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A STUDY OF WALT WHITMAN’S POETRY- ‘SONG OF THE OPEN

ROAD’

Submitted By-

Rachit Sharma

SM0118042

Faculty in Charge

Mrs. APRAJITA DUTTA

NATIONAL LAW UNIVERSITY, ASSAM

GUWAHATI

31 OCTOBER 2018
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TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1. Research Problem

1.2. Literature Review
1.3. Scope and Objective
1.4. Methodology
2. PLOT SYNOPSIS AND ANALYSIS

3. SYMBOLISM, THEMES AND MOTIFS

3.1. Themes
3.2. Freedom and confinement
3.3. Democracy
3.4. Community
3.5. Perseverance
4. CONCLUSION

BIBLIOGRAPHY
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CHAPTER – 1

INTRODUCTION

Walt Whitman’s inspirational poem Song of the Open Road was one of the twenty new poems
in the 1856 edition of Leaves of Grass. Like “Crossing Brooklyn Ferry,” which appeared at the
same time, it celebrates a communion and a democracy based on place. Here Whitman sets up
the out-of-doors as a utopian, democratic space, in which all men can come together. It
appeared in what many scholars deem one of the most influential poetry texts of all
time, Whitman is most known as a poet and essayist, and many modern poets credit his poetry
with inspiring and influencing their own works. Whitman's poetry often deviates from
traditional poetic form; his writing often seems more like prose than poetry. Critics often refer
to Whitman as "the father of free-verse," even though he did not invent this style — he just
popularized it. Whitman used his poetry to reflect on everything happening in the world around
him. America was growing and changing, developing its own cultural identity separate from
Europe1.

Song of the Open road is another saga besides the ‘Song of myself ‘of his journey from the
narrow, grandiloquent ‘ego’ to the expansive, altruistic, sagacious ‘self.’ It is the poem about
the hidden powers of self, which when evoked and realized lead one into oneness with the
entire creation of God. Here the poet talks about his journey from the narrow cellar of the ego
to the open corridors of the self to the extensive open road of the higher self, finally to the
consciousness of the Absolute self.2

The speaker of the poem is describing a trip on which he is embarking. He describes himself
as being “healthy and free,” and he realizes he is the only person who is in complete control of
his life; he chooses his own destiny. Because of this realization, he does not have to wish or
hope or pray for good fortune. He attests that he, himself, is his own good fortune, and that is
all he needs. There is nothing that he is lacking. He will reach his destination on his own, and
the earth will provide him with anything extra that is necessary. This is not to say that the road

1
https://www.gradesaver.com/walt-whitman-poems
2
(Singh, 2009, p. 133)
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he is taking is not paved with imperfections and burdens. Rather than worry, however, the
speaker has decided to take those burdens with him and deal with them as they arise.3

3
https://poemanalysis.com/song-of-the-open-road-by-walt-whitman-poem-analysis/
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CHAPTER – 1.1

RESEARCH PROBLEM

The researcher here through the study and analysis of the poetry tries to understand various
concepts, symbolisms, setting and theme of the poetry Song of the open road. On a careful
study, it is found that poetry has various themes regarding Equality, Freedom, Ethical self-
culture and life, consciousness & existence. Regarding this, the researcher seeks to study and
analyze various recurring themes and understand various perspectives put up throughout the
poetry
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CHAPTER – 1.2

LITERATURE REVIEW

1.Whitman, Walt. Leaves of grass, New York; Bantam, 2004.

"Song of the Open Road" which has appeared in second edition of Leaves of Grass by Walt
Whitman in 1956 is truly a hymn in which he employs the symbol of the road to speak in
favor of indispensable values and ideals for the well-being of humanity at large. "Song of the
Open Road" is a merry chant of a wanderer who embraces all that he meets while traveling
on the open road with optimism and cheer.

2. Singh, Kanwar Dinesh. The poetry of Walt Whitman, New critical perspectives;
Atlantic, 2009

Song of the road presents various insights and viewpoints which must be analyzes through
critical perspectives. This poem shows more structure than many of Whitman’s works. These
contemporary perspectives and interpretations proffer new ways to understanding the poet
whose simplicity is too enormously complex. In certain respects, the poem is iconic, for it
speaks symbolically of American mobility, restlessness, and love of freedom and open
spaces.
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CHAPTER – 1.3

SCOPE AND OBJECTIVES

SCOPE:

The project work is an effort to study in an analytical way the poetry of Walt Whitman. For
this project the poetry being analyzed is ‘song of the open road’. The scope of this project is
very limited to analysis of various themes and perspectives of the poetry.

