惠特曼是不守常規的，然而這也是他可愛的地方。他不求押韻的詩作呈現他自由的風格。不同於其他人跟著教士及權威的腳步，他宣傳自己的信仰─熱愛身體及靈魂以及熱愛普天之下的芸芸眾生。我們愛自己，愛家人，愛朋友，而惠特曼更將愛擴及至陌生人甚至是無限漫延的時空。他的「自我之歌」實際上是首愛之頌。他不只邀請了靈魂與身體，也邀請了奴隸與主人、女人與男人一同加入大合唱。他歌頌自我也歌誦群眾；享受自我也享受群眾。每個大我中都有無數個小我。他從不拒絕而是大方接受。
在此篇論文中，惠特曼將帶領我們重新領略人類友伴及週遭環境的價值。論文的開始是篇簡短的介紹。第二章將探索惠特曼作品中的自然。在現代生活中，人類週遭充斥著過份雕琢的生活及唾手可得的資訊，但也因此喪失了探索的能力。因此，他呼籲大家重返自然，在那我們能接受來自上帝第一手的訊息。歌唱的鳥兒、盛開的紫丁香以及翻騰的浪花等都為我們帶來激勵人心的啟發。至於人與人間的互動，南北戰爭為惠特曼上了一課。第三章探討南北戰爭帶來的影響。南北間的衝突，種族間的誤會並不能用武力解決；訴諸於互敬互愛的民主制度才能解決紛爭。第四章將討論普世的概念，包含了惠特曼對於永恆的的追求及無所不包的博愛。在「航向印度」，他期待智慧的啟發。同時，在旅程中他了解到瞬間可以是永恆，而史詩般壯麗的航行也終將回到原點。
本論文結論將指出，當惠特曼「在世界的屋頂上發出野蠻的吶喊」，他鼓勵讀者自我探索及獨立思考。閱讀惠特曼的作品，讀者將體會到他的作品一點也不
野蠻、低俗；這些作品是美國文學中重要的里程碑。

Whitman is unconventional; however, that is also the reason why he is so adorable. His unrhymed poems show his free style. And instead of following clergymen and the authorities, he preaches his belief—loving both the body and soul as well as loving people under the sun. We love ourselves, our family, our friends, our countries and Whitman extends the love to strangers, nature, time, space and the immense. His famous “Song of Myself” is actually a song of love. He invites not only his soul and body but also slaves and masters, women and men to join the choir. He sings for the self and for the masses also. He enjoys his self, and every self is part of the whole. He denies none and he accepts all.
In his works we see Whitman rediscover the values of people and the environments around us. To begin with, in chapter one, I will give a brief introduction to my thesis. In chapter two, I will explore Whitman’s poems about nature. Living in modern cities, we are so inundated by over-decorated life and handy information that we lose the inherent ability to explore real life. Therefore, Whitman asks us to return to nature where people can live with God and communicate with him. Chirping birds, blooming lilacs, surging tides will bring us inspiring messages. Only through immersion in nature can human beings feel the correspondence between nature and themselves. As for the way to treat fellow countrymen, the Civil War teaches Whitman great lessons, so my chapter three will deal with the impact of the Civil War. The confrontation between the North and South, blacks and whites cannot be solved by arms. He recommends the democracy to solve discords. In my fourth chapter, I will discuss universality, which includes Whitman’s pursuit of eternity and his embracive fraternity. His “Passage to India” is actually a tour to enlightenment. He sails to the Eastern wonderland where wisdom originates. At the moment he transcends space and time, he realizes an instant can be everlasting and the epic navigation will eventually return to the departure.
My concluding chapter will point out that as Whitman sounds his “barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world,” he encourages readers to have their own thinking. After reading his Leaves of Grass readers will see his works are not barbaric at all; they are milestones in American literature.

Table of Contents


Chapter I
Introduction ……………………………………………… 1
Chapter II
Turning a Leaf of Nature …………………………… 14
Chapter III
Building a House United …………………………… 31
Chapter IV
Pursuit of Universality …………………………… 49
Chapter V
Conclusion ………………………………………………… 70
Works Cited ………………………………………… 75

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