How Did Walt Whitman Influence Society

One man comprised a book of over three hundred poems with nine editions that he wrote from 1855 to his death in 1892. This man was Walt Whitman. He was an inspirational and influential writer who wrote many poems along with several books. Whitman got his start in literature working as an editor and journalist for many political newspapers in the 1940s. He is most well known for the previously described book called Leaves of Grass. Whitman wrote during the period of literary individualism known as the Transcendentalist movement which greatly shaped his writing. His 1865 poem "O Captain! My Captain!" sparked a debate over its significance with many critics having differing views on the topic. Walt Whitman's writing was profoundly influenced by the …show more content…
Walt Whitman was a renowned American poet, known worldwide for his influential literature. He was born on May 31, 1819 to his father Walter Whitman, a carpenter and farmer, and his mother Louisa Van Velsor. Despite his education only going to the extent of elementary school, Whitman's first real job was as a teacher in Long Island. After this, he began his writing career in journalism as an editor in 1842 for a paper called the New York Aurora. Subsequent to this he worked for many papers and often incorporated his own political views into his work. Whitman was even said to be fired from his job at the Eagle in 1848 because his opinion of a widely debated piece of legislature, the Wilmot Proviso, did not align with that of the owners of the newspaper. Walt Whitman's political views mixed with his experience in the Civil War