Whitman最终版.docx

Whitman最终版.docx

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Whitman最终版

Whitman’sLifeSpiritin“SongofMyself”

Poet,essayist,journalistandhumanist,WaltWhitman（1819--1892）livedinaperiodoftransitionbetweentranscendentalismandrealism,whichresultedinhisincorporationofbothviewsinhiswork.Withallhiseffortsinhislife,hecreatedthecollectionofLeavesofGrass,whichwasthefulldisplayofthespiritinthetimesofAmericanRomanticismasitmovestowardsrealism.TherearemanyindividualmasterpieceswithLeavesofGrass,oneofwhichwasthe“SongofMyself”,whichfullydisplayedthedeepthoughtofthepoetbothinreligionandphilosophyonthesubjectsoflifeanduniverse.Thepoemisfilledwithlifespiritandpassion.ThisessayisgoingtoanalyzethelifespiritinWhitman’spoemsthroughinterpretingthereligiousmysticismof“myself”,thereevaluationofthebody,andthepoet’sattitudetowardsmodernindustrialcivilization.

TheReligiousMysticismof“Myself”

LiketheRomanticsandtheTranscendentalistsinNewEngland,WhitmanwasgreatlyinfluencedbythemysticismoftheEast,especiallyHinduism.TheHinduisminsiststhatallthethingsarecreatedbysomekindofmystery.SoWhitman’sGodwascloselyconnectedwithmystery.ThoughalsoindebtedtoRalphWaldoEmerson’s“transcendentalsoul”,Whitman’sGodwasnotonlylimitedtoapureandomnipresentspiritualexistence.Inhisopinion,Godwasthetotaloftheuniverse,theholy“everything”:

IseesomethingofGodeachhourofthetwenty-fourandeachmomentthen,

InthefacesofmenandwomenIseeGod,andinmyownfaceintheglass,

IfindlettersfromGoddroptinthestreet,andeveryoneissign’dbyGod’sname…（102）

Sowecansaythateverythingintheuniverse,nomatterhowtinyorminuteitis,isallthepresentationofGod,allshowsthespiritofGodandallpossessthedivinityofGod.“IhearandbeholdGodineveryobject,”thepoetclaims（102）.Existingbothinthespiritualandthephysical,Whitman’sGodappearstointegratethematerialandtheimmaterial.TheAmericancriticDianeKepnerobservesthat“[the]‘immaterial’and‘impalpable’areasimportanttoWhitmanasthe‘material’and‘palpable”（181）.Similarly,EdwinHavilandMillerpraisesWhitman’seffortsandinterestsinintegratingtheopposites,andstatesthatWhitmanreconciles“oppositesusuallyconsideredirreconcilable,”enfoldingthevanquishedandthevictor,othersandtheself,manandwoman,scienceandspirit,andanimalandman（16）.IndepictingGodthisway,J.W.WalkingtonclaimsthatWhitman“[uphold]anypartoftheworldusuallyconsideredthelesserhalfofahierarchicaldichotomy”（Walkington129）.

What’smore,inspiredbymaterialism,Whitmanmaintainsthateveryobjectintheuniverseismadeupofsomebasicsubstance,thatis,theatom.【你在下文提出前面没有出现过atom,这里不是有吗？

】Eachatom,accordingtoKepner,isurgedto“‘merge’withotheratoms,tocreatetheparticular‘seen’formationsthatfilltheuniverseatanyinstantintime,andincombinationwitheachatomicformationaccountsforthecharacteristicpropertiesofthatformation”（191）.ItisbecauseofthissharedessenceandenergythatWaltWhitmanbelievesthatGodcouldbeconsideredastheendlessexpansionofwhathetermedasthesoulof“myself.”ForWhitman,theperfect“myself”shouldbeabovealltheperfectunificationofbodyandsoul.Since“myself”sharethesamecomponent—partofGod—withalltheotherobjectsintheuniverse,itcanbemergedwiththecosmos.“Myself”isthusabletoattainpermanenceandtranscendencethroughitsspiritualextension.Inthisway,thepermanentGodand“Myself”arecloselyrelatedtoeachother:

Whitman’sGodcouldbeconsideredastheendlessexpansionofwhathecalledsoulof“myself”.Thepoetthoughtthattheperfect“myself”,shouldbefirstlytheperfectunificationofbodyandsoul,whichcanbemergedtogetherwiththecosmos,togetherwithpermanenceanduniversalsoul,thusmakingthesoulof“myself”endlessandtranscendental.ThusthepermanentGodand“Myself”arecloselyrelatedtoeachother:

Iswear,Iseeeverythinghasgotapermanentsoul.

Ihavesaidthatthesoulisnotmorethanthebody,

AndIhavesaidthatthebodyisnotmorethanthesoul,

Andnothing,notGod,isgreatertoonethanone’sselfis.（102）

Besidesatom,Whitmanfindsanotherconnectionbetweentheuniverseandtheself.UndertheinfluenceofHegel’sconceptof“thesenseofuniverse,”Whitmanthoughttheuniverseisformednotonlybylifelessmaterials;itisalsofulloflifeorspirit（）.Atommakesuptheshapeandappearanceofanobject,butitisenergyorspiritthatmakestheobjectmove:

IhaveinstantconductorsallovermewhetherIpassorstop,

Theyseizeeveryobjectandleaditharmlesslythroughme.

