I celebrate myself,and sing myself,我赞美我自己,歌颂我自己,
And what I assume you shall assume,我所承担的一切,你也必须承担,
For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you.因为属于我的每一个原子,也同样属于你。
I loafe and invite my soul,我闲游,并邀我的灵魂同往,
My tongue,every atom of my blood,form'd from this soil,this air,我的舌头,我血液中的每个原子,都由这泥土、这空气所形成
Born here of parents born here from parents the same,and their parents the same,我生于这里,我的父母生于这里,他们的父母也生于这里,
I,now thirty-seven years old in perfect health begin,我如今三十七岁,在健康良好的状况下出发,
Hoping to cease not till death.愿至死方休。
I lean and loafe at my ease observing a spear of summer grass.我悠闲地俯视一片夏天的草叶。
Creeds and schools in abeyance,教条和学派先放一旁,
Retiring back a while sufficed at what they are,but never forgotten,让他们暂且后退,满足于现状,但不被遗忘,
I harbor for good or bad,I permit to speak at every hazard,我心怀善与恶,我要不顾一切地述说,
Nature without check with original energy.自然那原始的活力,不受任何的阻扰。
Spirituality and Religion in Whitman's Song of MyselfWhile he takes a great deal of material from Christianity, his conception of religion is much more complicated than the beliefs of one or two faiths mixed together. Whitman seems to draw from the many roots of belief to form his own religion, putting himself as the center.
Whitman brings philosophical significance to the most simple objects and actions, reminding America that every sight, sound, taste, and smell can take on spiritual importance to the fully aware and healthy individual. In the first cantos, he says, "I loafe and invite my soul," creating a dualism between matter and spirit. Throughout the rest of the poem though, he continues this pattern. He constantly uses the images of body and spirit together, bringing us to a better understanding of his true conception of spirituality.
There are many "popular" topics used frequently by authors. Love, religion, and war are some favorites. Two other such topics we typically read about are nature and death. The two can be discussed separately or they can be related to each other. Walt Whitman, a lover of nature, tackled these subjects in "Song of Myself" from Leaves of Grass. "Song of Myself" is a celebration of life and God. Whitman loved everything imaginable about nature. He loved people, animals, and himself. Throughout this extensive poem, Whitman mentions "red" people (Indians), "Negroes", butchers, women, the poor and the rich. He believed that all are good in some way or another and all people are equal.
Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself” is, on the most basic descriptive level, a really long poem. Whitman is clearly a poet with a lot to say, or at least with a lot of different ways to say it. He meanders from the micro to the macro, from atoms to the whole earth.
这首诗内容及其丰富,它全面地表现了诗人对人生哲学和宗教的观点。“自我”是全诗的中心形象。《自我之歌》的背景是整个美国。全篇歌颂的“自我”既是诗人又大于诗人,是具有美国民族特征和民主理想的巨人形象,也是新大陆的开拓者的形象。从这首诗也可以看到以爱默生为代表的超验主义学说对诗人的影响。
惠特曼《自我之歌》一问世,就引起美国文坛广泛持久的争论.历史证明,《自我之歌》并不是所谓神秘主义的启灵预言诗,而是一首反映美国时代生活的现实主义伟大诗篇.“自我”展示出多重艺术形象,热情地歌颂了美国民主和美国人民.民主、民族主题贯穿全诗.诗歌宏伟的结构、广阔的历史画面、全景式的美国自然风貌,使之成为一首享誉世界文坛的美国史诗.
自由诗(Free Verse):现代诗中常见的体式,长短不同的诗行存在于同一首诗中,不讲究押韵与格律,只注重诗歌所表达的意象和传递的情感。Walt Whitman的Leaves of Grass中,就采用此格式。
重读他最有名的《草叶集》等诗篇,再次为一个半世纪前的这位美国诗人创作的激情之澎湃、风格之瑰丽、题材之多元、想像之丰富、观念之新奇而慑服。记得早年读《草叶集》时,便被他那大气豪爽的浪漫主义情绪和长句排比式的诗歌魅力所吸引,不能不觉得郭沫若的《女神》等诗作与之相比难掩矫柔做作之相,惠特曼是名副其实的行吟诗人,郭诗只能算血脉喷张后的收获。又联想到曾经红极一时风靡一时的苏俄马雅柯夫斯基的“阶梯诗”,毕竟是不同世界的产物,马氏的诗用现在的语汇来形容,很像是“红色嬉皮士”在声嘶力竭般嚎叫,在惠特曼奔放、自然、通俗而又生动的歌唱面前,尤显得乏力而虚张声势。
惠特曼的这种诗风对美国诗歌的发展和美国现代主义文学的形成都有很大的影响。美国现代诗主要可以分为两大类,一类是以艾略特为代表的古典派,这类诗人推崇玄学诗歌,认为作家最根本的任务是与人类的过去建立对话。另一类,也是主要的一类,便是以惠特曼为代表的新诗派。这类诗人旨在激发人们感到世界是崭新的,空白的,一切都从未接触过,描写过,需要我们去描写,去创造。这种摒弃一切传统,勇于开拓一个新世界的精神正是惠特曼早在一百多年前首先倡导的。