Routine

   Canto 15 of “Song of Myself” by Walt Whitman is a list of mundane, human activities performed by the different people in society. In previous passages, Whitman suggests that the only way for one’s soul to shine is through disassociation from the human side of life. Canto 15 points out how human everyone is; it is simply routine. Whitman doesn’t mention much about religion or spirituality in this Canto, indicating that people have been too preoccupied with being a human to focus on their own spirituality. The only thing he mentions actually downplays the role of religion in people’s lives: “The child is baptized, the convert is making his first professions.” Discreetly, Whitman bashes organized religion during his time. To him , the tradition of baptizing babies has lost all meaning. They’re too young to understand or appreciate what’s happening; it’s not like they know anything about the religion or even want to be a part of it. Instead, Whitman wants these babies to grow up and choose spirituality on their own, and he wants them to detach from their human side and find themselves through nature.

Author: Yuhan Wang