Nature as Guide in Whitman's "Song of Myself": Lines 10–13

Introduction: Whitman's Romantic-Enlightenment Vision

Walt Whitman's Song of Myself is a celebration of Nature in the Romantic-Enlightenment tradition. As is evident from a close reading of the poem, Whitman believes that Nature is a pure force — a sublime manifestation of what is Good. This paper examines lines 10–13 of the poem, providing both a literal meaning and a thematic interpretation based on Whitman's use of figurative language and the image of unfettered freedom as the greatest good that he attributes to his beloved subject: Nature.

Stanza Four in Context: Suspending Creeds and Schools

These lines comprise the fourth stanza of Whitman's exceptionally long and flowing poem and may be viewed as an ode to liberty and Nature, drawn directly from the doctrine of Rousseau — that Nature is, in and of itself, the only guide mankind needs. Nature requires no "check" or restraint and should not be held down by "creeds and schools," which, in the first line of the stanza, are mentioned and then suspended, as though dismissed: "retiring back a while," states Whitman in line 11.

Whitman's voice is driven by a first-person wandering narrative that emphasizes introspection, contemplation, and meditation throughout the poem. It is also assertive and accompanied by a self-indulgent tone — one that is employed without apology; indeed, self-indulgence is the point. If Nature is to be the rule, the guide, the transcendent truth, then the Self is the expression of Nature, and in the Self there is nothing bad, so long as no restraint is placed upon its true expression. The only "bad" is that which is judged so by society — at least, that is what is implied in Whitman's ode to himself and to Nature.

Line-by-Line Literal Reading

Line 10 opens with "Creeds and schools in abeyance" — that is, literally, doctrinal beliefs and formal methods of thought and teaching are suspended. In other words, the field is wide open. Whitman "loafs" — inviting his soul to loaf, as he states in the opening lines — and in so doing allows all that has been put into him by way of formal learning to recede and drain out. He empties himself of these externals, which he deems oppressive, for they are not the voice of Nature and do not represent the natural resplendence that a "blade of grass" represents for him. The doctrines and schools of the Old World are part of an Old World perspective on life, which includes the old Christian view that nature is fallen and that mankind is in need of Redemption. Whitman rejects this view in his elevation of Nature, refusing to assent to the proposition that his human nature is in any way fallen. That is why "school is out," so to speak, for Whitman: his new education is beginning in the fields.

Yet he acknowledges that the "creeds and schools" also served a purpose, as line 11 reveals: "Retiring back a while sufficed at what they are, but never forgotten." He puts them in their proper perspective. They helped to show him what the old world was all about, and they were good for that reason. But Whitman has a new pursuit — a new "harbor" that he seeks: "I harbor for good or bad, I permit to speak at every hazard" (line 12). His new harbor is a place of safety, like a port where ships dock after long voyages. Whitman's long voyage through the schools of his youth and through the dead Old World ideologies has finally come to shore. He lies in the harbor of his adult life "for good or bad," making no judgment — there is no need for one in the world of Nature, where all that is wanted is the spring of life and the ease of flowing language. Permission to speak "at every hazard" is like a gully that forms and lets water travel freely, as it wants. That is the message and "creed" of Nature: it is not bound to any stricture or formal constraint; it comes and goes as it pleases and is bound only to overflow at will. Some may call this a "hazard," as Whitman subtly implies, but for the poet it is Nature's due — and his due as well, as a devotee of Nature.

Line 13, the final line of the stanza, states as much: "Nature without check with original energy." There is no controlling Nature — everything it does is done out of a creative spark, an original and new force that is the soul of the world. Whitman does not want to hear of the Old World "soul" tainted with Original Sin; it is not for him. He has sailed into a new "harbor" and finds in it a world in which Nature is the arbiter of truth and justice. Such is how the literal meaning of these four lines plays out and unfolds against the backdrop of the rest of the poem — a small window into the main ideas of Song of Myself that Whitman wishes to explore.

Conclusion: Nature as Grace and Safe Harbor

In a figurative sense, Whitman's images in these four lines convey a sense of the world of Nature finally coming to take over what is its own, reclaiming the land in the poet's mind and soul that was once occupied by the "creeds and schools" of his youth. The poet appreciates what the "creeds and schools" gave him, but now believes he has found a better way — the way of Nature. For Whitman, Nature is grace and grace is Nature. The two are not separate, as the old "creed" of the Old World believed.

This is the gist of his rhetoric: the only way for man to arrive at that "safe harbor" — Whitman's destination in these lines — is to discard the idea that grace builds upon nature. For Whitman, Nature is the builder and the destroyer, and grace is simply a word that men have used to describe the mysteriousness of the universe. It is Enlightenment ideology that underlies Whitman's outlook. His Old World creed is not the only thing he received in school: he also received a dose of the New World Enlightenment — and perhaps that is why he remains somewhat appreciative of the learning he received. He knows he would not be where he is without it.

For Whitman, the new theme of his life and of his Song of Myself is that Nature is the true principle — that to it alone need mankind look for answers. Turned away from the Old World God, Whitman is free to turn toward the world and find peace in himself. And thus he celebrates himself, the focus, after all, of his poem.

Works Cited

Whitman, Walt. "Song of Myself." Modern American Poetry. Web. 9 Feb 2016.