O Captain! My Captain!

BY WALT WHITMAN

O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done,

The ship has weather’d every rack, the prize we sought is won,

The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting,

While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring;

But O heart! heart! heart!

O the bleeding drops of red,

Where on the deck my Captain lies,

Fallen cold and dead.

O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells;

Rise up—for you the flag is flung—for you the bugle trills,

For you bouquets and ribbon’d wreaths—for you the shores a-crowding,

For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning;

Here Captain! dear father!

This arm beneath your head!

It is some dream that on the deck,

You’ve fallen cold and dead.

My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still,

My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will,

The ship is anchor’d safe and sound, its voyage closed and done,

From fearful trip the victor ship comes in with object won;

Exult O shores, and ring O bells!

But I with mournful tread,

Walk the deck my Captain lies,

Fallen cold and dead.

About the poet
Walt Whitman was born on May 31, 1819, in West Hills, New York, the
second son of Walter Whitman, a house builder, and Louisa Van Velsor. The
family, which consisted of nine children, lived in Brooklyn and Long Island
in the 1820s and 1830s.

At the age of twelve, Whitman began to learn the printer’s trade, and fell in
love with the written word. Largely self-taught, he read voraciously,
becoming acquainted with the works of Homer, Dante, Shakespeare, and
the Bible.

Whitman worked as a printer in New York City until a devastating fire in the
printing district demolished the industry. In 1836, at the age of seventeen,
he began his career as teacher in the one-room school houses of Long
Island. He continued to teach until 1841, when he turned to journalism as a
full-time career.

He founded a weekly newspaper, Long-Islander, and later edited a number of

Brooklyn and New York papers. In 1848, Whitman left the Brooklyn Daily
Eagle to become editor of the New Orleans Crescent. It was in New Orleans
that he experienced firsthand the viciousness of slavery in the slave markets
of that city. On his return to Brooklyn in the fall of 1848, he founded a “free
soil” newspaper, the Brooklyn Freeman, and continued to develop the unique
style of poetry that later so astonished Ralph Waldo Emerson.

In 1855, Whitman took out a copyright on the first edition of Leaves of

Grass, which consisted of twelve untitled poems and a preface. He published
the volume himself, and sent a copy to Emerson in July of 1855. Whitman
released a second edition of the book in 1856, containing thirty-three
poems, a letter from Emerson praising the first edition, and a long open
letter by Whitman in response. During his lifetime, Whitman continued to
refine the volume, publishing several more editions of the book. Noted
Whitman scholar, M. Jimmie Killingsworth writes that “the ‘merge,' as
Whitman conceived it, is the tendency of the individual self to overcome
moral, psychological, and political boundaries. Thematically and poetically,
the notion dominates the three major poems of 1855: ‘I Sing the Body
Electric,' ‘The Sleepers,' and ‘Song of Myself,' all of which were ‘merged’ in
the first edition under the single title Leaves of Grass but were demarcated
by clear breaks in the text and the repetition of the title.”

At the outbreak of the Civil War, Whitman vowed to live a “purged” and
“cleansed” life. He worked as a freelance journalist and visited the wounded
at New York City–area hospitals. He then traveled to Washington, D. C. in
December 1862 to care for his brother who had been wounded in the war.
Overcome by the suffering of the many wounded in Washington, Whitman
decided to stay and work in the hospitals and stayed in the city for eleven
years. He took a job as a clerk for the Department of the Interior, which
ended when the Secretary of the Interior, James Harlan, discovered that
Whitman was the author of Leaves of Grass, which Harlan found offensive.
Harlan fired the poet.

Whitman struggled to support himself through most of his life. In

Washington, he lived on a clerk’s salary and modest royalties, and spent any
excess money, including gifts from friends, to buy supplies for the patients
he nursed. He had also been sending money to his widowed mother and an
invalid brother. From time to time writers both in the states and in England
sent him “purses” of money so that he could get by.

In the early 1870s, Whitman settled in Camden, New Jersey, where he had
come to visit his dying mother at his brother’s house. However, after
suffering a stroke, Whitman found it impossible to return to Washington. He
stayed with his brother until the 1882 publication of Leaves of Grass (James
R. Osgood) gave Whitman enough money to buy a home in Camden.

