Literature: Walt Whitman’s Epic Poem - Song of Myself

Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself” (1855) will pull you into a world of energetic engagement with all life, from weeds to wild animals to the stars above, sharing the poet’s intimacy with the human body, and human suffering, and the excitement of street life and country rambles.

The poem is unlike any other you have read, and has had a huge influence both on Victorian readers and on modern poetry. Whitman aims to challenge you, and the course invites you to examine and share the way you have been moved, or even repelled, by the readings.

The twelve-week course consists of:

- Weekly readings, of about five pages

- Supplemental podcasts for each of the fifty-two sections

- Weekly ninety-minute Zoom sessions to share responses in a friendly community of fellow-readers

- Discussions on the Canvas platform before and after each Zoom session to share further thoughts

Most of Whitman’s poetry is clear and colloquial, though you may find some parts difficult to follow – but that’s why we come together to help each other. By the end of the course you will not only have had the experience of engaging with this sumptuous poem and sharing your response, but you will understand more about America just before the Civil War, and will have sharpened your skills in reading great poetry.