Minor Prophecy: Walt Whitman's New American ReligionMany of Walt Whitman's earliest readers hailed him as a religious prophet. For them, Leaves of Grass was more than literary art; it was sacred scripture. Recent scholarship has, however, dismissed those early enthusiasts as naive, if not crazy. David Kuebrich's new study of Whitman corrects that academic oversight by giving the early Whitmanites their due as the critics who most clearly perceived the nature and purpose of the poet's labors—to begin a new religion. Kuebrich's thorough, intelligent study, based squarely on textual evidence, offers a revisionist interpretation of America's great poet, returning religious vision and spirituality to the center of Whitman studies. |
From inside the book
Results 1-3 of 27
... appears not so much an evasion of reality as a highly original and thoughtful synthesis of various important religious and political beliefs that characterized the contemporary culture . Whitman's optimism was undoubtedly fed by the ...
... appears extraordinary but not unreasonable . In as- suming the mantle of prophecy , he was fulfilling the traditional role of the lib- eral religious mystic who lives in a period of profound cultural transition . As the historian of ...
... appears in " Scented Herbage , " where the roots and leaves are presented as a symbol which fuses Whitman's love with his belief in immortality : Scented herbage of my breast , Leaves from you I glean , I write , to be perused best ...
Contents
Reconsidering Whitmans Intention | 1 |
A New Religion | 12 |
Interpreting Historys Meaning | 27 |
Copyright | |
8 other sections not shown