Savantism

Walt Whitman was an american icon who wrote hundreds of poems in his life. Some of these poems are still read today and cherished. Savantism is NOT one of these poems. I have never even heard of this poem much less is it popular. Blooms literary reference guide has under 200 words on Savantism, which is odd because even though it is a short odd little poem I interpreted quite a bit from it.Bloom's criticism interpreted the poem as being about wise a trusted people. Blooms said the line " Thither we also, I with my leaves and songs, trustful, admirant,
As a father to his father going takes his children along with him." (Whitman). Meant that Whitman wanted his poems to be remembered as being wise and truthful and honest poems. He wanted all of his poetry to be remember favorable basically. I do not agree with Blooms reference on this poem. In my own opinion, the poem is about baggage. How he is talking about how everything goes with everything. When Whitman write's the line "Thither we also, I with my leaves and songs, trustful, admirant,
As a father to his father going takes his children along with him.
" (Whitman) He is really saying that like a father brings his son a long with him to different places Whitman brings his poetry a long with him wherever he goes. he can't escape it, it is always there. Blooms think the poem means "The poet wants his "leaves and songs [to be] trustful, admirant"—poems to be trusted as truthful and, therefore, admired." (Oliver). I do not think they really analysed the meaning of the poem as much as they did the meaning of the words. For instance when Whitman says "
THITHER as I look I see each result and glory retracing itself and
nestling close, always obligated,
Thither hours, months, years—thither trades, compacts, establish-
ments, even the most minute, " (Whitman). He is talking about how everything we do, every last second of our life is obligated to us. Rather it is bound to us, it becomes us. We can't escape what we do with our life because it is us. I think the Blooms criticism fell short of this poem dramatically and I strongly disagree with it. I think me disagreeing with it so much really has to do with how little into the poem the author of the criticism read. He clearly just took it at face value which you can never ever do for a poem. He looked up the meaning of a word, related it some how to the poem and called it done. Had he really read in to the poem, especially the last line. He would have seen that the poems are more like something following him rather than something he hopes will become successful. I was actually pretty surprised by how interesting this poem was because it was so short and nobody ever talks about ti being so interesting but I thought it was a pretty cool poem


Oliver, Charles M. "'Savantism'." Critical Companion to Walt Whitman: A Literary Reference to His Life and Work, Critical Companion. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2005. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= CCWW407&SingleRecord=True (accessed March 2, 2011).

Whitman, Walt. "SAVANTISM. (Leaves of Grass [1891-1892])." The Walt Whitman Archive. Web. 02 Mar. 2011.