Imerelystir,press,feelwithmyfingers,andamhappy,

Totouchmypersontosomeoneelse’sisaboutasmuch

asIcanstand.（635）

Wordslike“conductors,”“seize,”“touch”allsuggestthattheenergydrivesatomstogether.Indeed,energyistheforcethatattractsdifferentatomstogatherandformanobject.Therefore,toWaltWhitman,theessenceofGodandtheuniversewaslife.Life,intheformofenergy,cultivatesallofthethingsintheuniverse,thusconnectingallthethingstogether;lifealsobringsthedevelopmentoftheuniverseforwardaswell.Kepneralsoobservesthat“theenergywithineachatommakesthatatomactpurposely,notchaotically”（190）.Thepurposeistogatherandform,andtogether,alltheobjectscometoshapetheuniverse.

Inaword,WaltWhitman’sGodisthesumofalltheobjectsintheuniverse.Everything,including“myself,”embodiespartofGod.“Myself”relatestoGodbyitsatomiccomponentsintermsofthephysical/material,andbyitssoul’sexpansionandfusionwiththecosmosintermsofthespiritual/immaterial.In“SongofMyself”,itisnothardtoobserve“myself”isomnipresent,itisactuallytheuniverseitself.UndertheinfluenceofHegel’sconceptof“thesenseofuniverse,”WaltWhitmanthoughttheuniverseisformednotonlybylifelessmaterials;itisalsofulloflife.InWhitman’apoem“Life”,hesaid:

Everthegrappledmysteryofallearth’sagesoldornew;

Evertheeagereyes,hurrahs,thewelcome-clappinghands,theloudapplause;

Everthesouldissatisfied,curious,unconvincedatlast;

Strugglingto-daythesame—battlingthesame.（607）

SotoWaltWhitman,theessenceofGodandtheuniversewas“battlingthesame”-life,itcultivatesallofthethingsintheuniverse,thusconnectingallthethingstogether;lifebringsthedevelopmentoftheuniverseforwardaswell.

Inaword,WaltWhitman’sGodfirstisomnipresent,isthedivinityofall;Godandmyselfarecloselyrelatedtoeachother,theessenceofGodislife,thelifeofindividualwillmergeintotheeverlastinguniverse.

TheReevaluationofBody

BasedonhisuniqueimageofGod,WaltWhitmanstartedanewpathintheexplanationofmysteriousexperienceoftheselftofurtherexplorethelifespirit.Almostallthereligions,includingChristianity,intheworldupholdthatonlybydiscardingthebodycanthesoultranscendsintotheeternityofthespiritualworld.Consequently,theyalwaysdespisethebodywhileextollingthesoul.Onthecontrary,duetohisuniqueexplanationofGod,Whitmanbravelyextolledtheelectricityoffleshbody,sangforhisownbody,andfeltproudofhisown:

“I,thirty-sevenyearsold,washealthyfromtheverybeginning,andhopetobehealthyforever（64）.”ThebodywasanextremelyvitalcomponentofWaltWhitman’spoems.WaltWhitmanbecameamissionerjustbecausehesangforthebody.AccordingtoEzraGreenspan,becauseofsuchfactorsasair,sun,earth,bloodandflesh,Whitman“createdthebestpoemtheworldhaseverknown（36）.”said“air,sun,earth,bloodandflesh---justbecauseoftheabovementionedfactors,WaltWhitmancreatedthebestpoemtheworldhaseverknown（36）.”Whitman,however,favorstheimportanceofthebodyaswellassexuallovetotheextentthatheconsideredthebodyasthestartingpointofhisphilosophicalthoughts.InTheEvolutionofWaltWhitman,【跟第一个参考文献同样的问题，你确定出处是这本书的话就没问题】RogerAsselineaucommentedonWhitman’semphasisofthebodythat“unliketheBritishromanticistsandtheAmericantranscendentalists,WaltWhitmanwentintothespiritualkingdominstantly;heneverforgetsthatthebodyisthestageandstartingpointofhismysteriousexperience（96）.”In“SongofMyself”,Whitmanbravelyannouncedtothewholeworld,“I,thepoetoffleshbody（527）.”“IamthepoetoftheSoul/Thepleasuresofheavenarewithmeandthepainsofhellarewithme,/ThefirstIgraftandincreaseuponmyself,thelatterItranslateintonewtongue（593）.”

Whitmanraisedthefleshbodyuptotheheightofspiritandsoul,whichdiffersgreatlyfromthetraditionalconceptionofthebody,butaccordscompletelywithhiscomprehensionofGod.Tothosewhobelieveinmysticism,mysticismmeanstoforgetandtranscendthebody,andenterintoastateofeternalspirit.WhitmanbelievedthatGodconsistsofboththematerialandtheimmaterial,andsimilartoGod,theself,astheintegrationofthebodyandthesoul,cannotexistwithouteitheraspect.Thebodyfunctionsasthecarrierandexpressionoflifespirit,andinthissense,itcanbeconsideredasthestartingpointoftheuniverse.Thekeensensesofthefleshbodyalsoenablesthepoettorealizethelivelinessofbloodcirculation.Attheverybeginningofthepoem,Whitmanavoidedthedisturbanceandnoiseoftheworld,Whitmanimmerseshimselfinthepleasureoftheorgans,his“breath,blood,airin...lung.”（104）

Ultimately,accordingtoWhitman,thesamesensesoflifeelevatetheselftoatranscendentalstate.It