I have written before about the importance of poetry in our most poignant moments—both individually and as a culture. Traditionally, poetry has been included at the Presidential Inauguration. This year it will not. This is a missed opportunity for reflection and unity.
Leslie Lawrence has written eloquently about the ramifications of this loss here. In this post, I will attach a word document of a small portion of Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself,” the quintessential American poem.
Joan A Davis says
Thank you for Whitman’s beautiful words — this poem means everything to me–more meaningful than ever before.
In solidarity,
Joan Davis
Eileen Healey says
Thank you for posting about this Marilyn!
Your Essay Helper says
One of my favourite poems:
“All I have is a voice
To undo the folded lie,
The romantic lie in the brain
Of the sensual man-in-the-street
And the lie of Authority
Whose buildings grope the sky:
There is no such thing as the State
And no one exists alone;
Hunger allows no choice
To the citizen or the police;
We must love one another or die.
“Defenceless under the night
Our world in stupor lies;
Yet, dotted everywhere,
Ironic points of light
Flash out wherever the Just
Exchange their messages:
May I, composed like them
Of Eros and of dust,
Beleaguered by the same
Negation and despair,
Show an affirming flame.”
From “September 1, 1939” ~ W.H. Auden