Whitman, Slavery, and the Emergence of Leaves of Grass
Although the significance of Walt Whitman's thinking about African Americans and slavery to his poetry has been largely ignored by Whitman scholars, Martin Klammer argues that Leaves of Grass is a major text dealing with race relations in the mid-nineteenth century. Through a close historical analys...
Sábháilte in:
| Príomhchruthaitheoir: | |
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| Formáid: | Online |
| Teanga: | Béarla |
| Foilsithe / Cruthaithe: |
Penn State University Press
2026
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| Ábhair: | |
| Rochtain ar líne: | https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/111279 |
| Clibeanna: |
Níl clibeanna ann, Bí ar an gcéad duine le clib a chur leis an taifead seo!
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| _version_ | 1869520445734125568 |
|---|---|
| author | Klammer, Martin |
| author_browse | Klammer, Martin |
| author_facet | Klammer, Martin |
| author_sort | Klammer, Martin |
| collection | Directory of Open Access Books |
| description | Although the significance of Walt Whitman's thinking about African Americans and slavery to his poetry has been largely ignored by Whitman scholars, Martin Klammer argues that Leaves of Grass is a major text dealing with race relations in the mid-nineteenth century. Through a close historical analysis, Klammer reveals how the evolution of Whitman's attitudes—from pro-slavery to "Free Soilism" to a deep sympathy for slaves—parallels and inspires his emergence as a poet from the beginning of his career through the 1855 edition. The issue of slavery continually influenced Whitman's work, culminating in 1854 when public reaction to two national developments on the slavery question—the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act and the case of the fugitive slave Anthony Burns—suddenly created an audience more receptive to Whitman's views and compelled him to revise and publish the poems known as Leaves of Grass . At the heart of these poems is a radically new and sympathetic view of African Americans and of their significance to Whitman's vision of a multiracial, egalitarian society. While previous critics have described Whitman's puzzling, seemingly contradictory views on slavery, no other study has so thoroughly investigated Whitman and the question of slavery, nor understood the importance of slavery to Whitman's development as a poet. |
| format | Online |
| id | doab-20.500.12854ir-173933 |
| institution | Directory of Open Access Books |
| language | eng |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| publishDateRange | 2026 |
| publishDateSort | 2026 |
| publisher | Penn State University Press |
| publisherStr | Penn State University Press |
| record_format | ojs |
| spelling | doab-20.500.12854ir-1739332026-03-19T14:27:55Z Whitman, Slavery, and the Emergence of Leaves of Grass Klammer, Martin Martin Klammer 0-271-01315-X 0-271-01642-6 0-271-02499-2 History America Literature Walt Whitman Slavery race relations Free soilism deep sympathy Kansas-Nebraska Act Anthony Burns Multiracial egalitarian society Us United states Usa thema EDItEUR::D Biography, Literature and Literary studies::DS Literature: history and criticism thema EDItEUR::J Society and Social Sciences::JB Society and culture: general::JBF Social and ethical issues::JBFA Social discrimination and social justice thema EDItEUR::D Biography, Literature and Literary studies::DS Literature: history and criticism::DSC Literary studies: poetry and poets thema EDItEUR::D Biography, Literature and Literary studies::DS Literature: history and criticism::DSA Literary theory Although the significance of Walt Whitman's thinking about African Americans and slavery to his poetry has been largely ignored by Whitman scholars, Martin Klammer argues that Leaves of Grass is a major text dealing with race relations in the mid-nineteenth century. Through a close historical analysis, Klammer reveals how the evolution of Whitman's attitudes—from pro-slavery to "Free Soilism" to a deep sympathy for slaves—parallels and inspires his emergence as a poet from the beginning of his career through the 1855 edition. The issue of slavery continually influenced Whitman's work, culminating in 1854 when public reaction to two national developments on the slavery question—the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act and the case of the fugitive slave Anthony Burns—suddenly created an audience more receptive to Whitman's views and compelled him to revise and publish the poems known as Leaves of Grass . At the heart of these poems is a radically new and sympathetic view of African Americans and of their significance to Whitman's vision of a multiracial, egalitarian society. While previous critics have described Whitman's puzzling, seemingly contradictory views on slavery, no other study has so thoroughly investigated Whitman and the question of slavery, nor understood the importance of slavery to Whitman's development as a poet. 2026-03-19T14:27:54Z 2026-03-19T14:27:54Z 2026-03-06T14:33:44Z 1994 book https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/111279 9780271102276 https://directory.doabooks.org/handle/20.500.12854/173933 eng open access image/jpeg Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/20.500.12657/111279/1/9780271102276.pdf Penn State University Press Penn State University Press 10.5325/b.19951322 10.5325/b.19951322 e4e05b94-0f85-49a1-ba66-543b1dd40087 9780271102276 Penn State University Press 192.0 University Park, PA open access |
| spellingShingle | Martin Klammer 0-271-01315-X 0-271-01642-6 0-271-02499-2 History America Literature Walt Whitman Slavery race relations Free soilism deep sympathy Kansas-Nebraska Act Anthony Burns Multiracial egalitarian society Us United states Usa thema EDItEUR::D Biography, Literature and Literary studies::DS Literature: history and criticism thema EDItEUR::J Society and Social Sciences::JB Society and culture: general::JBF Social and ethical issues::JBFA Social discrimination and social justice thema EDItEUR::D Biography, Literature and Literary studies::DS Literature: history and criticism::DSC Literary studies: poetry and poets thema EDItEUR::D Biography, Literature and Literary studies::DS Literature: history and criticism::DSA Literary theory Klammer, Martin Whitman, Slavery, and the Emergence of Leaves of Grass |
| title | Whitman, Slavery, and the Emergence of Leaves of Grass |
| title_full | Whitman, Slavery, and the Emergence of Leaves of Grass |
| title_fullStr | Whitman, Slavery, and the Emergence of Leaves of Grass |
| title_full_unstemmed | Whitman, Slavery, and the Emergence of Leaves of Grass |
| title_short | Whitman, Slavery, and the Emergence of Leaves of Grass |
| title_sort | whitman slavery and the emergence of leaves of grass |
| topic | Martin Klammer 0-271-01315-X 0-271-01642-6 0-271-02499-2 History America Literature Walt Whitman Slavery race relations Free soilism deep sympathy Kansas-Nebraska Act Anthony Burns Multiracial egalitarian society Us United states Usa thema EDItEUR::D Biography, Literature and Literary studies::DS Literature: history and criticism thema EDItEUR::J Society and Social Sciences::JB Society and culture: general::JBF Social and ethical issues::JBFA Social discrimination and social justice thema EDItEUR::D Biography, Literature and Literary studies::DS Literature: history and criticism::DSC Literary studies: poetry and poets thema EDItEUR::D Biography, Literature and Literary studies::DS Literature: history and criticism::DSA Literary theory |
| topic_facet | Martin Klammer 0-271-01315-X 0-271-01642-6 0-271-02499-2 History America Literature Walt Whitman Slavery race relations Free soilism deep sympathy Kansas-Nebraska Act Anthony Burns Multiracial egalitarian society Us United states Usa thema EDItEUR::D Biography, Literature and Literary studies::DS Literature: history and criticism thema EDItEUR::J Society and Social Sciences::JB Society and culture: general::JBF Social and ethical issues::JBFA Social discrimination and social justice thema EDItEUR::D Biography, Literature and Literary studies::DS Literature: history and criticism::DSC Literary studies: poetry and poets thema EDItEUR::D Biography, Literature and Literary studies::DS Literature: history and criticism::DSA Literary theory |
| url | https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/111279 |
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