3. How Solemn As One By One Flashcards
Context
One of the unique things about this particular poem is that it has an epigraph that reads, “(Washington City, 1865).” As it turns out, Whitman added the epigraph to signify the troops returning home from the war.
Walt Whitman was a civil war nurse.
Each of the men has a “face” and can express his emotions properly, but when he returns home, each and every one puts up a mask so he doesn’t have to talk about his battle experiences.
Of course, no one knew about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) during the Civil War era, but the mask that Whitman is describing is without a doubt one of the many symptoms of PTSD.
Theme
The Indomitable Human Spirit or rather the American Soul- Just as America cannot be conquered (by corruption of undemocratic ideals) the soul cannot be conquered by the materialist realm.
Transcendence of the Soul- Whitman says you are not just a body, you are a soul. as if to comfort the soldier, to absolve him from astrocities he has witnessed and committed because of the ‘Union’ pure intentions. They believed in the idea of America.
PTSD (mask)
the strength of the human soul - the speaker in the poem acknowledges the strength of the human soul which is not crushed by the brutalities of war
war - the speaker lauds the strength of the soldiers & indirectly points to the futility of war as the soldiers are solemn, possibly over the fallen brethren who have lost their lives
Parallel/Allusion: “Ranks returning worn and sweaty”
Reference to drum taps:
“How good they look, as they tramp down to the river,
sweaty, with their guns on their shoulders!”
Anaphora
The word ‘as’ appears 5 times in a row, anaphorically. This is used to introduce the main subjects of the poem. It has a continuous effect, like this moment is everlong, despite being sequential.
The last line of anaphora stands out as it introduces a completely new topic but in the same sequential tone, as if Whitman reaching out and talking to the reader personally is completely ordinary as the previous details of the day. This sudden intimacy sucks in the reader completely.
Allusion: Mask
Masks allude to the the greek concept of persona which means “to don a mask.”
Masks were used to transform the wearer’s identity, allowing them to take on the role of a mythological hero, god, or other character. This allowed the wearer to say and do things that would be inappropriate in everyday life.
The soldiers essentially put up a performance for everyday life.
Ezra Greenspan
on the significance of “masks”
“Whitman overtly meant to indicate that it is always the indwelling spirit that constitutes essential identity, & not external features & manners.”
Caesura
Caesura is used almost constantly to break up the poem into fragments and let the reader breathe in each word. “Dear friend” is surrounded in caesura as if to emphasise the importance of the revelation.
Diacope
used to introduce and reintroduce concepts.
Structure
The Form is pretty simple, it is one stanza with 11 lines.
One of the more interesting parts of the form is the white space in the first half of the stanza. Instead of forming a solid block, it looks more loose and the use of free verse almost works in tandem with that.
The Rhythm mainly comes from repeated sounds and words and slant internal rhymes.
