Allen Ginsbergs America Essay - 2026 Words

Allen Ginsbergs America Through a careful interpretation of A Defense of Poetry by Percy Bysshe Shelley and Democratic Vistas by Walt Whitman, one can gain a holistic sense of poetry, what it is and what it does, that can be applied to literary texts of all times. One can better understand Allen Ginsbergs America through an examination of the aforementioned texts as well. The literary merit of the poem is best recognized through Walt Whitmans Democratic Vistas, although Percy Bysshe Shelleys A Defense of Poetry also contributes some very critical parallels to the poem and its characteristics. Ginsbergs America was written in 1956, a time when beatniks and beat poetry were popular. The poem is indeed a reflection of the beat†¦show more content†¦So these poems are a series of experiments with the formal organization of the long line... I realized at the time that Whitmans form had rarely been further explored... (636). Therefore Allen Ginsberg went on to attempt this form that so inspired him and it is of no coincidence that Ginsbergs style is often analogous with Whitmans. With reference to Ginsbergs emulation of Walt Whitmans content, the Norton Anthology, Postmodern American Poetry, states that, Ginsberg proposed a return to the immediacy, egalitarianism and visionary ambitions of Blake and Whitman. (130). His poem America caters toward themes of democracy, something Whitmans poetry also does. Yet unlike Whitman, Ginsberg takes a more questioning stance on America and does not use his poem to praise the nation. The anthology also notes that, Walt Whitman had called for large conscious American Persons. Ginsberg responded by writing himself large on the American landscape while retaining an appealing modesty. (130). Allen Ginsberg not only responded to Whitmans call but also to his six line poem America with one of his own. Walt Whitmans call for large conscious American Persons appeared in essence in his unconventional essay, Democratic Vistas. In this essay, Whitman invites such attempts as Ginsbergs through the statement, Never was anything more wanted than, to-day,Show MoreRelatedAnalysis on Allen Ginsberg’s â€Å"America†1591 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"America† by Allen Ginsberg was written in a very trying time, right after World War II and at the beginning of the Cold War. This was a time of controversy and taking a stand for personal beliefs, and Ginsberg did just that. Although America has been known by many as â€Å"the best country† and the country most accepting of other ethnicities, Allen Ginsberg shows that Americans are not all accepting and as good as many people believe. 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