Whitman’s Transcendentalist Beliefs in His Poetry

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The central belief of the transcendentalists is that humans are incapable of comprehending complex ideas. They lack sufficient knowledge to comprehend because they are only conversant with the superficial aspects of life. Among these transcendentalists, Walt Whitman, along with his works flourish. His works are greatly affected by transcendental beliefs. He expresses these beliefs through the themes and issues addressed in his works.
Living close to nature is one of the fundamental beliefs of transcendentalism, which is present in much of Whitman's work. Nature, according to transcendentalists, is perfect and without flaws, therefore, humans do not need to alter or develop it. This belief is seen in his poem, “When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d.” Nature is used as a symbol of bereavement. The person appears to see his offering of the lilac blossom as a symbolic gift to the dead person, sometimes he offers a useless twig too. He ponders on the best ways to honor the dead person, but he still sticks with nature, to grieve and heal. The poem reads “I give you my sprig of lilac / Nor for you, for one alone, / Blossoms and branches green to coffins all I bring,…” (Whitman, 1865b,1). This belief is also seen in his other poem “A Noiseless Patient Spider.” He believes that the spider web is a symbol of connection. Through the webs, the spider is making connections to himself, and the world. Nature is used to build connections, and to find oneself. The poem reads, “Ceaselessly musing, venturing, throwing, seeking the spheres to connect them, / Till the bridge you will need be form’d, till the ductile anchor hold…” (Whitman, 2006).
The next transcendental belief is to practice intense individualism. Individualism is considered an essential transcendentalist value. Transcendentalists see an individual as pure, and they believe that purity is destroyed because of society. This notion means that a bad company will certainly destroy a good character. Transcendentalists believe that a person’s capability to think for himself brings out the best in him. Only t...