Walt Whitman Teaches Us to Question Everything
I am deeply grateful to Charles French for putting this short bio of Walt Whitman together. The links are excellent and extracting Whitman’s theme, the thread that is in all of his writing, “Question Everything,” is very important to all of us who are trying to make this world a better place, yet I never realized this before.
It really has me wondering if our leftist theme in the (19)80’s, seen on all our bumpers “Question Authority,” was taken from Whitman.
If you are a supporter of social justice, take a look at Whitman’s poems. You may be pleasantly surprised! ;-)
Peace, love & justice for all,
Sherrie
Originally posted on charles french words reading and writing:
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I have taught Walt Whitman in several classes, and this excerpt is from his introduction to the 1855 First Edition of Leaves of Grass.
Whitman was one of the greatest American poets and has been called the Bard of Democracy. He challenged the existing views of normalcy in the United States across a wide range of topics. We live in a time, perhaps even more than in the 1800s, when great pressure exists to conform to what society defines normalcy to be. I believe it is crucial for individuals to find out who they are, for what they have passions, and what they believe. With this thought in mind, I want to share this small excerpt:
“re-examine all you have been told at church or school or in any book, dismiss whatever insults your own soul, and your very flesh shall be a great poem”
Whitman shattered…
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