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A century after his death, Whitman is still celebrated as America's greatest poet. In this startling new edition of his work, Whitman biographer Gary Schmidgall presents over two hundred poems in their original pristine form, in the chronological order in which they were written, with Whitman's original line breaks and punctuation. Included in this volume are facsimilies of Whitman's original manuscripts, contemporary-- and generally blistering-- reviews of Whitman's poetry (not surprisingly Henry James hated it), and early pre-Leaves of Grass poems that return us to the physical Whitman, rejoicing-- sometimes graphically-- in homoerotic love.Unlike the many other available editions, all drawn from the final authorized or "deathbed" Leaves of Grass, this collection focuses on the exuberant poems Whitman wrote during the creative and sexual prime of his life, roughly between 1853 and 1860. These poems are faithfully presented as Whitman first gave them to the world-- fearless, explicit, and uncompromised-- before he transformed himself into America's respectable, mainstream Good Gray Poet through thirty years of revision, self-censorship, and suppression.Whitman admitted that his later poetry lacked the "ecstasy of statement" of his early verse. Revealing that ecstasy for the first time, this edition makes possible a major reappraisal of our nation's first great poet.
An exceptional edition of Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass and related writings
| Customer Rating:  | What are characteristics of Leaves of Grass that are uncommon in literary masterworks? It was originally published anonymously. It was originally self-published. Whitman paid to have it printed & bound. While most books are published and never significantly revised, "L of G" was a lifelong work in progress, revised repeatedly, changing as the author changed. There are many "Leaves of Grass" publications for sale. I recommend this version for the following reasons:
a) The poems are presented in groupings, showing the development of the poetry collection over Whitman's lifetime, from the brief 1855 first edition, through the many different editions, up to the expansive 1991-92 edition. This edition focuses on the first version of each poem before Whitman's later versions "toned down" some of his verse.
b) In addition to introductory comments, this edition includes the various prefaces, unpublished introductions, & "A Backward Glance O'er Travel'd Roads" from the original "L of G" publications.
c) It includes Ralph Waldo Emerson's famous congratulatory letter and Whitmans' reply letter.
d) It includes contemporary reviews (including those written by Whitman himself) from 1855 to 1891
e) It includes a historical timeline of Whitman's life.
f) It is a large page format, easy to read, splay out, underline, and write in the margins.
g) It includes one version of many of the Leaves of Grass poems. If this version also included many of the revisions, showing the edits of the poems, I would like this version even more (look at Bartleby's online for more information about the various versions of each poem).
Leaves of Grass is "too much" for many people. It can be critiqued as hyperbole and excess. To suggest it is not in praise of overt sexuality would be like suggesting to mothers that babies still come from storks. To suggest it is not about homosexuality and bisexuality would be like suggesting 101 Dalmations isn't about puppies. In fact, when I think of Whitman, the word "too" is the most common word that comes to mind. He is too ____ (fill in the blank).
What inspired this man to create this landmark American sexual and emotional statement? Many things. Paramount among those things was Loss. Loss of old loves: "Doubtless I could not have perceived the universe, or written one of my poems, if I had not freely given myself to comrades, to love." and "(I loved a certain person ardently, and my love was not return'd; Yet out of that, I have written these songs.)" Loss of Lincoln inspired "Drum-Taps" and "Sequel to Drum-Taps". Loss of youth, health, & pleasures inspired him to write. And I think he wrote for the 4 purposes George Orwell suggested writers write: Sheer egoism, aesthetic enthusiasm, historical impulse ("to see things as they are, to find out true facts and store them up for the use of posterity"), and political purpose.
Whether or not Whitman's perspectives are correct or good, he said things that most people have feared to say so strongly. His words have been criticized as base, vile, and shameful, but they are also free speech expression. I don't know if I can say I'm a big fan of Whitman, but I can say that I'm glad to live under laws that have allowed him to speak his inner mind. And I promote environments & protections that safeguard such expressions.
