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1、I TOPIC:Walt Whitman and O Captain！My Captain！,A)Introduction to Walt WhitmanB)Major works and special featuresC)Study of O Captain！My Captain！,Walt Whitman(1819-1892),Topic 1Introduction to Walt Whitman,Literary position man of the people:work the countrys democratic spirit.Leaves of Grass altered
2、the course of American poetry:free-verse form;sexuality;democratic sensibility;extreme Romantic assertion,Whitman is one of the most important figures in American poetic history.(choosing free verse as his medium of expression.)“I am not blind to the worth of the wonderful gift of Leaves of Grass I
3、find incomparable things said incomparably well I find the courage of treatment that so delights us and which large perception only can inspire I greet you at the beginning of a great career.”Emerson,“A great career,which yet must have had a long foreground somewhere,for such a start.”Emerson“Emerso
4、n freed Whitman for mystical insights that were beyond his own ken.”Spiller“Whitman,because of the favoring circumstances of a democratic ideal and an open society,became perhaps the greatest of modern bards.”Spiller,D.H.Lawrence,the British novelist and poet,accurately called him the poet of the“op
5、en road.”Not only the form of Whitmans free verse but also his thought of democracy have been influential in world literature,and remain the inspiring sources of twentieth-century literature.,Topic 1 Introduction to Walt Whitman,Brooklyn,Long Island,New York.son of carpenter person of mixed blood(Du
6、tch and New England British)an office boy/the Long Islander American free verse poet a democrat an individualist a nationalist a pantheist,Points of view,（1）World outlook Whitman was strongly opposed to the southern side during the Civil War,favoring the democratic north.For him,slavery abused human
7、ity.People should be equally treated,whether southerners or northerners,Whites or Blacks.“Song of Myself”can be studied as a case in point,which reveals such a world of equality,void of rank and hierarchy.,He is firstly an individualist.As an individualist,artistically,he tried to find a way to expr
8、ess his unique feelings about himself,the nation,and the cosmos.Accordingly,he created a style and language of his own.Whitman was greatly influenced by Emerson,the transcendental master,but his individualism is not selfexclusion.Instead,he thinks that many people could realize a community while rem
9、aining individuals.,Points of view,He is also a nationalist.One of the most obvious characteristics of Leaves of Grass is indeed that it is firmly and deeply rooted in American soil.The word“America”and“American”recur again and again;the United States and these states are constantly referred to.More
10、over,he responds enthusiastically to the expansion of America,the newly founded progressive republic.He is very conscious of his mission as a poet,for he considers that poetry could play a vital part in the process of creating a new and better nation.He is very optimistic of the future of America,wh
11、ich he identifies as a child who went forth every day.This child,the young America,would surely grow stronger with each passing day.,However,Whitman is not a narrow individualist,nor a radical nationalist.The equality that he celebrates is that of all people not only in America but also in the whole
12、 world.He attached so much importance to the fraternity of all people and all races that he said,“All nations herea home for every race on earth.British,German,Scandinavian,Spanish,French,Italian,My dearest dream is for the internationalization of poems and poets.”,Points of view,（2）Pantheistic idea
13、s Religiously,Whitman is a pantheist.In the first edition of Leaves of Grass（1855）the author declares in the preface that the ideal poet must be a complete lover of the universe and draw his materials from nature.When he used the word heaven（usually plural）he mostly designated the region of the star
14、s and planets.The idea of resurrection also occurs frequently in his poems,but it mainly applies to the analogy of the life cycles of plants and animals,that is,the sequence of seed,germination,growth,death,and rebirth from another seed.,Whitman got to know evolution from lectures and books on geolo
15、gy.He was taught that Gods true revelation was in Nature,not in the Bible or other religious documents.Therefore,he sometimes juxtaposed the notion of historical changes and natural changes.To him the rise and fall of nations are just like the birth and death of plants.,Points of view,（3）Artistic in
16、novation Literally,Whitman is one of the most important figures in American poetic history.He declares that the most important feature of any artistic work is simplicity.Nothing is better than simplicity,and the sunlight of letters is simplicity.He carried on a sort of experiment on the form of poet
17、ry by choosing free verse as his medium of expression.Free verse is a more flexible and variable poetic form,simple and prose-like,which allows him to express freely his ideas in colloquial English,regardless of the prevailing principles of rhyme or meter.In his case it proves to be the most effecti
18、ve way to convey strong feelings of the common people through the mouth of the poet.,Topic 2Major works and special features,Major works：（1）Leaves of Grass It is a collection of Whitmans poems,his lifelong achievement.The most famous pieces are“Song of Myself”,“There Was a Child Went Forth”,“Pioneer
