Song of Myself

Walt Whitman published “Song of Myself” within the collection Leaves of Grass in 1855. The 1300-line poem is a celebration of the self, which is both individual and universal. For Whitman’s speaker, the immortal self is at one with nature and the universe and collides with the individual selves of countless generations. Though one person’s self exists temporarily, it transcends space and time because of its connection to the divine universal self. For Whitman, one’s ability to understand the constant renewal of human life is the key to achieving immortality.