The Death Of Ivan Ilyich And From Song Of Myself, By Walt Whitman

Although all of the texts that we have read in class are of equal importance, I have chosen to compare “The Death of Ivan Ilyich” by Leo Tolstoy, “Faust” by Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe, and “From Song of Myself” by Walt Whitman. All works have to do with the sense of self and coming to terms with the world around them. To begin, “The Death of Ivan Ilyich” is about a man who lived a life based on the world around him and what was expected of him, he was not living for himself. Ilyich’s life was an artificial life based on materialistic things, shallow relationships, and selfishness. He married just for convenience, not for love which can put a damper on the quality of life since the relationships you have with people is what really matters in life. Not to mention, it affected their children's lives. In now way was his life authentic. He chose to engulf himself in a career that truly does give him joy.
To being, Whitman adequately addresses the reader as a close friend. His attitude is portrayed as someone who wants to help you and support you. I think this is important because relationships are what give life meaning. Another theme that is apparent in this work is the theme of identity. Whitman has multiple identities, one of the soul, one of himself, and one of the natural world, including animals. This theme is important because in the two other works, identity is something the main characters struggle with. On the contrary, Whitman knows that relationships with people are all important. The last theme that I will be addressing is one of spirituality. Whitman believes that the soul and body are both immortal because human beings are a part of the natural world unlike the Biblical references where the soul is immortal and the body is not. All in all, Whitman is content with the ways of life unlike Ivan and