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"I understand the large hearts of heroes"

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"I understand the large hearts of heroes"

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I understand the large hearts of heroes, The courage of present times and all times, How the skipper saw the crowded and rudderless wreck of the steam-ship, and Death chasing it up and down the storm, How he knuckled tight and gave not back an inch, and was faithful of days and faithful of nights, And chalk'd in large letters on a board, Be of good cheer, we will not desert you; How he follow'd with them and tack'd with them three days and would not give it up, How he saved the drifting company at last, How the lank loose-gown'd women look'd when boated from the side of their prepared graves, How the silent old-faced infants and the lifted sick, and the sharp-lipp'd unshaved men; All this I swallow, it tastes good, I like it well, it becomes mine, I am the man, I suffer'd, I was there. The disdain and calmness of martyrs, The mother of old, condemn'd for a witch, burnt with dry wood, her children gazing on, The hounded slave that flags in the race, leans by the fence, blowing, cover'd with sweat, The twinges that sting like needles his legs and neck, the murderous buckshot and the bullets, All these I feel or am. I am the hounded slave, I wince at the bite of the dogs, Hell and despair are upon me, crack and again crack the marksmen, I clutch the rails of the fence, my gore dribs, thinn'd with the ooze of my skin, I fall on the weeds and stones, The riders spur their unwilling horses, haul close, Taunt my dizzy ears and beat me violently over the head with whip-stocks. Agonies are one of my changes of garments, I do not ask the wounded person how he feels, I myself become the wounded person, My hurts turn livid upon me as I lean on a cane and observe. I am the mash'd fireman with breast-bone broken, Tumbling walls buried me in their debris, Heat and smoke I inspired, I heard the yelling shouts of my comrades, I heard the distant click of their picks and shovels, They have clear'd the beams away, they tenderly lift me forth. I lie in the night air in my red shirt, the pervading hush is for my sake, Painless after all I lie exhausted but not so unhappy, White and beautiful are the faces around me, the heads are bared of their fire-caps, The kneeling crowd fades with the light of the torches. Distant and dead resuscitate, They show as the dial or move as the hands of me, I am the clock myself. I am an old artillerist, I tell of my fort's bombardment, I am there again. Again the long roll of the drummers, Again the attacking cannon, mortars, Again to my listening ears the cannon responsive. I take part, I see and hear the whole, The cries, curses, roar, the plaudits for well-aim'd shots, The ambulanza slowly passing trailing its red drip, Workmen searching after damages, making indispensable repairs, The fall of grenades through the rent roof, the fan-shaped explosion, The whizz of limbs, heads, stone, wood, iron, high in the air. Again gurgles the mouth of my dying general, he furiously waves with his hand, He gasps through the clot Mind not me—mind—the entrenchments.

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 1. What is the poem’s tone? Which words reveal this tone? Is the poem ironic?

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 1. What is the poem’s tone? Which words reveal this tone? Is the poem ironic?

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The poem's tone is courageous and strong. Throughout the story the author talks a lot about the different heroes in the world. He started with, "how the skipper saw the crowed rudderless week of the steam-ship, and death chasing it up and down the storm, How he knuckled high and gave not back an inch, and was faithful of days and faithful of nights." He is showing how the skipper was struggling facing death but was faithful and survived. He goes one to talk about, "the mother of old, condemns for a witch-" and her journey through the witch trials and how she lived and her heroic journey. Talking about a Fireman and a old artillerist and how there strength was amazing and remembered throughout history.  - Megan

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5. Are there any symbols? What do they mean? Are they universal symbols or do they arise from the context of this poem?

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5. Are there any symbols? What do they mean? Are they universal symbols or do they arise from the context of this poem?

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The author uses the heart of the heroes as a big symbol, this is showing that the heart of the hero is even more then just the  heroic acts of the person. They are pushing through the struggles that they encounter and helping other while dealing with all the problems that come there way. They struggle with facing death and they have faith and are strong as they are in lots of pain and push through until they make it. The author uses this symbol for every person that he talks about in his poem, they all have different stories but they all connect through their hearts and there strength of their hearts. - Megan

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6. What is the theme (the central idea) of this poem? Can you state it in a single sentence? Elaborate on your idea.

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6. What is the theme (the central idea) of this poem? Can you state it in a single sentence? Elaborate on your idea.

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By: Sylva

The theme of this poem is that heroic people have big hearts and their compassion drives them to put others' lives first before their own. As evidenced by the text, "I understand the large hearts of heroes, The courage of present times and all times, ...the skipper...would not give it up, How he saved the drifting company at last"(page 520). In these couple of verses, Whitman explains how a captain of a ship, saves the lives of the passengers among the ship that was drifting.  It is the courage and bravery in the heroes' hearts, like the captain of the ship, that drives them to save lives and be the ones to help those in need and in danger. His heart of compassion and love for the passengers aboard is what drew him to quickly come up with a plan to stabilize the drifting ship.

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 3. What images does the poet use? How do the images relate to one another? Do these images form a unified pattern (a motif) throughout the poem?

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 3. What images does the poet use? How do the images relate to one another? Do these images form a unified pattern (a motif) throughout the poem?

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By: Sylva
The poet uses several images throughout the poem that reflect the theme of courageous heroes in our world. As evidenced by the text, "I am the mash'd fireman with breast-bone broken, Tumbling walls buried me in their debris, Heat and smoke I inspired, I heard the yelling shouts of my comrades" (page 522). These verses of the poem illustrate an image of a fearless firefighter, risking his life for his fellow community members among the heat of the flames. The verse describes how the fireman is "mash'd" beneath the collapsed building, smoke, debris, and burning heat. I can picture a fireman being stuck under the weight of the building and hearing the "clicking" noises of the metal shovel as they were trying to dig him out. Whitman also presents an image of a hard-working and fatigued slave. As evidenced by the text, "The hounded slave that flags in the race, leans by the fence, blowing, cover'd with sweat, The twinges that sting like needles his legs and neck, the murderous buckshot and the bullets" (page 520). This creates an image in the reader's head of an exhausted slave who represents a hero because he is working for the wellness of the community and the means of production like food.