Walt Whitman's "Song of Myself"

Read the quotation from "Song of Myself." I loafe and invite my soul, I lean and loafe at my ease observing a spear of summer grass. How do these lines reflect the poet's general style?

They show the poem's relaxed, candid tone.

Read the line from "Song of Myself." For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you. What is the effect of the word "atom" in this line and later in the poem?

It emphasizes the narrator's belief that every parcel of the Earth belongs to everyone.

Read the quotation from "Song of Myself." I too am not a bit tamed, I too am untranslatable, I sound my barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world. Which statement best describes how these lines reflect the general structure of the poem?

Just as the poem has a loose, open structure, these lines display personal freedom.

Read the excerpt from "Song of Myself." Long enough have you dream'd contemptible dreams, Now I wash the gum from your eyes, You must habit yourself to the dazzle of the light and of every moment of your life. Long have you timidly waded holding a plank by the shore, Now I will you to be a bold swimmer, To jump off in the midst of the sea, rise again, nod to me, shout, and laughingly dash with your hair. What theme is suggested by this excerpt?

People should be brave, take risks, and embrace all aspects of life.

Which characteristic makes "Song of Myself" a free verse poem?

the absence of a consistent rhythmic structure

Read the quotation from "Song of Myself." I celebrate myself, and sing myself, And what I assume you shall assume, For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you. Which statement best explains why Whitman chose the phrase "every atom" for the last line?

to emphasize the seriousness of his words