Response to Song of the Open Road Poem

Whitman’s poem promotes democracy and communion; the poet views the outdoors as a place where people of all social backgrounds and classes can come together. The speaker addresses his love of his country and independence to experiment in this poem, which is a plus. Whitman praises our country’s diversity and the fact that people can openly connect and appreciate all aspects of life in this country. However, the poem is only lyrical in sections and is overly long; as a result, readers must be vigilant to ensure they understand the meaning. Something that stuck out in this poem is the commitment of the author to recognize even the little aspects that are often ignored. It is evident that by telling the poem from the first-person point of view, the speaker, Whitman knows himself well; he effectively exercises his free will and independence in his utterances.

Essentially, Whitman utilizes free verse as his style of writing, which he started to develop in the late 1840s. This form of writing does not focus on rhyming or repeating any metrical patterns, unlike other poetic types. Moreover, free verse enables the author to mimic the patterns of informal speech of everyday life. In most of his poem, Whitman created his own sound, which produced an effect in mind known as anaphora. Song of the Open Road is no exception as the author has repeated the beginning phrases in efforts to create a kind of emphasis. Additionally, this concept enables the speaker in the poem to communicate his passion and personality intensely. Another thing about the poem is the title; Whitman uses the word song to capture the attention of the reader. In essence, songs are celebrations in a way, which is the main agenda of this poem and the author does everything he can to get the reader to appreciate his amazing work.