19、s！Pioneers！”,“When Lilacks Last in the Dooryard Bloomd”etc.Whitman experimented in his works with new poetic form of free verse and oral language.Thus Leaves of Grass has become a landmark in American literary history,which represents the poet,the people,and the nation in the 19th century America an
20、d celebrates the future of the nation and the ideals of equality and democracy.,“Song of Myself”is the longest poem in Leaves of Grass.“Myself”is the central and principal image in this poem.It refers not only to the poet himself but also to a group of people who had the American national characteri
21、stics and the democratic ideals like Whitman.They were pioneers on the American continent：the ironsmiths,the carpenters,the butchers,and the waiters,etc.,as listed in the poem.These people were optimistic in spirit and strong physically.They live harmoniously with other people in this world as well
22、as with nature.In this poem,Whitman sings of nationalism and of the nature of the self in relation to the cosmos and the meaning and purpose of birth and death.Individualism,nationalism,and internationalism or cosmopolitanism,the three contradicting beliefs are reasonably united.,（2）Democratic Vista
23、s（1871）The main themes are the ideals of democracy and individualism,which the author considers to be compatible.Whitman outlines a new culture order for the U.S.He condemns the degradation of democracy and the growth of material wealth during the post-Civil War period,prophesies a future greatness
24、and announces that there must be a declaration of cultural independence to achieve a truly national indigenous literature.,Special features of his work:,（1）Form Whitmans originality lies first in the new poetic form he innovates,free verse,i.e.poetry without a fixed beat or regular rhyme scheme.By m
25、eans of free verse Whitman has turned poetry into an area of vital and limitless possibilities where the poet could be conversational and casual while the reader could participate in the works easily through imagination.So when we read his poems,we can feel the rhythm of Whitmans thought and cadence
26、s of his feeling.Parallelism and phonetic recurrence at the beginning of the lines also contribute to the musicality of his poems.,（2）The first person narrator Whitmans poetry is distinctively noted for the use of the first person narrator“I”.Speaking in the voice of“I”,he makes his poems direct and
27、 sympathetic to the reader.,（3）Language Whitmans language is characteristically oral and powerful.He tends to use everyday English in his poems that would make an easy contact with the average Americans.And his use of powerful and sometimes unusual words might give the reader a sense that his poems
28、are not shallow but deep.,（4）Sexuality Whitmans topic is sometimes sexual.He is bold enough to break the taboo in poetry writing.Because he celebrates the self,Whitman considers the human body as sacred and innocent.He infuses the abstractions of democracy with the intensity of erotic passion,giving
29、 literature some of its first and most potent images of democratic comradeship;and by linking homoeroticism with a democratic breaking of bounds,he presents one of the most tender and moving accounts of homosexual love in Western literature.To Whitman,mans nature must be respected.Therefore the them
30、es of his sexual poems are more than physical.,Topic 3Study of the poem“O Captain！My Captain！”,1.Introduction At the end of the Civil War in 1865,Abraham Lincoln,the symbol of democracy and progress,was assassinated by the obstinate slave owners of the south states.Lincolns death shocked the whole c
31、ountry.The democratic poet Walt Whitman wrote the poetry collection Elegy Collect(including O Captain!My Captain!and When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloomd)to eulogize the beloved president,to confide his own sorrow at the death of the president.The abolishment of slavery is not only the progress o
32、f the American,but of the humankind.Then Lincolns death is not only the sorrow of the American,but of the humankind.Therefore,Whitman revealed the grief of his own,of the American,of all the humankind.In the poem Walt Whitman uses writing skills of symbol,imagery,and repetition to get a wonderful ef
33、fect of art.This makes readers enjoy a unique beauty of art from vision，hearing,language and metre.,2.Themes,2.Themes,This poem eulogizes Lincolns monumental contributions and expresses the poets mourning for Lincolns death with the background of the victory of the Civil War.,3.Special features,3.Sp
34、ecial features,A.The poem is composed of three octaves,that is,four long lines and four short ones,the latter being used as a refrain.B.The meter is iambic and the rhyming scheme is roughly represented as aabb cded.C.Phonetic recurrence is the main feature of the poem,i.e.,the systematic repetition
35、of words and phrases at the beginning of the line,in the middle or at the end.D.Oral English is also applied in his free verse to make it an effective way to express freely the feelings of common people.So Walt Whitman was regarded as a pioneering figure of American poetry.His innovation first of al
36、l lies in his use of free verse,poetry without a fixed beat or regular rhyme scheme.,5.Compression,O Captain！My Captain！啊，船长！我的船长！O Captain！My Captain！Our fearful trip is done.啊，船长！我的船长！我们惊心动魄的航行已返航。The ship has weathered every rack,the prize we sought is won,我们的航船冲破重重苦难，我们已夺得谋求的奖赏，The port is near，
37、the bells I hear，the people all exulting，港口咫尺在望，我已听见钟声在敲，民众在狂欢，While follow eyes the steady keel，the vessel grim and daring：无数眼光跟着这艘巨舰，坚固稳定，严峻骄勇的航船;,But O heart!heart!heart!可是，啊，我的船长！我的亲人啊！我的心啊！O the bleeding drops of red，啊,血哟,鲜红的血在滴淌。Where on the dock my Captain lies，我的船长倒在甲板上，Fallen cold and dead.
