92 edition. In general I would say it got better over time. Judging from the fact your copy of the book starts with his prolix, grandiose, self-indulgent preface, you’re reading the 1855 edition. I would have recommended starting with the deathbed edition. I think the quality is generally better. Whitman, at the end of his life certainly thought so. The preface was dropped in the 1856 edition, so, thankfully, it does not make it into the 1891-92 deathbed edition. The two poems I would recommend reading first for someone just starting with Whitman are “Out of the Cradle Slowly Rocking” and “Crossing Brooklyn Ferry”. The first describes his start, a seminal incident that inspired him when he was a young boy. Perhaps the incident has been somewhat fictionalized in his memory. Perhaps he didn’t suddenly learn to understand the language of birds like Siegfried. But in that poem he tries to tell us how he found his voice. Again that poem went through many revisions with slightly different titles over time. Start with the last one in the 1891-92 edition. The second poem is remarkable for his conceit of speaking to us, people generations hence, directly. We all enjoy in reading listening to voices from the past. Whitman understands that and wants to hold a conversation with us. He tells us about what experiences we share and how we are alike. Even in his descriptions of scenes which have dramatically changed since his time (Brooklyn Bridge has replaced Brooklyn Ferry, not so many tall masted wind powered ships) we can discern the experiences we have shared (looking down at the bow wake of a boat we are on, moving in crowds, seeing the dawn). He tried to start a conversation with us. Being long dead we have to forgive him not being able to listen to our replies. I think those two poems give us some sense of the man. Going back through the rest of his work in any order you like, keep the understanding in mind. It helps us to see through the bluster. And there is a lot of bluster. It can be very off-putting at first.
I'm looking forward to reading the other versions! It will be fascinating to see how it evolved. As someone who has dabbled in writing, I understand a perpetual work in progress, there's something endearing about it. :)
I've read parts of The Deathbed edition and found it to be very good, but just not what I was used to from poetry, being that I had only really read The English Romantics and Milton. If you want to read more American poetry one I would suggest is Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, a poet who has unfortunately fallen out of favor. He wrote Paul Revere's Ride, a poem that has unfortunately fallen out of favor. On a side note, I got to see Walt Whitman's house and grave a couple years ago when going a road trip through the Northeast. They're both in Camden, New Jersey which has the distinction of being the most violent city in America. Don't let that put you off though, the area isn't that populated and is mostly government buildings. It really was strange to see this nice old house with a beautiful backyard that had managed to survive the complete destruction of the rest of the neighborhood, the widening of the road and severe urban decay. It's nice to know he still makes the place he lived a little nicer.
The thing to remember about Leaves of Grass is that, to Whitman, it was always a work in progress. He was continually revising, adding to, and deleting from it, publishing different editions throughout his life. The first 1855 edition is a vastly different work than the deathbed 1891-92 edition. In general I would say it got better over time. Judging from the fact your copy of the book starts with his prolix, grandiose, self-indulgent preface, you’re reading the 1855 edition. I would have recommended starting with the deathbed edition. I think the quality is generally better. Whitman, at the end of his life certainly thought so. The preface was dropped in the 1856 edition, so, thankfully, it does not make it into the 1891-92 deathbed edition.
The two poems I would recommend reading first for someone just starting with Whitman are “Out of the Cradle Slowly Rocking” and “Crossing Brooklyn Ferry”.
The first describes his start, a seminal incident that inspired him when he was a young boy. Perhaps the incident has been somewhat fictionalized in his memory. Perhaps he didn’t suddenly learn to understand the language of birds like Siegfried. But in that poem he tries to tell us how he found his voice. Again that poem went through many revisions with slightly different titles over time. Start with the last one in the 1891-92 edition.
The second poem is remarkable for his conceit of speaking to us, people generations hence, directly. We all enjoy in reading listening to voices from the past. Whitman understands that and wants to hold a conversation with us. He tells us about what experiences we share and how we are alike. Even in his descriptions of scenes which have dramatically changed since his time (Brooklyn Bridge has replaced Brooklyn Ferry, not so many tall masted wind powered ships) we can discern the experiences we have shared (looking down at the bow wake of a boat we are on, moving in crowds, seeing the dawn). He tried to start a conversation with us. Being long dead we have to forgive him not being able to listen to our replies.
I think those two poems give us some sense of the man. Going back through the rest of his work in any order you like, keep the understanding in mind. It helps us to see through the bluster. And there is a lot of bluster. It can be very off-putting at first.
I'm looking forward to reading the other versions! It will be fascinating to see how it evolved. As someone who has dabbled in writing, I understand a perpetual work in progress, there's something endearing about it. :)
I've read parts of The Deathbed edition and found it to be very good, but just not what I was used to from poetry, being that I had only really read The English Romantics and Milton. If you want to read more American poetry one I would suggest is Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, a poet who has unfortunately fallen out of favor. He wrote Paul Revere's Ride, a poem that has unfortunately fallen out of favor.
On a side note, I got to see Walt Whitman's house and grave a couple years ago when going a road trip through the Northeast. They're both in Camden, New Jersey which has the distinction of being the most violent city in America. Don't let that put you off though, the area isn't that populated and is mostly government buildings. It really was strange to see this nice old house with a beautiful backyard that had managed to survive the complete destruction of the rest of the neighborhood, the widening of the road and severe urban decay. It's nice to know he still makes the place he lived a little nicer.
@@AN474-e1o oh I love Longfellow! Thanks for the reminder. I associate him with Wordsworth and sometimes forget he's American 😂