Compare and Contrast Essay on Walt Whitman And Emily Dickinson

Introduction

We can see similarities and differences in their vast collection of poetry. Let's look at the differences between these authors in more detail in the paper "Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson Comparison Essay". Both were nineteenth-century poets. This was a period known as the Romantic Period and it had a significant impact on the style of American poetry. Both Whitman, as well as Dickinson, have written about the same topics in the past. These topics cover issues such as nature, death, immortality, and many other subjects. Both poets use these topics to explain the relationship between God and nature, as well as emphasize the importance of individualism within society.

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Although they may share many similarities, Walt Whitman's and Emily Dickinson are quite different in their writing styles and content. We can see similarities and differences between these poets. They often address the same themes and each have their own style of writing. These poets are responsible for shaping American poetry today.

The gender difference is one of the biggest differences between Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson and other writers. Even though Emily Dickinson was a prominent female poet during this period, it was an important achievement. Her poetry wasn't popularized until her death in 1886. The differences in their genders can be seen in their opinions on certain topics throughout their works. Their backgrounds and upbringings made a huge difference in their personalities as poets as well as as who they are as people. Both in his personal and professional life, Walt Whitman is frequently portrayed as an easy-going and casual man.

Whitman was brought up in poverty by his Quaker family. As a child, Whitman was expected to do many jobs, which included, at times, working for various magazines and printers. Whitman spent his youth working in these media and decided to become a nurse to aid soldiers who had been wounded during the war. His time as a nurse was the inspiration for much of his writing. It also led to him questioning the necessity and need for war. Ralph Waldo Emerson was one of Whitman’s greatest influences. He took an interest in Whitman's writings from his early days. Whitman wanted fame. Whitman loved to please people and to have their approval. That is why he wrote to become famous.

Dickinson, unlike Whitman was very conservative and well-structured. Her family was from the upper-class and held strong Calvinist beliefs. Her family's wealth allowed her to never work. This gives her less experience in life than Whitman. When Dickinson was 18 years old, her parents sent Dickinson to boarding school. She struggled and didn't finish. Whitman was open and carefree while Dickinson was described as closed-off and reserved. Apart from a brief period at boarding school, she lived her entire life with her parents. She was never married. Although she was a single, homebody woman, many believe she had friends and some potential love interests.

A major difference between them is that Dickinson did not set out to be famous, unlike Whitman. It was actually the reverse. Most of her poetry was published after her death, and without her permission. The differences between Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson in their childhoods and their backgrounds had a significant impact on their writing and how they were influenced to write their poetry. This was a significant difference that would have an impact on almost every aspect of their careers.

Emily Dickinson's strict upbringing is evident in her writing style later in her life. Although she wrote very rigidly, her writing style defies expectations. She used what is known as fourteener meter. This can often be seen in nursery rhymes and hymns of God. Dickinson's entire work can be read to the same tune as "Amazing Grace". I guarantee you won't find any other way to read it. Although her writing style is easy to read as cheerful children's stories, her pattern was very rigid.

These poems often deal with serious and difficult topics, such as death, nature, or religion. Many people were surprised by her approach to certain topics, even me. In her poem 202 she talks about her beliefs on Faith and what it means for her to believe in something. When read in a joyful and sing-song voice, this can be an unexpectedly deep message for readers. She uses an unexpected form of poetry and adds her unique capitalization to it. This is evident in her poem number 225. Dickinson says, "I'm the 'wife'-I've finished that -- That other state - I'm Czar - I'm now the 'Woman' - It's safer so - "(Dickinson 1662). Here, Dickinson uses dashes to show her willingness to be creative and stray away from the traditional style. Too many people see Dickinson as being more creative than Whitman. Although Dickinson's style is often criticized for being rigid, it can also be seen as a style that defies expectations.

Whitman's progressive writing style can be seen in both his style and content. Dickinson is more structured and rigid while Whitman is more fluid. Whitman wrote free verse without rhyme or meter. It is quite different from Dickinson's style. Although it may seem chaotic and unstructured at first glance, Whitman created structure in his writings by using repetition and alliteration to add fluidity to his poetry.