38、全身冰冷，已经阵亡。,Further explanation:,1)By using the first person the poet describes the magnificent sight of the triumphant returning of the captain Lincoln and his crew and his astonishment at Lincolns death.2)“O Captain！My Captain！”:The repetition of the noun“Captain”conveys the poets infinite sorrow o
39、ver Lincolns death and yearning for him.3)The two words“ship”and“captain”suggest America and the president Lincoln,stressing the triumphant returning and implying Lincolns monumental contributions.,Further explanation:,4)The combination of vowel and nasal in“done”and“won”sound simple and sonorous,po
40、werful and inspiring,filling with heroic optimistic spirit,conveying a musical beauty.5)The repetition of the words with the simple syllable“heart!heart!heart!”achieves the great change from excitation to sorrow,stressing a heart-breaking atmosphere of art.6)The overlapping appearance of the words w
41、ith the stressed vowels“port”,“follow”,“bells”,“steady”,“vessel”,“near”,“hear”,and“grim”play up the pleasure of the people.,Notes：,1.Our fearful trip:Civil War.2.the ship:America.3.has weatherd every rack:has survived all the dangers.4.the prize:the freedom of the black slaves/the abolishment of the
42、 slavery and the democratic reform.5.While follow eyes the steady keel:while eyes follow the steady ship.6.grim and daring:stern and brave.7.O heart!heart!heart!:O my dear,my sweet,my darling(expression of strong feeling).,O Captain!my Captain!Rise up and hear the bells,啊，船长！我的船长！起来吧，倾听钟声；Rise upfor
43、 you the flag is flung for you the bugle trills,起来吧，号角为您长鸣，旌旗为您高悬：For you bouquets and ribbond wreaths for you the shores a-crowding,迎接您，多少花束花圈候着您，千万人峰拥岸边；For you they call,the swaying mass,their eager faces turning;他们向您高呼，拥来挤去，仰起殷切的脸；,Here Captain!Dear father!啊，船长！亲爱的父亲！This arm beneath your head;我
44、的手臂托着您的头！It is some dream that on the deck 莫非是一场梦：在甲板上 Youve fallen cold and dead.您全身冰冷,已经阵亡。,Further explanation:,1)By using the second person the poet participates in the conversation with the captain to express his longing for the captain and his sorrowful mourning over the death of the captain.H
45、e is so sad that he is not clear on the reality and dream.The yearning mingled with the mourning forms a confounded state of mind.2)The continuous use of“for you”not only expresses the love,support and veneration from the American people for Lincoln but also suggests the poets doubt about Lincolns d
46、eath,bringing the sad feeling to the climax.3)These words“bells”,“trills”,“crowding”and“turning”sound natural and drawn-out like a harmonious flow of notes from a stringed instrument,making a rhythmical beauty.,Further explanation:,4):Do“bouquets and ribbond wreaths”predict welcome or mourning?This
47、brings the readers to a deep thought.5)Various colours of“flag”,“ribbond wreaths”and“bouquets”create a warm and splendid sight,enriching the readers vision and imagination.6)“Dear father”conveys a strong affection between father and son.,Notes：,1.The flag is flung:the flag is flying.2.Bouquets:bunch
48、es of flowers.3.the shores a-crowding:the crowds of people gathered on the shore.4.the swaying mass:the moving crowd of people.5.It is some dream:The reality is like dream,as if Lincoln were still alive in the world.,My Captain does not answer,his lips are pale and still,我的船长不作声，嘴唇惨白，毫不动弹；My father
49、does not feel my arm,he has no pulse nor will,我的父亲感感觉不到我的手臂，他脉搏不跳，没有遗言；The ship is anchord safe and sound,its voyage closed and done,船舶抛锚停下，平安抵达；船程终了；From fearful trip the victor ship comes in with object won;历经难险返航，夺得胜利目标。,Exult,O shores,and ring,O bells!啊，岸上钟声齐鸣，啊，人们一片欢腾！But I,with mournful tread,
50、可是我悲痛欲绝，步履沉重；Walk the deck my captain lies,走在甲板上，那儿有我的船长长眠，Fallen cold and dead.全身冰冷,已经阵亡。,Further explanation:,1)By using the third person the poet expresses that he can accept the cruel reality of Lincolns death.2)“still”and“will”sound like“trill”of bugle,creating a mournful atmosphere.3)The poet
