Have you reckoned a thousand acres much? Have you reckoned the earth much?
Have you practiced so long to learn to read?
Have you felt so proud to get at the meaning of poems?
The above lines ask questions we have been attacking throughout the year. How does man perceive nature? How does the poet perceive nature? Is he more apt to do so? Whitman later states, “urge and urge and urge,” implying the need for progress. Thus I think it has some merit to argue that there is no quantifiable answer but rather a strategy—keep questioning. The poet is not inherently better but rather focuses on such a strategy. They question the relationship of man and nature and thus are more able to provide some insight.
When Whitman asks these questions, the reader is forced to ask these questions as well and by consequence see what nature looks like through the eyes of Whitman. Whitman is asking the reader to actively participate with him in seeing nature, which is a distinct difference between Whitman poetry and the Romantics. The Romantics told their readers what nature is and whats its like whereas Whitman tries to show them, through questions and vivid description, and ultimately have the reader adapt "new eyes" to what nature looks like. This is one reason why I think Whitman's poetry is so powerful.
ReplyDeleteI think the quantifiable answer lies in observation as well as questioning. With observation, questions get answered but probably continue to arise.
*probably new unanswered questions continue to arise
ReplyDeleteI agree w/ Adam and think the ellipses serve as the window into view of nature. The ellipses slow the reading down and allow the reader time to reflect and think about Whitman's thoughts as they arise as opposed to after the fact. Neurologically, this forces the synapses to fire as one reads and thus build an opinion that is in agreement or opposition to Whitman. As such, the ellipses pose periodic questions that give the reader ""new eyes" to what nature looks like."
ReplyDeleteWhitman reassures us, if the reader is at all shocked or confused by his merging of body and soul, man and nature and the divine: “Who need be afraid of the merger?” And later in the poem, he writes, “It is not chaos or death . . . . it is form and union and plan . . . . it is eternal life . . . . it is happiness.” It is a religion that recognizes no boundaries, no prejudices, and embraces diversity in every sense of the word. Whitman foreshadows some very modern ideas in this poem.
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