Germs

Walt Whitman 1819 (West Hills) – 1892 (Camden)




   FORMS, qualities, lives, humanity, language, thoughts,
   The ones known, and the ones unknown--the ones on the stars,
   The stars themselves, some shaped, others unshaped,
   Wonders as of those countries--the soil, trees, cities, inhabitants,
         whatever they may be,
   Splendid suns, the moons and rings, the countless combinations and
         effects;
   Such-like, and as good as such-like, visible here or anywhere, stand
         provided for in a handful of space, which I extend my arm and
         half enclose with my hand;
   That contains the start of each and all--the virtue, the germs of
         all.

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 08, 2023

27 sec read
143

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABCDECFCCCGH
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 626
Words 92
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 12

Walt Whitman

Walter "Walt" Whitman was an American poet, essayist and journalist. more…

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