I thought about the relationship between myself (the reader), the text, and the author, and I ended up feeling cheated out in a sense. I felt like the relationship was very slim, I felt disconnected from the work. I felt as if I couldn't relate to the emotion of the poem, whereas in "Lilacs..." I could.
I also felt overloaded with imagery in Rukeyser's work. I began to feel weighed down by image after image, especially in the beginning. I don't get this with Walt.
That is very interesting for, I agree, Rukeyser's use of 'you' is a bit less personal than Whitman's, and more general and universal. But I would think that since she is calling on a wider lens of readers, that it would be more likely for one to feel connected. What do you think Rukeyser's point is in making it not as personal? How does that relate back to Whitman's method of process and resolution in mourning?
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