"When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer" by Walt Whitman
Analyzing the Poem
The Title
- The word learn'd means established or prestigious
- Astronomy is the field of science that deals with space, stars, etc.
The Body
- The poem begins with the speaker listening to a prestigious astronomer. (Guest Speaker).
- The astronomer is going in depth about mathematics, problem solving, and scientific evidence.
- The speaker gets "sick and tired" of hearing the lecture even though everyone else seemed to be enjoying it.
- He left the lecture ("rising and gliding out") it seems as if it wasn't over when he left.
- After he left the lecture he was relieved and wandered around outside occasionally glancing at the stars.
Themes
- One of the themes we gathered from the poem is Simplicity.
- The speaker was interested in astronomy but he was more fascinated by the stars themselves then the proofs and evidence.
- As college students we picked our field of study and we have to take classes that we have no interest in, a lot like the speaker.We would like to skip this part and just get into our field.
Literary Devices
Rhyme Scheme
- There is an extreme lack of rhyme.
- The speaker is expressing what he was experiencing in the moment. He wasn't guessing anything or in a deep thought process.
Hyperbole
Line 11: "gliding"exaggerates the smoothness and ease of his exit from the room.
Walt Whitman and the "Leaves of Grass"
Zen Pencils
About Walt Whitman
Published Works
- Whitman's most famous work(s) "Leaves of Grass" had multiple editions.
- The first edition was published in 1855 with his own money.
- Some of the poetry in "Leaves of Grass" were scene as obscene due to it's sexuality.
- It was a collection of poetry including his experiences as he tended to injured soldiers during the civil wars.
Humble Beginnings
- Whitman started off as a printer in New York until a fire in the printing district burned and pretty much destroyed everything.
- In 1836 he began to teach in the one-room school houses of Long Island.
- In 1841 Whitman turned to journalism.
Early Years
- Largely considered one of America's most important poets along with Emily Dickinson. Born May 31, 1819. Lived in Brooklyn and Long Island.
- By the age of 12 Whitman began to to learn the printer's trade. He started to love literature, to the point where he started teaching it to himself.
- Whitman gained inspiration by reading works from Homer, Dante, Shakespeare and even the bible.