Spoken Word

23 Feb 2023

Spoken Word: Episode 3: Part 3: I Sing The Body Electric (1)

Literature, Performing Arts, Philosophy, Spoken Word

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Spoken Word: Episode 3: Part 3: I Sing The Body Electric (1)

James recites the first eight sections of the Walt Whitman poem, ‘I Sing the Body Electric’.

The poem is divided into nine sections, each celebrating a different aspect of human physicality.

Like the other poems in the edition, ‘I Sing the Body Electric’ also appeared without a title. After revision, it appeared as “Poem of the Body” in the 1856 edition. It appeared as a complete poem of nine sections with the title “I Sing the Body Electric” only in the 1867 edition, as part of the “Children of Adam” sequence. Whitman celebrates the glories of existence, explores the body as a whole and in its parts, and the interconnectedness of body and soul, and interconnectedness of all irrespective of their race.

He also tries to bridge the gap between body and soul. He lists out several ‘human bodies’ of people of different professions and age groups beyond ethnicity. As the title suggests, he brings out the uniqueness of different body structures in away making it alive. In the first section of the poem, the poet states the similarities between the body and soul, arguing that the body doesn’t corrupt the soul. In the next section, he discusses the various ways which make the body perfect. Further, he defines a “well-made man,” especially in terms of his body. Besides, he explores bodies belonging to babies, girls, mothers, swimmers, rowers, horsemen, and laborers.

Whitman also recalls when he visited the farmer with five sons, “full of vigor, calmness, the beauty of person” even at the age of eighty. Further, he comments on the wonderful feeling gained by a person who is surrounded by beautiful human bodies. As the poem progresses, he also talks about the similarities and dissimilarities of the female and the male body. He further talks about the bodies of male and female sales at auction and expresses his condemnation of slavery. Here presented an underlining note that all bodies are equally sacred, despite the gender and race for everyone has the same red blood running through their veins. In the final section, Whitman lists out all characteristics of the human body that he admires and concludes that these features are not only markers of the human body, but that the body’s “parts and poems” also represent the soul.

In this poem, Whitman engages with some of his most common and celebrated themes. At the time he wrote this poem, many readers were shocked and outraged by the sensuality that he included within it. He freely celebrated themes of sexuality, the body, and the self. Throughout the poem, readers will find snapshots of the poet’s body and his experience of his body. He makes a connection between his physical and spiritual experiences, alluding to the interconnectivity of the human soul and human physical experience. Bodies come in many forms, the poet suggests, and they should all be celebrated and enjoyed. Everyone, no matter who they are, has the same blood running through their veins. This is something to cherish, not ignore.

As a gay man Whitlam is celebrating the beauty of all of us. The body beautiful is also a very gnostic approach to the human-form. Gnosticism proclaims, ‘the human form divine’. William Blake in the Marriage of Heaven and Hell proclaims; “The nakedness of woman is the glory of God”.

Sources: Harold Bloom.

Penguin.

Norton Poetry Classics.