Walt Whitman's poem, "Look Down Fair Moon," is actually one poem written by him that I genuinely like and respect. Although it is only four lines long, the true meaning and power behind the words is incredible. Whitman writes of the moon shining down over the dead bodies of men lost in war, and displays it as eerie and haunting yet peaceful at the same time (Huff). How he is able to create this effect is truly incredible as a simple poet; while usually I disregard poets who write merely four lines of literature and call it a masterpiece, Whitman is really able to create emotion and draw in a reader's eye in this poem. For example, he speaks of the moon shining over the bodies of the dead (Whitman). Instead of simply stating just this, he uses descriptions that are incredibly appealing to the senses. He describes the faces of the men as "ghastly," "swollen," and "purple" (Whitman). By using descriptions such as these, the reader is able to picture the scenario in his or her head, therefore creating a stronger image of the story being told and developing empathy and interest in the characters. This is a great accomplishment to have achieved as an author, and it definitely makes this poem much more noteworthy and memorable than many of his previous works.
Whitman does reveals, of course, his idea of spirituality in the poem. He writes of the nimbus clouds that will pour down on the faces of the dead (Whitman). When writing this, he is referring to a rain cloud, or a nimbus cloud, that will rain over the bodies of the dead (Huff). Rain is said to purify things; when he speaks of the rain pouring over them, he is referring to God purifying their bodies as they return to nature and their spirits go to God for their final judgment (Huff). Whitman was a strong believer in God, and this is obviously portrayed throughout this poem as he wishes for the bodies of the dead to be purified in order for them to return to God peacefully and washed of sin. I think it was really creative in the way he wrote this; instead of being really basic, blunt, and simple like he usually is, Whitman was creative and actually poetic for once (Whitman). Like I said, this really is the first poem by Whitman that I found to actually sound educated, intellectual, knowledgeable, and sane. It did not rant, line after line, about sex, or about homosexuality, and then try to link it all back to spirituality in some crazy hypocritical, contradicting way, like the style in which he portrayed in many previous poems. Instead, he is truly exhibiting and honest understanding of spirituality and is showing empathy and acknowledgment on someone other than himself, which I believe is a big step (Whitman). That is one thing that annoys me to no end about Whitman. He constantly writes about how he is right about everything and everyone else is wrong; while I believe it is necessary to be confident as a poet, it is awful to be arrogant and biased. That is why I have no respect for him as a poet. However, he did prove me wrong in this one poem, "Look Down Fair Moon," as Whitman not only portrays emotions towards someone other than himself or a lover, he does so in a way that is both poetic and beautiful (Whitman).
WORKS CITED
Huff, Randall. "'Look Down Fair Moon'." The Facts On File Companion to American Poetry, vol. 1. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2007. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= CPAP0247&SingleRecord=True (accessed March 8, 2011).
Whitman, Walt. "Look Down Fair Moon." Leaves of Grass (1891-1892). The Whitman Archive. Ed Folsom & Kenneth M. Price, 1995. Web. 8 Mar. 2011.
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