![]() ![]() ![]() With this quintessentially American epic, Whitman changed the landscape of poetry in the United States and beyond. Among his many influential works, including “O Captain! My Captain!,” “I Sing the Body Electric,” and “Out of the Cradle Endlessly Rocking, “Song of Myself” stands out as Whitman’s masterpiece. Reflecting the incredible diversity of the United States itself, “Song of Myself” shifts easily from personal narrative to reams of data, from erotic fantasy to musings on religion and morality. While “Song of Myself” received a lukewarm reception at best in Whitman’s lifetime, it is now recognized by literary scholars as one of the greatest American poems. In its final form, the poem is divided into 52 sections, thought to represent the 52 weeks of the year. It was not until the 1881 edition that it acquired the title “Song of Myself,” as well as the section breaks which most modern publications include. In the second edition, it was called “Poem of Walt Whitman, an American,” which was shortened to simply “Walt Whitman” in the third edition. In its original iteration, it did not have a title. “Song of Myself” underwent several major structural changes over the years. ![]()
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