Elizabeth Oakes Smith and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
These two poets definitely reminded me of Whitman. Whether it was due to actual similarities in the poems or just because I've just had a lot of Whitman on the mind, I might never know. Regardless, I couldn't help but draw my lines of comparison between these two poets and Whitman.
First of all was the matter of content. While both Whitman and Smith talk about nature they each do it in a unique way. Smith speaks as an observer and doesn't seem to quite understand nature, while Walt Whitman speaks as if he is part of nature and he is trying to absorb all the knowledge that nature has to offer him. Smith does not do this as her last lines state "I would not soar like thee, in loneliness to pine." Smith does not understand the flight of the eagle and seemingly does not wish too. Whitman would probably be dying to soar like an eagle in a tree.
Next was Longfellow's poem. He does not speak of nature, rather he speaks of both work and church. These directly contrast Whitman as his poetic muse, his soul, was never free indoors and never while working. Whitman was a loafer, while Longfellow's character is a worker. This much is seen with descriptions such as his hardened hands.
As far as form goes, these two poets had a particular rhythm and rhyme while also keeping their poems short and sweet. While Whitman does have his own rhythms and the occasional rhyme, it did not correspond with either of these poets. Thus is the beauty of Whitman's blank verse.
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