In the simple two-story clapboard house, Whitman spent his declining years
working on additions and revisions to a new edition of the book and
preparing his final volume of poems and prose, Good-Bye, My Fancy (David
McKay, 1891). After his death on March 26, 1892, Whitman was buried in a
tomb he designed and had built on a lot in Harleigh Cemetery.

Along with Emily Dickinson, he is considered one of America’s most

important poets.

Introduction
"O Captain! My Captain!" is an extended metaphor poem written in 1865 by Walt
Whitman, about the death of American president Abraham Lincoln. The poem was first
published in the pamphlet Sequel to Drum-Taps which assembled 18 poems regarding the
American Civil War, including another Lincoln elegy, "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard
Bloom'd". It was included in Whitman's comprehensive collection Leaves of Grass beginning
with its fourth edition published in 1867. The poem emphasizes or shows grief and sorrow.

The poem is an elegy to the speaker's recently deceased Captain, at once celebrating the safe
and successful return of their ship and mourning the loss of its great leader. In the first stanza,
the speaker expresses his relief that the ship has reached its home port at last and describes
hearing people cheering. Despite the celebrations on land and the successful voyage, the
speaker reveals that his Captain's dead body is lying on the deck. In the second stanza, the
speaker implores the Captain to "rise up and hear the bells," wishing the dead man could
witness the elation. Everyone adored the captain, and the speaker admits that his death feels
like a horrible dream. In the final stanza, the speaker juxtaposes his feelings of mourning and
pride.

Analysis
Walt Whitman composed the poem "O Captain! My Captain!" after Abraham
Lincoln's assassination in 1865. The poem is classified as an elegy or
mourning poem, and was written to honor Abraham Lincoln, the 16th
president of the United States. Walt Whitman was born in 1819 and died in
1892, and the American Civil War was the central event of his life. Whitman
was a staunch Unionist during the Civil War. He was initially indifferent to
Lincoln, but as the war pressed on, Whitman came to love the president,
though the two men never met.

The fallen captain in the poem refers to Abraham Lincoln, captain of the
ship that is the United States of America. The first line establishes the
poem's mood, one of relief that the Civil War has ended, "our fearful trip is
done." The next line references the ship, America, and how it has "weathered
every rack", meaning America has braved the tough storm of the Civil War,
and "the prize we sought", the preservation of the Union, "is won". The
following line expresses a mood of jubilation of the Union winning the war as
it says "the people all exulting;" however, the next line swiftly shifts the
mood when it talks of the grimness of the ship, and the darker side of the
war. Many lost their lives in the American Civil War, and although the prize
that was sought was won, the hearts still ache amidst the exultation of the
people. The repetition of heart in line five calls attention to the poet's vast
grief and heartache because the Captain has bled and lies still, cold, and
dead (lines six through eight). This is no doubt referencing the assassination
of Abraham Lincoln and Whitman's sorrow for the death of his idol.

In the second stanza the speaker again calls out to the captain to "rise up
and hear the bells," to join in the celebration of the end of the war. The next
three lines tell the captain to "rise up" and join in on the revelries because it
is for him. He is the reason for their merriment: "for you the flag is flung—
for you the bugle trills; for you bouquets and ribbon'd wreaths—for you the
shores a-crowding; for you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces
turning". Everyone is celebrating what Lincoln accomplished; the abolition of
slavery and the unification of the people after a fearful war. Again the poet
calls to the Captain as if he had never fallen. The poet does not wish to
acknowledge the death of his beloved Captain, and he even asks if it is some
dream (line 15) that the Captain has fallen "cold and dead".

The third stanza begins in a somber mood as the poet has finally accepted
that the Captain is dead and gone. Here there is vivid and darker imagery
such as "his lips are pale and still" and the reader can picture the dead
Captain lying there still and motionless with "no pulse nor will". In line 17,
the poet calls out "My Captain," and in line 18, the poet refers to the Captain
as "My father". This is referring to Lincoln as the father of the United States.
Lines 19 and 20 are concluding statements that summarize the entire poem.
The United States is "anchor'd safe and sound". It is safe now from war with
"its voyage closed and done, from fearful trip, the victor ship, comes in with
object won". In line 21, the examples of apostrophe, ordering "shores to
exult," and "bells to ring" are again referring to how the nation is celebrating
while "I with mournful tread, Walk the deck my Captain lies, Fallen cold and
dead".

