Recent update
- Where I found Whitman!
- Conclusion
- Fort Greene, for Dec 01, oatakan
- America by Whitman and Jeans by Levi Strauss, oatakan for Nov 17th
- Old, Cold and Cool Place by oatakan, Nov 10
- Whitman talks to You! Oatakan for Nov 3rd
- Whitman’s Brooklyn
- Oatakan for October 20th (Sea of Long Island)
- Oct 13th, oatakan
- oatakan, oct 6th, Whitman’s Manhattan
Oatakan for October 20th (Sea of Long Island)
October 18th, 2009 by oatakan
Oatakan for October 20th
As a lover of Sea, it is inevitable for me not to notice the sea while reading Whitman’s lines; hence I can tell the sea was one of his great divine influence or in other words an inspiration for him. I guess watching the horizon the infinity and sound of waves when they hit the shores took him into a great journey of thoughts which created his masterly poems. I have written about the sea and quoted some of Whitman’s lines in the past. (http://oatakan.lookingforwhitman.org/2009/09/06/song-of-oktay/) Constantly finding some other lines about the sea in some way oriented me to mention again.
Back in days as sources state, Long Island was called Paumanok where Whitman was born West hills, Long island. I can understand Whitman’s passion to Long Island as a person who has visited Huntington many times. I can simply redefine the place as where green meets blue, a lovely place. Nowadays it is a very rich city that noticeable by the mansions in huge beautiful gardens.
“Sea-beauty! stretch’d and basking!
One side thy inland ocean laving, broad, with copious commerce,
steamers, sails,
And one the Atlantic’s wind caressing, fierce or gentle–mighty hulls
dark-gliding in the distance.
Isle of sweet brooks of drinking-water–healthy air and soil!
Isle of the salty shore and breeze and brine!”
I remember drinking water from one of the springs of Huntington and to be honest the water tastes so delicious that is like a sweetened. I can also confirm that, as a student of wine class, I know Long Island has great soil to grow grapes and growing wine industry. Also, Whitman writes at another location which is point of Long Island Montauk which is couple hours driving distance from Whitman’s birth place. Montauk is a little town which has very narrow roads between trees (two cars barely fit at wide) to the point that has the famous light house.
“From Montauk Point
I stand as on some mighty eagle’s beak,
Eastward the sea absorbing, viewing, (nothing but sea and sky,)
The tossing waves, the foam, the ships in the distance,
The wild unrest, the snowy, curling caps–that inbound urge and urge
of waves,
Seeking the shores forever.” P635
I would like to attach a link where you can see the ocean live from Montauk Point.http://www.webcams.travel/webcam/1248106646-Weather-Montauk-Montauk-Beach
In addition, I noticed “Sea Drift” by Whitman is another example for his passion to sea, where he combines his love with nature, where he gives life to the sea, to the moon and to the sun, etc. For instance,
“…O madly the sea pushes the land
With Love, with love…”p400
image source: http://lighthousegetaway.com/lights/NY/montauk9.jpg
Posted in Uncategorized | | 1 Comments
on October 19th, 2009 at 9:01 am
I think this is a good blog post. I like how you are interested in the sea and you connected that to Whitman as one of his influences.