The Common Air That Bathes the Globe

The great American poet Walt Whitman once said,

Do I contradict myself?

Very well then I contradict myself;

(I am large, I contain multitudes.)

These striking lines come from his poem "Song of Myself", part of the collection Leaves of Grass. It’s a celebration of the body as well as the soul. Of the strength of the individual and the power of the universal. And reflected his love of nature, democracy and friendship.  

It’s evident from the poem that Whitman regards the narrator not as representing his historical persona, but as symbolic of humanity in all its diversity, "For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you." His conception of self is as one of the common people rather than the heroic figures of old. And of someone who has transcended the normal physical boundaries of self:

I pass death with the dying, and birth with the new-wash’d babe, and

and am not contained between my hat and boots.

Whitman spurned the rhymed and metered poems common at the time and created an original, distinctively American voice:

The English language befriends the grand American expression. . . . it is brawny enough and limber and full enough… It is the powerful language of resistance . . . it is the dialect of common sense. It is the speech of the proud and melancholy races and of all who aspire. It is the chosen tongue to express growth faith self-esteem freedom justice equality friendliness amplitude prudence decision and courage. It is the medium that shall well nigh express the inexpressible.

This radical approach to poetry generated a mixed reaction when the poem was first published in 1855. The stylistic innovation antagonised many critics. They were also appalled by his frankness about sex and his celebration of “the Nation of many nations”. But this epic, scandalous poem, weaving stories about the diversity of American culture and “the common air that bathes the globe” was written in a demotic language that was as “simple as grass”.

A poet who can “make every word he speaks draw blood”

The poem is now considered to be the quintessentially American expression of democratic ideals, which captured the energy of a young nation waking up to its own potential. And he’s seen as one of America’s finest poets.

Whitman was keenly aware of the social and political ills that plagued mid-19th century America. He was a supporter of women’s rights, of the rights of the common man and of the abolition of slavery. He also experienced the horror of the Civil War.

He remains supremely relevant today, reminding us of the need to be ourselves and celebrate the diversity that makes us human. A powerful message at a time when right-wing demagoguery is gaining strength across the world, populist politicians scapegoat minorities with impunity, and countries are turning inwards and pulling up the drawbridge.

The belief that there is only one right way to live is a threat to our collective sanity. But to be ourselves in a world that is constantly trying to make us something else is a huge challenge. Nevertheless, it’s a challenge we must embrace if we want to fulfil our true potential as human beings.

Whitman reminds us that it’s our imperfections, contradictions and idiosyncrasies that make us human. And helps us understand that, in the words of Henry David Thoreau:

If a man does not keep pace with his

companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let

him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away.

“Song of Myself” speaks to us today as we wrestle with a range of difficult political issues. He gives us hope that, collectively, we can create a better world. That we have agency as we face the existential challenge of climate and ecological emergencies, growing levels of poverty and inequality and a political establishment wedded to an intellectually bankrupt neoliberal ideology.     

We are not machines. We retain the potential to recognise our common humanity and tackle social injustice. In this historical possibility lies hope. Whitman gives us the confidence to say: “Let your soul stand cool/and composed before a million universes.”