Following his beloved Abraham Lincoln's assassination, he mourned without reservation, "O Captain! my captain! rise up and hear the bells . . . For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning . . . My captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still; My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will." As "Dead Poets Society" so capably conveyed, "Leaves of Grass" is about passion - unabashed American passions. |
The Leaves We've Always Wanted!
| Customer Rating: | To date, I think I own about four different copies of Whitman's grand opus "Leaves of Grass". One is a deathbed edition, printed in 1922, that is hardcover yet pocket sized and great for a backpack. The second is an 1855 reprint of a "first edition" sold by a major bookstore chain. The third is another 1855 reprint in paperback. And now the fourth, which is this one, and without a doubt, the best of the bunch!
Walt Whitman, throughout his years, wrote and rewrote Leaves of Grass many times, for each subsequent reprint. Much of the later editions of the book become watered down and less potent, according to editor Gary Schmidgall, of which I heartily agree. The final "deathbed" edition of Leaves of Grass, released around the time of Whit's death, varies tremendously from the rich dance of the first edition, in fact, the first three editions.
After reading Schmidgall's amazing book, "Walt Whitman: A Gay Life", you come quickly appreciate Whitman's 1860 edition of the book, the third, released just before the Civil War. Upon searching for a copy of this book, it's virtually hard to find, and I ended up downloading some of the poetry off the Whitman archives website. But Schmidgall painstakingly has recreated that edition, rebuilding such moving sections of the book like Calamus.
It's in Schmidgall's edition that the true genius of Whitman comes alive. He becomes more real, more in depth, and shows more pain than in any other edition I've read. It's too bad that Whit decided to censor his writings as he aged, for he tends to weed out the roses with the dandelions. Schmidgall replants Whitman's glorious garden, and we, as readers, get to reap the visual brilliance of it all. |
the original, un-self-censored Whitman
| Customer Rating: | There was a time I didn't much care for Whitman's poetry -- what seemed to me its self-conscious pretentiousness was a turn-off. (Whitman himself acknowledged that his style was all-too readily parodied.) It was only when, 30 years ago, I heard Rip Torn read it, I began to acknowledge its power and originality. Nevertheless, I was still bothered by an overly self-aware, "straining for effect" quality -- until I found this collection.
Gary Schmidgall has done what should have been done a century ago. His collection, comprising half of Whitman's poems (about 80% of the total number of lines he wrote), restores them to their first versions in the correct chronological sequence.
We now hear Whitman speaking to us with his original animal vigor. Whitman himself admitted this: "...there was an immediateness to the 1855 edition, an incisive directness, that was perhaps not repeated in any section of poems subsequently added to the book: a hot, unqualifying temper, an insulting arrogance (to use a few strong words) that would not have been as natural to the periods that followed. We miss the ecstasy of statement in some of the after-work..."
More significantly, Whitman's subsequent emasculation and de-sexualizing -- to confuse and obscure the issue of his sexuality -- is removed. Whitman's originals are often more graphic, more-bluntly sexual. It's easier to see why most critics were offended. It's unfortunate Whitman's changes to "Leaves of Grass" made it less controversial. Perhaps the Schmidgall edition will encourage libraries that ban "Huckleberry Finn" to also ban "Leaves of Grass."
If you haven't read the original, 1855 edition of "Leaves of Grass" -- as well as Whitman's unsigned (and bluntly meretricious) reviews, and the contemporary reviews of academic critics -- you haven't read Whitman. I was especially moved by the last few pages of "Song of Myself," which I had never read.
Schmidgall includes a copious quantity of notes, excerpts, and reviews. The material from Whitman's notebooks make it clear he knew exactly what he was doing -- creating a new, original, wholly American poetry not modeled on Classic, European, or British forms -- and why. If America is the land of self-definition, Whitman was the first American poet to make that self-centeredness the focus of his works.
This edition is a must-own for anyone with the least interest in Whitman. Or dis-interest, for that matter. You might change your mind. |
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