Whitman 1855
Late in 1854, Whitman was working in carpentry. He is assumed to have started his writings for what would later be known, and published as Leaves of Grass in late 1854 or early 1855. One of his brothers once commented that Walt would get an idea while working, write it down, then take the rest of the day off. How did Walt get his book published? Allen contends that Walt probably sought out a commercial publisher to take his book at first, though there is no mention or proof of this. However, Whitman took his book to the Rome brothers, James and Thomas, who had a printing shop on the corner of Fulton and Cranberry. These two men were friends of Walt. They let Walt supervise their work and even help in the setting of some of the type. Whitman is thought to have set about ten pages. However, the frontispiece and probably the binding had to be done somewhere else. Some think that the book went on sale on July 4, but it isn't probable that any book stores were open on that day. However, an advertisement appeared in The New York Tribune on July 6 for the book. How did Walt come up with the money for the books? We can't answer this for sure, but one fact may shed some light on the sub
He believes that the ambiguity that Whitman leaves about who is speaking in the poem leaves one baffled. Walt, George, and Jeff were all away when the crisis came. Whitman was given legal permission to sign the papers because her husband was ill. More probable is that the extra copies, after having been on the shelves for some time, were given away as gifts by both Whitman and the book store. The house was purchased for $1,840. We need not mention that Whitman would have been eager to do this, as well, to promote his book. They continued on with life as usual. Mary returned to Greenport, George and Jeff to their jobs. There were no titles to the poems, and the print ran clear across the page, making the book awkward to anyone in 1855, as this was not the style in which books were printed. Allen states, "Friendly critics later tried to excuse the personal egotism, arrogance, and crudity by making for Whitman the same claim that Thoreau had made in Walden, that he boasted not of himself but for humanity. He was very bold and, excuse the pun, de-clothed many taboo subjects. It is a mystery as to what Jesse and Andrew were doing at this time. What became of Whitman's relationship with Emerson? Dana, the gentleman who gave Whitman such a careful and nicely worded review, printed Whitman's letter from Emerson in The Tribune on October 10 without Walt's permission. How did Whitman take the sales, or lack of sales? Whitman made a statement later in the year, in a moment of self advertisement, that the book "readily sold," but later, in his old age, he stated that not a single copy was bought and that he himself kept only one copy.
Common topics in this essay:
Leaves Grass,
Walter Whitman,
Charles Dana,
NY Macrae,
George Jeff,
Tribune October,
Broadway NY,
Waldo Emerson,
Walt Walt,
Song Allen,
leaves grass,
york tribune,
york tribune july,
book mention,
whitman book,
portrait whitman,
tribune july,
letter emerson,
book walt,
walt money,
american public,
|
Acceptance Essays