OBJECTIVE:

The objectives of this project are as follow:

 To study the poetry Song of the road

 To analyze the plot of the poem
 To study the key concepts of the poetry
 To study the symbolisms, present in poetry
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CHAPTER – 1.4

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

In this project, researcher has adopted Doctrinal research. Doctrinal research is essentially
a library-based study, which means that the materials needed by a researcher may be
available in libraries, archives and other data-bases. Various types of books were used to
get the adequate data essential for this project. Researcher also used computer laboratory
to get important data related to this topic. Researcher also found several good websites
which were very useful to better understand this topic.
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CHAPTER – 2

PLOT SYNOPSIS AND ANALYSIS

2.1 Analysis of the text

Whitman separates his poem into four separate stanzas. Except for the first stanza, which
contains only three lines, the other stanzas contain four lines of verse. The poem utilizes free
verse; the lines are unrhymed and of varying lengths. The poem is told from a first-person point
of view, and the speaker, perhaps Whitman, knows himself very well.

In the first stanza, the speaker begins his journey. Whitman writes:

“Afoot and light-hearted I take to the open road,

Healthy, free, the world before me,

The long brown path before me leading wherever I choose.”

From this stanza, the reader can glean several important points: first, the speaker is setting out
on the open road on foot. Secondly, he is light-hearted and open to all he is about to
experience. Additionally, the speaker recognizes that it is he who is in control of his journey.
He will choose where the path will take him on his journey.

The second stanza continues the thoughts expressed in the first three lines. Whitman writes:

“Henceforth I ask not good-fortune, I myself am good-fortune

Henceforth I whimper no more, postpone no more, need nothing,

Done with indoor complaints, libraries, querulous criticisms,

Strong and content, I travel the open road.”4

Whitman’s amour-propre is not any kind of narcissism, but rather it is his introspective probing
into the “self”. The title of the poem has two semantic fields; on the one hand is the political
mission of democracy in truest sense of the word, and on the other, a pilgrimage into the

4
https://poemanalysis.com/song-of-the-open-road-by-walt-whitman-poem-analysis/
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sanctum sanctorum of the “self” to attain spiritual awakening, the inner freedom and
enlightenment.5

The speaker says that he does not have to pray for good luck because he is the maker of his
own luck. He will no longer cry or hesitate to do what he wants because he needs nothing. He
is no longer content with being walled inside; he is strong and happy to be on the open road.
In line six, Whitman writes of “querulous criticisms.” The use of alliteration here emphasizes
the speaker’s carefree tone, which is continued throughout the course of the poem.

In the third stanza, Whitman refers to the earth and stars. He writes:

“The earth, that is sufficient,

I do not want the constellations any nearer,

I know they are very well where they are,

I know they suffice for those who belong to them.”

Here, the speaker seems to separate himself from others. He says the earth is fine the way it is;
he does not desire to be any closer to the stars than he already is. He knows they are fine where
they are, and he knows they are good enough for those who belong to them. This last line is in
strong contrast to the rest of the poem, where the speaker emphasizes his free will and
independence, which means he probably does not include himself in the group of people who
belong to the constellations. He does not belong to them because he does not need them.

The fourth stanza is physically separated from the rest of the poem by Whitman’s use of
parentheses. He writes:

“(Still I carry my old delicious burdens,

I carry them, men and women, I carry them with me wherever I go,

I swear it is impossible for me to get rid of them,

I am fill’d with them, and I will fill them in return.)”

Whitman’s use of parentheses here makes the stanza more of an aside than its own separate
being; it is almost an afterthought that the speaker decides to throw in, but it is still important

5
(Singh, 2009)
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to the poem. Here, the speaker admits that he is not without his own problems, but instead of
fretting, he relishes them. The reader can see this through Whitman’s diction. His use of the
word delicious is no accident; through that word, Whitman conveys the sense of relish the
speaker feels for his burden. In the second line of the final stanza, the speaker admits to all that
he carries them with him wherever he goes; this thought is continued in the final two lines of
the poem. The speaker declares that he cannot rid himself of them; instead, he and his burdens
share a symbiotic relationship of sorts: he is filled with his burdens, and in return, he fills them.
The speaker is stating here that his burdens do not define him; rather, he accepts them and
carries them with him wherever he goes.6

