Analysis of Inscription

Walt Whitman 1819 (West Hills) – 1892 (Camden)



SMALL is the theme of the following Chant, yet the greatest--namely,
         One's-Self--that wondrous thing a simple, separate person.
         That, for the use of the New World, I sing.
   Man's physiology complete, from top to toe, I sing. Not physiognomy
         alone, nor brain alone, is worthy for the muse;--I say the Form
         complete is worthier far. The female equal with the male, I
         sing,
   Nor cease at the theme of One's-Self. I speak the word of the modern,
         the word En-Masse:
   My Days I sing, and the Lands--with interstice I knew of hapless War.

O friend whoe'er you are, at last arriving hither to commence, I feel
         through every leaf the pressure of your hand, which I return.
         And thus upon our journey link'd together let us go.


Scheme XXABBXACXX XCX
Poetic Form
Metre 1101101001101010 1111010101010 1101101111 101000111111111 0111011101011101 011100101101011 1 1110111111011010 0111 111100111111101 11111110101010111 110010101111101 010110101010111
Closest metre Iambic heptameter
Characters 793
Words 130
Sentences 9
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 10, 3
Lines Amount 13
Letters per line (avg) 42
Words per line (avg) 10
Letters per stanza (avg) 273
Words per stanza (avg) 64
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 07, 2023

40 sec read
143

Walt Whitman

Walter "Walt" Whitman was an American poet, essayist and journalist. more…

All Walt Whitman poems | Walt Whitman Books

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