Wilmot Proviso

A proviso is a clause in a contract where a condition is introduced.  The Wilmot Priviso was an event that lead to the Civil War.  This event would have banned slavery in territories acquired from Mexico.  It is named after Congressman David Wilmot.  It was brought to the House of Representatives in 1846 and it passed but it did not pass in the Senate since the South had a greater representation there.  It was reintroduced twice more and both failed.  Since this proposal looked to prohibit the extension of slavery, the debate over it provoked and reflected the growing separation and disagreements between the North and the South.

The Wilmot Proviso is related to Walt Whitman because he wrote about the Civil War which was a war between the North and the South.  As mentioned, the Wilmot Proviso came before the Civil War and basically solidified the disagreements between the two sides.  Whitman wrote about the war by idealizing the workmen and leaders.  He visited soldiers in hospitals and attended to their needs as he was a volunteer nurse during the Civil War.

Not knowing about the Wilmot Proviso prior to this, I feel that Whitman would have been a supporter.  In "Song of Myself" he writes about housing a slave and how illegal it is but he didn't care.

Specimen Days: Ferries

"MY PASSION FOR FERRIES"

After scrolling, this entry seemed the most interesting especially since I too enjoy a nice ferry ride.  It seems though not as much as Mr. Whitman.  The one thing I noticed was the lists.  This entry is a list of things: scenery, people, and images.  The people he knew, the things he saw while on the sea, his reasons for loving ferries, etc.  He just continues to list out everything.  I noticed he does that in "Song of Myself" as well.  The list there is more descriptive.  Take for example at the top of page 18 when he says, "If I worship any particular thing it shall be some of the spread of my body."  After that, he lists of parts of his body in great detail, one line being, "You my rich blood  your milky stream pale strippings of my life."

This is what Whitman is talking about when he suggests that people shouldn't be couped up indoors and that they need to go out an explore.  One doesn't need to be in the woods to have an adventure and explore.  All he did was go on a ferry and he was about to hear "the majestic sounds boats" and see friends.  The fact that this is one of his passions also goes to show you that Whitman is a man of pleasure.  He knows what he likes he goes for it and enjoys it.

See More/Talk More

My voice goes after what my eyes cannot reach,

With the twirl of my tongue I encompass worlds and volumes of worlds.

Line after line I read, every word was interesting, but as the Bart train stopped, so did my eyes.  I read those two lines at least five times.  It wasn't because I didn't understand it, but because I wanted to understand it more.  How cheesy does that sound?!  But it's true.  I feel like Walt is constantly expressing his interest in exploring and living your own life.  The curiosity of the world excited him.  These two lines express just that.

The first line states, "My voice goes after what my eyes cannot reach."  I imagine the voice and the eyes competing, searching for something.  Obviously as humans the greatest sense we have is our sight and that goes as far as we want it to.  But when it cannot, that is where the voice comes in - asking questions, meeting new people, being open about your thoughts, your feelings.  To me, that is what he means when he says that his voice goes after what his eyes cannot.  When you think you have seen all you can see, maybe even imagined all you have imagined, speak more, talk more. "With the twirl of my tongue I encompass worlds and volumes of worlds."

1

HI!!!