Uni Life: "Not Heaving From My Ribb'd Breast Only" by Walt Whitman Analysis (Paper Length)

Hello! Here is the first installment to my "Uni Life" series where I share some of the more interesting papers I have composed for my own classes. I felt this one might interest you guys because (1) who does not love Walt Whitman, but also (2) because this poem is seldom analyzed independently and I wanted to show it a bit of love. Enjoy!

Breaking a Ribb’d Cage

            In Whitman’s “Not Heaving From My Ribb’d Breast Only”, the narrator calls upon his secret male lover like a muse- pleading for him to “exist” in these public songs, and not just the private spaces he has occupied in the past. He goes on to list all of the intimate and painful places his love has been relegated to simply because society will not allow homosexual love to exist openly. Whitman wrote this poem and many others based on his experiences and feelings as a gay man living in nineteenth century America. However, because of the intolerance towards same sex love at the time, his writings faced sharp criticism and censorship. It was not until later generations that his lyrical genius has truly been acknowledged, and his contributions to the queer community have helped countless questioning individuals navigate the same emotions he penned so eloquently all those years ago. In “Not Heaving From My Ribb’d Breast Only”, Whitman uses body imagery, an anaphora, and a turn to relay the pain of being forced to hide one’s true emotions in order to evoke compassion for the gay community.

            Walt Whitman is one of America’s most famous poets because his work closely reflects the country’s quintessential identity: odes to democracy, nature, comradery, and love. Living from 1819 to 1892, his poetry was heavily influenced by the relationships he saw during the civil war, his travels across the country, and his admiration of political figures like Abraham Lincoln (Poetry Foundation). To have an accurate discussion of Whitman, it is also vital to discuss his romantic and sexual attractions to other men- attractions that were abhorred as sins during the time in which he wrote (New England Historical Society). Laws protecting gays against discrimination were not introduced in America for about another hundred years, and, as a result, Whitman suffered greatly (University of Illinois). After publishing the first edition of Leaves of Grass, which hinted at homosexuality, he was fired from his job at the Department of Interior, sued by the city of Boston, sales were underwhelming, and he struggled to find publishers for subsequent editions (Poetry Foundation and New England Historical Society). This same book of Poetry, Leaves of Grass, was revised eight times during his life (Poetry Foundation). The third edition included a set of twelve poems referred to as the “Calamus” songs- the term “Calamus” referring to a story in Greek mythology about a great love between two men (Stacy). Not Heaving From My Ribb’d Breast Only is one of the first poems in this series, and marks a shift towards more candid, reflective discussions on his experiences as a gay man.

Whitman makes use of extensive body imagery to show that his feelings for his lover are primal, but also relegated to existing only inside the confines of his own body. Whitman pleads for his lover to exist: “Not in this beating and pounding at my temples and wrists; Not in the curious systole and diastole within” (Whitman). The word “only” is used in the first line, and implied in all of the following. This expresses the narrator’s exasperation that his love can exist “only” in these internal manifestations. Important about these lines is that they use imagery of the heart, the organ of love. To say there is evidence of his lover “In this beating and pounding at my temples and wrists” suggests he can feel him in his very pulse (Whitman). Pulse is constant, which suggests he must feel for his lover habitually. Furthermore, the fact that the pulse is described as “beating and pounding” suggests it is not only constant, but deafening, distracting, and all consuming (Whitman). The use of the words “beating and pounding” also serve a dual purpose as they can be considered quite sensual sounds (Whitman). In this sense, the narrator’s pulse could be quickening because he is thinking about being intimate with another man. Going on, when the narrator claims he feels his lover “In the curious systole and diastole within” he is suggesting that, whenever he thinks of or sees this man, his systolic and diastolic blood pressure become curious, increased (Whitman). Increased blood pressure is yet another bodily responses to love. The use of body imagery plays an important role because it proves to the reader his feelings of love and repression are so profound they have manifested into physical agony- into his very heart. The narrator is pleading for the audience to acknowledge this, and allow him to express his love outside of his body so he can be rid of this misery.

