Overview of Walt Whitman’s Democratic Ideals

Exploring Walt Whitman's Vision of Democratic Culture in Leaves of Grass

Abstract

This is an effort to interpret the meaning of the magnificent poem, Leaves of Grass by Whitman, and how it appears to be an affirmation of a new political identity for his time’s American politics and culture. Whitman wished to bring a major reform in the democratic culture of America. He felt that it’s possible to achieve it through Leaves of Grass, so, he underscores his basic attitude towards America, which remains to be the part of his ideal of human life. He stresses procreation in Leaves of Grass he uses procreation to describe a new American literary culture, and his sexual overtones in Song of the Open Road, as in many other poems, point to the need for a reader to participate in the creation of a new democratic culture.