Poetry Analysis Walt Whitman Literary Devices n n

Poetry Analysis Walt Whitman

Literary Devices n n n Free Verse: poetry without regular pattern of rhyme and meter Catalog: frequent lists of people, things, and attributes Parallelism: related ideas are phrased in similar ways

“Song of Myself” 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. What does grass symbolize in this poem? What is the speaker’s view of himself? What is the speaker’s view of death? What is the speaker’s relationships with the reader and with others? Identify different literary elements (catalog, parallelism, and any other devices that you can find).

“I Hear America Singing” & “I Sit and Look Out” 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. What does “singing” represent? Why do you think Whitman does not mention members from the upper class like politicians or entrepreneurs? Why do you think Whitman writes about the social injustices described in the poem? Why does he respond with silence? Explain the dichotomy of the two poems that capture the spirit of America in the mid-1800 s. Identify different literary elements (catalog, parallelism, and any other devices that you can find).

“I Hear _______ Singing” n n Write your own poem imitating Whitman’s style (free verse, catalog, and parallelism). Base your poem on a location of your choice and write about the types of people and sounds that you would hear.