poets. With them came an equal number of writing styles. Certainly one of the most

unique poets to write life's story through his own view of the world and with the

ambition to do it was Walter Whitman. Greatly criticized by many readers of his work,

Whitman was not a man to be deterred. Soon he would show the world that he had a

voice, and that it spoke with a poet's words. Afoot and lighthearted I take to the open

road, Healthy, free, the world before me, the long brown path before me leading

Thus Whitman began his "Song of the Open Road". This paper will attempt to describe

his life and poetry in a way that does justice to the path he chose. He was a man who

grew up impoverished, who wrote from his experiences, and who tried to lift his fellow

men above life's trivialities. These are the points to be discussed on these pages. To

know the essence of Walter Whitman, you would have to understand the heart of his

Walter Whitman was born in West Hills, Long Island, New York, on May 31, 1819 . He

did not have much opportunity for education in his early life. His parents we

pen as few poets have. In short, it looks as though Whitman's haunting figure will

"Camerado, this is no book/Who touche

In his farewell poem for "Leaves of Grass" he assumed his success:

departments until he suffered a stroke in 1873. Although he still published several more

scholars and critics who would probe deeply into his private affairs, Whitman placed a

was one of nine children and little is known about his youth except that two of his

"Who Learns My Lesson Complete," and "Great Are the Myths.". Except for the last

I myself write but one or two indicative words for the future,

ornate, leafy design. It included twelve poems- "Song of Myself," "A Song for

Whitman at one time accepted a job with a New Orleans newspaper, and in doing so

platforms amid the crowds of clergymen, or professors, or aldermen, or congressmen-

seemed to be both his home and inspiration. In "Calamus", part of his single book,

Some common words found in the essay are:
Leaves Grass, Waldo Emerson, Miller Jr, Quaker Whitman, Complete Myths, Leaves Grass-, Whitman Greatly, Song Road, York Brooklyn-, , leaves grass, walter whitman, prove define expecting, farewell poem leaves, view world, expecting main, define expecting, prove define, main farewell poem, averts leaving, expecting main farewell, sauntering stopping, define expecting main, casual averts, stopping casual,
Approximate Word count = 1761
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)