NEW POETIC FORMS Whitman Dickinson WALT WHITMAN LIFE

NEW POETIC FORMS Whitman & Dickinson

WALT WHITMAN LIFE Born 1819 Went to school until he was 11; never went to college Edited Brooklyn Freeman newspaper; also worked as a carpenter and contractor Sent Leaves of Grass (self published collection of poetry) to Emerson – a good move! Created a public persona for himself through his poetry (self-promoted) Died in 1892, having met his personal goal of changing American poetry § Simple speech § Epic design (long, sweeping poems)

WALT WHITMAN POETRY Rejected conventions § Themes § Forms § Subjects Used long lines § Capture the rhythm of natural speech (cadence) Free verse (no rhyming) Everyday vocabulary Leaves of Grass (self-published) made him famous Impact of his work § poets could write about anything § Organization/meter/rhyme didn’t matter

EMILY DICKINSON LIFE Born in 1830 Childhood – normal § Lively, well-behaved, obedient § Sent to boarding school – enjoyed it § Learned to cook and sew 24 years old – she goes with her father, a congressman, to Washington, D. C. and Philly § May have been in love with a married man (lawyer) – died of TB § On the trip, she fell in love with a married pastor; she saw him as a muse § He left for San Francisco – great crisis in Emily’s life After the trip, she retreated and became a recluse § Didn’t socialize with anyone outside of her immediate family § Only tasks – writing poetry and household duties § Wore white (never a bride? ) Died at age 55

EMILY DICKINSON POETRY Only published a few poems in her lifetime § Friends with editor of Atlantic Monthly Wrote poems to friends/family Asked family to destroy her poems when she died § They didn’t! § Discovered dozens of packets § Poems were edited and published by family and friends 1955 – collection called The Poems of Emily Dickinson was published § This time, the editor didn’t make changes to her form (punctuation, syntax, rhyme scheme, etc. ) Poetry different than anything else before it § Precision of word choice (short, sharp poems) § Tried to evoke feelings of everyday objects/happenings § Unique forms Since her death, recognized as one of the greatest poets in America (and the world? )