Poetry Analysis: "I Hear America Singing" by Walt Whitman

Where are the young children? "I Hear America Singing", by Walt Whitman.

Walt Whitman (1819-1892) wrote this wonderful piece of poetry, in free verse.

Reading through it, one must ask where are the children, who should be singing too?

"I Hear America Singing"

I hear America singing, the varied carols I hear;
Those of mechanics - each one singing his, as it should be, blithe and strong;
The carpenter singing his, as he measures his plank or beam,
The mason singing his, as he makes ready for work, or leaves off work;
The boatman singing what belongs to him in his boat - the deckhand singing on the steamboat deck;
The shoemaker singing as he sits on his bench - the hatter singing as he stands;
The wood-cutter's song - the ploughboy's, on his way in the morning, or at the noon intermission, or at sundown;
The delicious singing of the mother - or of the young wife at work - or of the girl sewing or washing Each singing what belongs to her, and to none else;
The day what belongs to the day - At night, the party of young fellows, robust, friendly,
Singing, with open mouths, their strong melodious songs." (1)

Where are the young children, who should be singing too?

In total, there is only one reference to a girl, but she is one who is sewing or washing, so obviously this is not a young child. Why are there no other children singing? Is it because this is only about the singing and the songs of people who are old enough to work?

Where are they singing?

It would appear that Whitman cannot be hearing all of these people singing the same song or singing, at the same time. They are singing individually and collectively, in Whitman's soul. Each one must have his or her individual soul song related to his or her own task.

Why are they singing?

When one reads through this poem, it appears that each one is singing, because he or she is enjoying his or her work. The song, in each instance, appears to be the song that is appropriate for that particular kind of employment.

But, is there something else that is happening?

Is this a song of freedom, in some sense, where America, as a whole, has the freedom to sing? Does this have something to do with independence? Quite possibly.

What are they celebrating?

Perhaps the word, carol gives us a clue, as to what is really happening.

The word carol dates back to the fourteenth century, where it can mean a song of joy or mirth. This is one possibility. It is used to depict an old, round dance with singing, which is probably not the context in which it is used here.

Are there other possibilities? The word carol is used to refer to Christmas carols, particularly when there is a group of people who go out and sing together for others. (2) 

It does not appear to be used this context, either. The season may be Christmas and in that context, there could be the singing of carols, regardless of one's place of employment. It could be in terms of the celebration of the birth of the Christ child, but He is not mentioned here, either.

It appears that there are many songs, with many different voices, the voices of people who are working with the exception of the young men, singing at an evening party. They are the only ones who are singing outside of the context of work.

One marvels at the diversity of occupations, which Whitman has singled out for recognition. It is not the highly educated academics like the ministers, doctors or lawyers, who are singing; neither is it the wealthy or the famous people of America, who Whitman hears. They are all distinct in their absence. So are the paupers and the kings.

Where are the young children?

Does Whitman have a distinct absence of children's voices singing in his soul or is he writing a piece of poetry, about only the common laborer?

Singing at work, reveals one's degree of satisfaction.

There are no sounds of sorrow and it appears that there is no sense of mourning in the poem, which is a good thing. There does not appear to be either pain or suffering. These are not songs of woe or victory songs of war.

One might come to the conclusion that Whitman's soul is simply singing, subjectively or inwardly and the songs that he appears to be singing, in his soul are depicted in his unique poetry. He has tapped into the joy of work and is projecting it into his writing.

Perhaps his own memoirs or reflections will reveal that even as a child, he was fascinated by the singing of the common, everyday people, who were happy at their work. Maybe this included his parents or other family members.

These are not songs of oppression or those of chain gangs. There is barely a reference to anyone singing while working in a field, other than one ploughboy, who may be relatively young, but he is obviously old enough to work.

Quite possibly, these are all of the people who Whitman remembers as singing at work, during his entire lifetime. Maybe these are only a few of them. Somehow, he categorizes all of them under the word America, which he should.

Whitman refers to the delicious singing of the mother, probably his own mother, perhaps while baking a pie. Maybe he is the child, the only one who heard her singing, at that moment in time. Maybe that is one of the reasons why there are no other references to children singing.

It appears that even the very day itself, is singing what belongs to the day. Each person, each occupation, has a unique song, not sung by anyone else. These songs change over time.

Taking ownership of singing and of songs is part of America, its heritage and culture. Inwardly, Whitman is celebrating his own song, "I Hear America Singing," even as he pens it into free verse poetry. Whitman is enjoying his work and singing his song.

Sometimes, what is absent or missing, is just as significant as what is present, in a piece of poetry. Note that this was not a day of child labor; nor was it an era of sweat shops. Hardly does this depict oppression, with respect to any of these workers portrayed by Whitman.

Could our era state the same thing?

The fact that the children are not singing here, might be a good thing, because it is an accurate representation of what history is telling us about Whitman's era and the workers of that time, including the young children, who are distinctly absent. A child's place is with its mother. 

(1) http://www.bartleby.com/142/91.html

(2) Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, Inc., Springfield MA, 1983