Introduction: Animals - Class 10 PDF Download

About the Author- Walt Whitman
Walt Whitman – A Short Biography

About the Author

Walt ‘Whitman was an American poet, essayist and journalist. He was born on 31 May 1819 in New York. He died on 26 March 1892. ‘Leaves of Grass’ 0 Captain! My Captain!’ and ‘Song of Myself’ are some of his great works. The present poem ‘Animals’ written in free verse, is one of the poems published in ‘Leaves of Grass’.

INTRODUCTION

In this poem the poet, Whitman compares man to animals. He finds that man lacks many virtues that animals have. The poet says that he feels more at home with animals than human beings since they are selfish, false and always dissatisfied, while the animals are unselfish, true and more satisfied. They show their love for us.

Central Idea of the Poem

The poet Walt Whitman tells frankly that he feels more comfortable and at home with animals rather than his fellow human beings. He has lost so much faith in the race of man that he wants to 'turn' and change his position with animals. Human beings have become mad running after material possessions. They are a bundle of complications, contradictions and confusions. Their conscience is not clear and so they suffer from nightmares and weep for their sins. Animals, on the other hand, are calm, self-contained and contented. They don’t run after material things other than their food. They don’t need to worship God as they never suffer from any sense of guilt or sin. Ancestors of human beings shared those tokens of love and understanding in the remote past. Unfortunately, humans have lost those virtues and tokens of love and understanding completely forever

Style

Like the best poetry of Walt Whitman, the poem ‘Animals’ is also written in irregular verse or the blank verse. This poem reflects Whitman’s ‘animism’. It is the spirit of animals that are meant to reflect the truth in humanity. He respects animals because they have retained those values and `tokens’ which humans seem to have already lost.