6
https://poemanalysis.com/song-of-the-open-road-by-walt-whitman-poem-analysis/
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CHAPTER – 3

Symbolism, Themes and Motifs

In Whitman’s poem, the reader can find symbolism through the journey of life and the open,
democratic society of that time. In the first 8 sections of the poem, Whitman observes the
freedoms in life shown through the open road, “Afoot and light-hearted I take to the open
road; Healthy, free, the world before me; The long brown path before me leading wherever I
choose.” Whitman wants his readers to feel free while reading this, and he wants them to
know that he wrote this poem to ensure the feeling of freedom upon them.7

3.1 TITLE

The road signifies mobility: one can take the road to somewhere new, and in America that
means somewhere one can start over. For Whitman, too, the road is a space for gathering the
material for poetry. As he travels along it, he sees a variety of people and places, and hears a
plethora of stories. He argues against staying in one place for too long, although the
hospitality may be a lure, for only the tests of the open road will do.

The “open road” is a powerful symbol of the passageway to a kind of non-discriminatory, fair
and ethical democracy, which allows people considerable freedom of thought and
expressions, and the equality of opportunity and existence. Whitman finds various objects of
nature, though they by themselves endowed with great variety and inequality, allowing
equitable freedom to one and all without any prejudice or partiality8

7
Kreidler, Michele. "Literary Contexts in Poetry: Walt Whitman's 'Song of the Open Road'". Understanding
Literature--Literary Contexts in Poetry & Short Stories. Retrieved January 25, 2018.
8
(Singh, 2009)
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3.2 FREEDOM AND CONFINEMENT

“Afoot and light-hearted, I take to the open road,

Healthy, free, the world before me,
The long brown path before me, leading wherever I choose. (1-3)”

Right from the point of beginning the speaker wants us to make us aware of freedom that he
is experiencing Whitman observes the freedoms in life shown through the open road, “Afoot
and light-hearted I take to the open road; Healthy, free, the world before me; The long brown
path before me leading wherever I choose.” Whitman wants his readers to feel free while
reading this, and he wants them to know that he wrote this poem to ensure the feeling of
freedom upon them.

“From this hour, freedom!

From this hour I ordain myself loosed of limits and imaginary lines,
Going where I list, my own master, total and absolute, (53-55)”

The narrator paints a picture of a great utopian world where there will be no rules, no master,
no boundaries. The essence of freedom lies in being free from the gratuitous taboos, limits
and impositions on human being. One being one’s own master can choose the directions one
wishes to travel. However, such freedom does not imply becoming the master of the other, or
being merely concerned with oneself. To his statement of being one’s “total and absolute”
master, Whitman adds a conditional clause of “Listening to others,” along with the freedom
of self-will, is of prime importance in order to cherish democracy9

“Allons! be not detained!

Let the paper remain on the desk unwritten, and the book on the shelf unopened!
Let the tools remain in the workshop! let the money remain unearned!
Let the school stand! mind not the cry of the teacher!
Let the preacher preach in his pulpit! let the lawyer plead in the court, and the judge expound
the law. (222-226)”

9
(Singh, 2009)
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Through this message Whitman wants to make us aware of calling of the open road. His
exclamatory and interrogative utterances above are imperatival in nature, expecting. With
these, he aims at convincing and swaying readers to accede or conform to his way of thinking
about freedom, equality and democracy and join him in his expedition/mission

3.3 Democracy

In Whitman’s poem, the reader can find symbolism through the journey of life and the open,
democratic society of that time. 10Whitman envisioned democracy not just as a political
system but as a way of experiencing the world. To Whitman, democracy is effective
especially when it is applied and followed with an openminded approach “of reception, nor
preference nor denial”. In democracy there is no room for petty selfish motives. Everyone’s
interest is important. All individuals are to be paid equal heed. Every individual has an equal
opportunity. According to Whitman, everyone should perform the duties assigned to them
with sincerity and without any attachment of any kind towards the people or the action they
perform

“They pass, I also pass, anything passes, none can be interdicted,

None but are accepted, none but shall be dear to me” (23-24)

The “open road” is a powerful symbol of the passageway to a kind of non-discriminatory, fair
and ethical democracy, which allows people considerable freedom of thought and
expressions, and the equality of opportunity and existence. Whitman finds various objects of
nature, thought they are by themselves endowed with great variety and inequality, allowing
equitable freedom to one and all, without any prejudice or partiality11

“I think heroic deeds were all conceived in the open air” (49)

Section 5 of the poem accentuates the intense democratic proclivities of the poet, by
employing a rhetorical and inductive device, Whitman takes on himself some sort of
compulsory ethico-moral obligation to pave the path of openness and freedom with a view to
setting an example for the followers in this tread.12

10
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Song_of_the_Open_Road_(poem)
11
(Singh, 2009)
12
(Singh, 2009)
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“I am larger, better than I thought,

I did not know I held so much goodness.

