Song of Myself by Walt Whitman

Whether young or old , Whitman accepts people of all ages . Married couples have similar habits regardless of age : The old husband sleeps by his wife and the young husband sleeps by his wife (326 . Whitman composes odes to both youth and old age , first by writing O span of youth ! Ever-push 'd elasticity / O manhood , balanced , florid and full (1170-1 . Several lines later , he writes Old age superbly rising ! O welcome

Embracing Contradictions 6

ineffable grace of dying days (1180 . Whitman embraces the human condition at any stage in life

Whitman

makes no distinctions among a wide variety of jobs , accepting all . He loiters with the butcher-boy , enjoying his repartee and dancing (217-8 . With blacksmiths he follows their movements : They do not hasten , each man hits in his place (224 . As Whitman loves nature , it is not surprising that he can sleep and eat with people who work outdoors : men that live among cattle or taste of the ocean or woods / Of the builders and steerers of ships and the wielders of axes and mauls , and the drivers of horses (256-8 . In section 15 Whitman lists more types of workers , including pilots , whalers , duck-shooters spinning-girls , machinists , and many more . He concludes , of these one and all I weave the song of myself (329

Whitman works with contradictions in language and among people , as he feels that these contradictions strengthen the composite of his self Out of the dimness opposite equals advance (46

Nature

Whitman writes that he has an intricate purpose because April showers and the mica on a side of a rock have a similar purpose (383 . His best resource to support his acceptance of all things comes from his many observations of nature . While monocultural farms like banana plantations have higher risks of diseases or pests , healthier ecosystems...