Whitman's poetry was long and contained intense imagery such as "Song of Myself", and "When Lilacs last in the Dooryard Bloom’d", whereas Dickinson's poems were shorter and condensed with less imagery. Whitman wrote extensively about nature and its implications for everyday men. While a nurse, Whitman was able to write about war and the people who were affected by it. Whitman's poetry is very personal, as though you are experiencing it. Dickinson doesn't have that feeling.

These two poets shared one thing in common: they used death as a theme in their works, but approached it very differently. Whitman saw death as an opportunity to see the afterlife, although this can be difficult to accept. Whitman is seen struggling to accept the assassination attempt on President Abraham Lincoln in his poem "When Lilacs last in the Dooryard Bloom'd".

The poem is divided into three sections. The first is about Abraham Lincoln's coffin getting transported to its final resting place. The next section is where the poet thinks deeply about the sprigs of lilac that were placed on the President's coffin and what it means for him to die and be in sorrow. While the third section includes symbolism of a bird, and a star, to show how even nature can be sympathetic to human society's troubles. "I mourn'd and yet will mourn with ever-returning Spring. Whitman, 1382) Here we see Whitman use the season of Spring as a contrast to the dark theme in this poem. While Spring is normally a time for new beginnings, for Whitman, it is now a time to mourn the loss of his friend.

Although he is deeply sad and doesn’t know why Lincoln happened, we see him reach some kind of contentment at the very end of the poem. "I will duly passe the day O maternity, and duly return home to you" (Whitman 1394). I took this to mean that the poet was excited to one day be reunited. Whitman used the Elegy style to write this complex poem despite it being so open-ended. An elegy is a poem in elegiac poetry, which is composed of two lines of hexameter followed by a pentameter. This structure is what Whitman brings to the table when it comes to professional style.

Dickinson's views on death and mourning seem more complicated and ambiguous. Dickinson gives human-like qualities to the notion of death and mourning in her poem 479, "Because it could not stop for Death". In this poem, Dickinson portrays death as a kind carriage man who picks her up in a "carriage held but just for ourselves-/And Immortality"(Dickinson, 1676). The carriage ride appears to take the speaker through life's stages, until it stops at her gravesite.

Although both poets touch on the same topic, Dickinson's unique personifications of death are very different from Whitman's. These poets are both very similar but vastly different. Both can discuss similar themes in their poetry but with different styles and very different content.

The idea of death is closely tied to Dickinson's and Whitmans views on religion. Religion was one of many things that developed quickly during this period after it had been dissected and examined for its relevance or lack of touch. Whitman tried to fight the notion of religion often due to his philosophy on transcendentalism. Whitman's poem, "When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer", focuses on the notion of believing in what you see and not what you are told to believe. Whitman describes the speaker of the poem as he listens to an astronomer lecture.

The astronomer does everything possible to convince the speaker that what he's doing is correct and true. "When the proofs, or the figures were ranged in columns prior to me/ When I was shown charts and diagrams to add, divide and measure them .... It was unaccountable how quickly I got tired and sick. "(Whitman, 1375). Even with all the evidence, the speaker would still prefer to see things for themselves rather than being taught about them. "(Whitman, 1375).

This approach to believing only what you can see is very similar to Dickinson’s in poem number 202. She discusses her beliefs on Faith and what it means for her to believe in something. The first line "'Faith' is a Fine Invention"(Dickinson,1661) shows Dickinson stating that, to her, faith is an invention or something man-made up, as she puts it in quotation marks. The final two lines stating "But Microscopes are prudent, In an Emergency!"(Dickinson,1661) makes the audience believe that faith is almost scientific, and if applied in doses under a microscope, can be helpful. This is an excellent example of the way Whitman and Dickinson approach identical topics in dramatically different ways.

Conclusion

We see similarities and differences between Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson throughout their work. They often touch on the same themes of death, such as Whitman’s "When Lilacs last in the Dooryard Bloom’d" and Dickinson’s poem number 479 "Because it could not stop for Death", and religion and faith, like Whitman’s "When I Heard The Learn'd Astronomer” and Dickinson’s poem number 202 "Faith”. Although they deal with similar topics, Whitman and Dickinson do a great job writing in very different styles. Whitman is more free-flowing and Whitman more structured, while Dickinson uses a more structured fourteener meter. Because of their different experiences as youths, they are very different poets. Their unique styles and content helped to shape American poetry today.