Throughout the paper there is a distinct rhyme scheme, which is unusual

for Whitman. The rhyme scheme in "O Captain! My Captain!" is AABCDEFE,
GGHIJEKE, and LLMNOEPE for each stanza respectively. Two examples of
alliteration are in line 10 "flag is flung", as well as in line 19 "safe and
sound". Repetition occurs many times in this poem, for example "O Captain!
My Captain", and "fallen cold and dead".

"O Captain! My Captain!" became one of Whitman's most famous poems,

one that he would read at the end of his famous lecture about the Lincoln
assassination. Whitman became so identified with the poem that late in life
he remarked, "Damn My Captain...I'm almost sorry I ever wrote the poem."

Explanation

Walt Whitman composed the poem "O Captain! My Captain!" after Abraham
Lincoln's assassination in 1865. The poem is classified as an elegy or
mourning poem, and was written to honor Abraham Lincoln, the 16th
president of the United States. Walt Whitman was born in 1819 and died in
1892, and the American Civil War was the central event of his life. Whitman
was a staunch Unionist during the Civil War. He was initially indifferent to
Lincoln, but as the war pressed on, Whitman came to love the president,
though the two men never met.[1]
The fallen captain in the poem refers to Abraham Lincoln, captain of the
ship that is the United States of America. The first line establishes the
poem's mood, one of relief that the Civil War has ended, "our fearful trip is
done." The next line references the ship, America, and how it has "weathered
every rack", meaning America has braved the tough storm of the Civil War,
and "the prize we sought", the preservation of the Union, "is won". The
following line expresses a mood of jubilation of the Union winning the war as
it says "the people all exulting;" however, the next line swiftly shifts the
mood when it talks of the grimness of the ship, and the darker side of the
war. Many lost their lives in the American Civil War, and although the prize
that was sought was won, the hearts still ache amidst the exultation of the
people. The repetition of heart in line five calls attention to the poet's vast
grief and heartache because the Captain has bled and lies still, cold, and
dead (lines six through eight). This is no doubt referencing the assassination
of Abraham Lincoln and Whitman's sorrow for the death of his idol.

In the second stanza the speaker again calls out to the captain to "rise up
and hear the bells," to join in the celebration of the end of the war. The next
three lines tell the captain to "rise up" and join in on the revelries because it
is for him. He is the reason for their merriment: "for you the flag is flung—
for you the bugle trills; for you bouquets and ribbon'd wreaths—for you the
shores a-crowding; for you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces
turning". Everyone is celebrating what Lincoln accomplished; the abolition of
slavery and the unification of the people after a fearful war. Again the poet
calls to the Captain as if he had never fallen. The poet does not wish to
acknowledge the death of his beloved Captain, and he even asks if it is some
dream (line 15) that the Captain has fallen "cold and dead".

The third stanza begins in a somber mood as the poet has finally accepted
that the Captain is dead and gone. Here there is vivid and darker imagery
such as "his lips are pale and still" and the reader can picture the dead
Captain lying there still and motionless with "no pulse nor will". In line 17,
the poet calls out "My Captain," and in line 18, the poet refers to the Captain
as "My father". This is referring to Lincoln as the father of the United States.
Lines 19 and 20 are concluding statements that summarize the entire poem.
The United States is "anchor'd safe and sound". It is safe now from war with
"its voyage closed and done, from fearful trip, the victor ship, comes in with
object won". In line 21, the examples of apostrophe, ordering "shores to
exult," and "bells to ring" are again referring to how the nation is celebrating
while "I with mournful tread, Walk the deck my Captain lies, Fallen cold and
dead".

Throughout the paper there is a distinct rhyme scheme, which is unusual

for Whitman. The rhyme scheme in "O Captain! My Captain!" is AABCDEFE,
GGHIJEKE, and LLMNOEPE for each stanza respectively. Two examples of
alliteration are in line 10 "flag is flung", as well as in line 19 "safe and
sound". Repetition occurs many times in this poem, for example "O Captain!
My Captain", and "fallen cold and dead".

"O Captain! My Captain!" became one of Whitman's most famous poems,

one that he would read at the end of his famous lecture about the Lincoln
assassination. Whitman became so identified with the poem that late in life
he remarked, "Damn My Captain...I'm almost sorry I ever wrote the poem."