Whitman also makes use of an anaphora to emphasize the degree to which keeping his love a secret is torturing him. The first thirteen lines of the poem all begin with the phrase “Not in” and proceed to list all the of the places in which his love exists (Whitman). The effect is learning his feelings for this man exist: “Not in sighs at night, in rage, dissatisfied with myself”, “Not in my willful and savage soul’s volition”, “Not in the subtle nourishment of the air”, among other places (Whitman). The repetition of this sentence structure exacerbates the fact that this love exists in all of these very real, intimate and painful places. Simultaneously, it highlights through contrast that his feelings do not exist beyond these subtleties; not in any of the traditional ways a relationship does. Saying his love exists at “night” suggests it exists in the dark, when no one else can see (Whitman). Likewise, it exists only in his “savage soul’s volition”- the part of his soul so raw it is known only by himself (Whitman). Other diction aids in further propelling the tantalizing nature of the love: it is found in “sighs at night, in rage, dissatisfied” when he is tossing and turning in bed, or when he cannot breathe and only finds “subtle nourishment of the air” (Whitman). The latter can be interpreted in multiple ways: perhaps he cannot breathe because keeping his love a secret is literally weighing on his body, or perhaps his breathe simply becomes hitched when he thinks of being intimate with another man. Regardless, while the love of heterosexual couples is allowed to exist in public displays of affection such as holding hands and wedding rings, his is limited to “husky pantings through clench’d teeth” and “sounded and resounded words” (Whitman). Such phrases carry agonizing connotations and leave the readers thinking about how weary his existence is- if these are truly the only places his affection is allowed to be expressed. Instead of talking about the joys of adoration, it sounds as if he is listing tortures: he cannot breathe, he grinds his teeth to bear the pain of his secret, and is doomed to rehearsing everything he intends to say as to not let anything slip. Such a rhetorical device aids in conveying to the reader just how haunted he is by having to keep this part of himself a secret, a toll so taxing its’ spillover is felt in all other aspects of his life.

Whitman uses a turn the end of the poem to acknowledge that the narrator has expressed his love to his partner, but not in a way that is nearly substantial enough to sustain him. Due to the use of an anaphora, all of the lines prior to fourteen and fifteen begin with “Not in” (Whitman). These two lines, however, are the first to deviate- beginning with “Nor the” or “Nor in” respectfully (Whitman). Furthermore, every line break before these lines ends with a semicolon. These are the first lines to be introduced with a comma, and are followed by other veering forms of punctuation. The effect is that the lines: “Nor the other murmurs of these incredible dreams of everyday; Nor in the limbs and senses of my body, that take you and dismiss you continually” are distinct and emphasized (Whitman). Through stating his love has existed in the “incredible dreams of everyday” and the “limbs and senses of my body”, the narrator is admitting his love has existed in real physical intimacies with this man (Whitman). “Nor” could be interpreted as a more refined, gentler synonym to “Not”. Furthermore, a comma is perhaps a less curt version of a semicolon- it allows the lines to flow into one another rather than chopping them into individual clauses. The effect is that these lines read in a more intimate, delicate way. It is if he is entrusting the reader with the information that they have copulated- something he may have never revealed out loud before. It gives more importance to the fact that his love has existed in these physical acts; but the omnipresent “only” is still implied, “nor” is still merely a refined synonym for “not”, and a comma still makes these acts just another in a long list. It is as if the narrator is saying sex is important, but the act of sex alone is far from the victory the tonal shift leads readers to believe it would be. This sentiment is echoed in the last line, where the narrator cries: “Need I that you exist and show yourself, any more than in these songs” (Whitman). He craves the existence of his lover in a place even more intimate than any of these places- even more intimate than sex. For him, love is about being able to cast a shadow in a public arena, something homosexuals were unable to do. He yearns for it to be present in something as real, tangible and brave as published poetry.

In closing, Whitman’s “Not Heaving From My Ribb’d Breast Only” is a poem that expresses the inner turmoil homosexuals face trying to hide their emotions in hostile social climates. To accomplish this task, body imagery was used to express not only how innate love is- but how torturous it is to keep love hidden. An anaphora helped to emphasize how hiding a single part of one’s identity can have deleterious effects on their entire life. Lastly, a turn argued that nothing- not even sex or being allowed to be together briefly in private spaces- is a substitute for equal rights. Through showcasing the struggle of one narrator in this piece, Whitman intended to garner support for the gay community and elicit change for future generations.

Works Cited

Price, Kenneth and Folsom, Ed. “About Walt Whitman.” Modern American Poetry, University of Illonois, http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/s_z/whitman/bio.htm. Accessed 17 Sept. 2018.

Stevenson, Elizabeth. “Banned in Boston.” NEHS, New England Historical Society, 2013, http://www.newenglandhistoricalsociety.com/banned-boston-longer-man-stood-censors/. Accessed 17 September 2018.

“Walt Whitman.” Poetry Foundation, Poetry Foundation, https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/walt-whitman. Accessed 17 Sept. 2018

Whitman, Walt and Jason Stacy. Leaves of Grass, 1860 : The 150Th Anniversary Facsimile Edition. Iowa City : University of Iowa Press, 2009., 2009. Iowa Whitman series. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,sso&db=cat00991a&AN=sth.ocn694101264&site=eds-live&authtype=sso&custid=s8475574.