2.1 Song of the Open Road -Appreciation 2
Class-XII
2.1 Song of the Open Road - Walt Whitman
Appreciation- 04Marks
With the help of the following points, write a poetic appreciation of the poem. (4)
Points-
-The poet, poem & title
-Theme
-The language/ poetic devices used in the poem
-Special features
-The message, values, morals
-Opinion
Ans-
I. The poet, poem & title-
Walt Whitman (1819-1892) was an American poet, essayist, and journalist. He is often called 'the Father of Free Verse. His major works were "Leaves of Grass" and "O Captain! My Captain!"
The poem 'Song of the Open Road ' is taken from his famous collection 'Leaves of Grass'.
The title 'Song of the Open Road' is metaphorical. 'Road' is indirectly compared with 'journey of life'. It also indicates freedom and mobility.
ii. Theme-
Freedom, Joy, and Optimism are the major themes of this poem. Throughout the poem, the poet encourages the readers to be true to themselves and live a free life.
ii The language/ poetic devices used in the poem-
The poem is written in free verse as the lines are unrhymed and of varying lengths. The poet used Metaphor, Personification, Inversion, Tautology, climax, Paradox, Transfer Epithet, Alliteration, Repetition, etc. For e.g.
"Still here I carry my old delicious burdens"
Transferred Epithet - Epithet 'delicious' is transferred to 'burdens'
IV. Special Features -
The poem is written in free verse and in the form of a monologue. Caesura - (splitting the lines using a comma) and Parentheses - {}are special techniques used in the poem.
It has an optimistic tone. It is the motivational and inspirational poem.
There are four stanzas in this poem. The first stanza contains only three lines while the other three stanzas contain four lines of verse.
v. The message, values, morals in the poem-
The poem conveys the message that we should not be influenced by constellations, society, or family pressure when making life decisions. The message of " Lead your own life with your own challenges and believe in yourself" is depicted in this poem.
vi. Opinion-
I like the poem for its timeless appeal. It drives me to set out and be free while leaving my worries behind.
Or
I like this poem because it helps me to make decisions in my life.
Prepared By-Jyoti Walunj-Landge
Hutatma Rajguru Mahavidyalaya, Rajgurunagar