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Spartan Surfers

1819–1892

Walt Whitman

American poet who spent his life rewriting and expanding one book, Leaves of Grass, including Song of Myself and Song of the Open Road.

11 sourced lines

Every line we carry

Each one links to its source, what it means, and the shirt in any of our looks.

  1. I am large. I contain multitudes.

    Whitman shrugs off the charge of contradiction. A whole person holds many moods, ideas and selves. Do not shrink yourself to look consistent.

    Song of Myself, 51 (Leaves of Grass), Original English (Leaves of Grass, 1891-92 edition)

  2. Not a bit tamed. Sound your barbaric yawp.

    Whitman ends his great poem untamed and loud. Some part of you should never be domesticated. Let it be heard.

    Song of Myself, 52 (Leaves of Grass), Original English (Leaves of Grass, 1891-92 edition)

  3. Missed me in one place? Search another. Keep encouraged.

    These are the last lines of Song of Myself. If what you look for is not where you first search, keep going. Something is waiting further down the road.

    Song of Myself, 52 (Leaves of Grass), Original English (Leaves of Grass, 1891-92 edition)

  4. Afoot and light-hearted, the world before me.

    Whitman sets out on foot, carrying little and free to choose any path. Lightness is a choice about what you carry. Start the trip.

    Song of the Open Road, 1 (Leaves of Grass), Original English (Leaves of Grass, 1891-92 edition)

  5. I am larger, better than I thought.

    On the open road Whitman discovers more good in himself than he expected. Most people underestimate what they hold. Go somewhere new and find out.

    Song of the Open Road, 5 (Leaves of Grass), Original English (Leaves of Grass, 1891-92 edition)

  6. We convince by our presence.

    Arguments rarely change anyone. The way you live persuades more than anything you say. Be the evidence.

    Song of the Open Road, 10 (Leaves of Grass), Original English (Leaves of Grass, 1891-92 edition)

  7. The powerful play goes on. You may contribute a verse.

    The poem asks what good there is amid empty years and crowds. The answer: you are here, life exists, and you get to add a line. Write yours.

    O Me, O Life (Leaves of Grass; title punctuation simplified), Original English (Leaves of Grass, 1891-92 edition)

  8. Battles are lost in the same spirit they are won.

    Whitman honors the defeated as much as the victors. What counts is the spirit you fight with. Falling well is its own kind of win.

    Song of Myself, 18 (Leaves of Grass), Original English (Leaves of Grass, 1891-92 edition)

  9. I exist as I am. That is enough.

    Whitman sits content whether or not anyone notices him. You do not need an audience to be complete. Being who you are is enough to start from.

    Song of Myself, 20 (Leaves of Grass), Original English (Leaves of Grass, 1891-92 edition)

  10. A leaf of grass is no less than the journey work of the stars.

    The smallest thing is as finished and miraculous as the galaxy that made it. Whitman asks you to look closely at the ordinary. Wonder is close at hand.

    Song of Myself, 31 (Leaves of Grass), Original English (Leaves of Grass, 1891-92 edition)

  11. No one else can travel that road for you.

    Teachers can point, friends can walk beside you, but the road is yours to walk. Whitman adds that it is not far and may be under your feet already. Take the first step yourself.

    Song of Myself, 46 (Leaves of Grass), Original English (Leaves of Grass, 1891-92 edition)