All seems beautiful to me, (60-63)

Whitman’s stance on democracy relates to introspection and realization of the individual self,
rather than pointing the fingers at others. The study/Scanning of one’s self is much more
important than criticizing, analyzing and scrutinizing others

Although much of Whitman’s work does not explicitly discuss politics, most of it implicitly
deals with democracy For Whitman, democracy was an idea that could and should permeate
the world beyond politics, making itself felt in the ways we think, speak, work, fight, and
even make art.13

3.4 Community

Whitman’s work describes communities of people coming together, and it imagines many
voices pouring into a unified whole.

The poet believes in spiritual unity of all being in this universe. For him all are important
howsoever ordinary and seemingly insignificant. Every individual is important and of equal
worth with his/her subjectivity and distinctiveness

Whitman also shows that one must have sincerity and integrity in one’s action and profound
sense of altruism and self-sacrifice for the good of others. One needs to lend a hand selflessly
for the uplift of humanity and thinks that everyone needs to rise above petty selfish concerns
for the greater cause of collective good of the humans 14

3.5 Perseverance

According to the speaker in "Song of the Open Road," there's a certain price of admission
that must be paid to enjoy the freewheeling life of the traveler. Not only do you have to leave
behind the comforts of home, but you also have to put up with the everyday challenges that
life on the road poses: estrangement, harsh conditions. Whitman is convinced that the

13
https://www.sparknotes.com/poetry/whitman/themes/#
14
(Singh, 2009)
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hardships of the road are part of what make it all worth it. They teach you to appreciate your
freedoms, as well as how to persevere in the face of challenges.15

15
(Shmoop Editorial Team, 2008)
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Chapter 4

Conclusion

Whitman ends his poem “with the persona awaiting an affirmative response from his reader”
The narrator in his poem reaches his hand out to the reader and asks them to join him on the
journey. Whitman added this as his poem ending to make the reader question, “will they join
him on this journey through the open road?”. It is almost as if the narrator doesn’t want to
complete the journey of life on his own; he wants the company. This is not a common
approach in poem endings, but Whitman also wants to make his readers question, “do you
want to complete the journey alone, or do you want to accompany someone for the rest of
your life's journey?” By leaving his readers questioning their life choices, Whitman is able to
help them figure out their life in a way.16

“Song of the open road” has an expression of Whitman’s firm optimism about transforming
the world. With a sanguine hope of attainment, he merges his ideals for a better society. His
ideals may sound to be utopian but with if they area worked on with a sense of commitment
and earnest feeling of togetherness and with ethics and morality, world can be transformed to
a better place17

16
Kummings, Donald. "Song of the Open Road". Salem Press Encyclopedia of Literature. Retrieved January
25, 2018.
17
(Singh, 2009)
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BIBLIOGRAPHY

 Whitman, Walt. Leaves of grass, New York; Bantam, 2004.

 Singh, Kanwar Dinesh. The poetry of Walt Whitman, New critical perspectives;
Atlantic, 2009
 Kummings, Donald. "Song of the Open Road". Salem Press Encyclopedia of
Literature. Retrieved January 25, 2018.
 Shmoop Editorial Team. (2008, November 11). Song of the Open Road Theme of
Perseverance. Retrieved October 25, 2018, from https://www.shmoop.com/song-of-
the-open-road/perseverance-theme.html
 Song of the Open Road: Summary and Form. SparkNotes. Retrieved 2009-08-17
 Jenson, Jamie. “Analysis of Song of the Open Road by Walt Whitman.” Poem
Analysis, 1 June 2017, poemanalysis.com/song-of-the-open-road-by-walt-whitman-
poem-analysis/.
 “Song of the Open Road (Poem).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 2 Apr. 2018,
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Song_of_the_Open_Road_(poem).
 Gundersen, Kathryn. Boghani, A. ed. "Walt Whitman: Poems Study Guide".
GradeSaver, 16 August 2014 Web.