Analysis of Shut Not Your Doors, &c.

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



SHUT not your doors to me, proud libraries,
   For that which was lacking on all your well-fill'd shelves, yet
         needed most, I bring;
   Forth from the army, the war emerging--a book I have made,
   The words of my book nothing--the drift of it everything;
   A book separate, not link'd with the rest, nor felt by the intellect,
   But you, ye untold latencies, will thrill to every page;
   Through Space and Time fused in a chant, and the flowing, eternal
         Identity,
   To Nature, encompassing these, encompassing God--to the joyous,
         electric All,
   To the sense of Death--and accepting, exulting in Death, in its turn,
         the same as life,
   The entrance of Man I sing.                                        10


Scheme ABCDCEFGHIJKLC
Poetic Form
Metre 111111110 1111101111111 10111 110100101001111 0111110011110 011011101111010 1110111111001 110110010010010 0100 11001001010011010 0101 10111001001001011 0111 0101111
Closest metre Iambic hexameter
Characters 743
Words 115
Sentences 2
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 14
Lines Amount 14
Letters per line (avg) 36
Words per line (avg) 11
Letters per stanza (avg) 497
Words per stanza (avg) 152
Font size:
 

Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 09, 2023

35 sec read
146

Walt Whitman

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

All Walt Whitman poems | Walt Whitman Books

35 fans

Discuss this Walt Whitman poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "Shut Not Your Doors, &c." Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/38134/shut-not-your-doors%2C-%26c.>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    April 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    2
    days
    9
    hours
    11
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    The word "poetry" is from the Greek term "poiesis", which means?
    A Saying
    B Reading
    C Writing
    D Making