Leaves of Grass |
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Common terms and phrases
America amid arms bards beautiful behold blood body breast breath Brooklyn calm chant comrades crowd dark dead dear death debouch divine dream dropt drums earth eidólons eyes face fill'd forever give globe grass hand head hear heart heroes immortal Journeyers Kanada land leaves Leaves of Grass light lips living LONG AMERICA look look'd lovers Manhattan moon mother never night o'er old cause pass pass'd Passage to India passions past peace pennant perfect persons phrenology Pioneers poems poet prairies race rest rise river sail shape ship shore silent silent sun sing skald sleep soldiers song soul sound spirit stand stars Strains musical strong sweet thee things thou thought to-day trees true song vast voice wait walk Walt Whitman waves whoever winds woman women wonderful woods words young
Popular passages
Page 249 - WHEN lilacs last in the dooryard bloom'd, And the great star early droop'd in the western sky in the night, I mourn'd, and yet shall mourn with ever-returning spring.
Page 28 - A child said What is the grass? fetching it to me with full hands, How could I answer the child? I do not know what it is any more than he. I guess it must be the flag of my disposition, out of hopeful green stuff woven.
Page 39 - I am the poet of the Body and I am the poet of the Soul, The pleasures of heaven are with me and the pains of hell are with me, The first I graft and increase upon myself, the latter I translate into a new tongue.
Page 27 - Out of the dimness opposite equals advance, always substance and increase, always sex, Always a knit of identity, always distinction, always a breed of life.
Page 43 - I believe in the flesh and the appetites, Seeing, hearing, feeling, are miracles, and each part and tag of me is a miracle.
Page 254 - Dark mother always gliding near with soft feet, Have none chanted for thee a chant of fullest welcome? Then I chant it for thee, I glorify thee above all, I bring thee a song that when thou must indeed come, come unfalteringly.
Page 117 - I inhale great draughts of space, The east and the west are mine, and the north and the south are mine. I am larger, better than I thought, I did not know I held so much goodness.
Page 254 - Then with the knowledge of death as walking one side of me, And the thought of death close-walking the other side of me, And I in the middle as with companions, and as holding the hands of companions, I fled forth to the hiding receiving night that talks not, Down to the shores of the water, the path by the swamp in the dimness, To the solemn shadowy cedars and ghostly pines so still.
Page 115 - Afoot and light-hearted I take to the open road, Healthy, free, the world before me, The long brown path before me leading wherever I choose. Henceforth I ask not good-fortune, I myself am goodfortune, Henceforth I whimper no more, postpone no more, need nothing; Done with indoor complaints, libraries, querulous criticisms, Strong and content I travel the open road.
Page 72 - I depart as air, I shake my white locks at the runaway sun, I effuse my flesh in eddies, and drift it in lacy jags. I bequeath myself to the dirt to grow from the grass I love, If you want me again look for me under your boot-soles.