I HEAR America singing, the varied carols I hear;
Those of mechanics-each one singing his, as it should be, blithe and strong;
The carpenter singing his, as he measures his plank or beam,
The mason singing his, as he makes ready for work, or leaves off work;
The boatman singing what belongs to him in his boat-the deckhand singing on the steamboat
deck;
The shoemaker singing as he sits on his bench-the hatter singing as he stands;
The wood-cutter’s song-the ploughboy’s, on his way in the morning, or at the noon
intermission, or at sundown;
The delicious singing of the mother-or of the young wife at work-or of the girl sewing or
washing-Each singing what belongs to her, and to none else;
The day what belongs to the day-At night, the party of young fellows, robust, friendly,
Singing, with open mouths, their strong melodious songs.

Analysis, meaning and summary of Walt Whitman's poem I Hear America Singing.

73 Comments

  1. BLANCA says:

    IN “I HEAR AMERICA SINGING” I THINK THAT THIS POEM DOESN’T MAKE SENSE BECAUSE IT’S WRITTEN LIKE IN THE OLD FASHINED WAY WITH WEIRD WORDS.THE POET DIDN’T REALLY MAKE A POINT.

  2. MARIELA MARTINEZ says:

    I BELIEVE THAT ” I HEAR AMERICA SINGING’ IS ABOUT THE PEOPLE THAT WORK VERY HARD DOING THEIR JOB EVERY DAY, AND ARE HAPPY TO BE WORKING FOR GREAT COUNTRY LIKE AMERICA.

  3. Yery Aguilar says:

    I think that the poem “I hear America Singing” is a very good poem because it says that you shouldn’t hate what you do for a living.If you have to do it anyways might as well enjoy it.

  4. Desiree Garcia says:

    In the poem “I Hear America Singing Whitman makes me think that everybody here started slow and in the end they were the richest man, they loved working because they were americans, but if hw were alive today he would say that everything has changed. Now everybody doesn’t care,they not patriac because now it’s all about white people and they forgey evrybody else

  5. Marcellus Cox says:

    To me it talks about people singing about the country they love, what makes people happy about living in the u.s.a.
    Makes people want to sing about there prombles. Also makes everbody want to sing there troubles away.

  6. matt says:

    Hi, I am working on an assignment for english that is to compare the two poets, Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson. I am not just to state the obvious; Dickenson is confined and Whitman was out experiencing nature. I am supposed to find deeper meaning into the poetry and contrast and compare. If anyone has ideas to help me please, please e-mail me. musicguy88@hotmail.com

  7. Alex says:

    Whitman man a good and also boring man. This poem is really boring and also has a very good facts about the poeple. Look at America now! How is it! the poem has nothing antmore for someone to read cause it’s pointless!

  8. Rainbow says:

    When I read this poem, I find Whitman only thought of the people who did physical labour. Did they represent all Americans?

  9. darryl says:

    This poem is okay to me.I think it just means that everybody is important in America. Woopie!

  10. Leyla Rodriguez says:

    I liked this poem because it talks about all the hard woking people all over America. He says that if everybody had a song they would all be different. I also like it because he is talking about the importance of the common people.

  11. Maria Peralta says:

    In “I Hear America Singing” Whitman says that everyone has his or her own life style. He kind of says that we are all unique but Americans too.I think this poem is nice but really don’t like it .

  12. Elsi Reyes says:

    “I Hear America Singing” has a meaning for saying that everybody has there own style.”Each singing what belongs to her, and to none else.”Is saying that everybody is different.You don’t have to be someone your not to impress another person, but to just be yourself and not someone your not.

  13. Justin Sanders says:

    In “I Hear America Singing” the poet shows songs that different types of people form one song of America. It also shows that these types of poems are what America is known for. We are all different but we are Americans too.

  14. Jason Anthony says:

    ” I Hear America Singing”
    I think that it represents how he felt about America back then and how it was as happy as can be. These days though I don’t think the poem would quite fit with the way America is. I say that because the people of America are not always happy with what they do and most jobs don’t pay enough. Also our economy is all screwed up.

  15. Jonathan says:

    In the poem it says that each person is singing their own song. I think this poem represents that everyone is different in their own way and were not the same. It also probably represents that they were happy to be an American.

  16. Alexandria Williams says:

    Whitman shows that everyone lives by their own song and even though we are all individuals in our own right , we are brought together by our american song. He displays his views of patriotism and his idea of being an American.

  17. Samuel Salgado says:

    I find the poem ” I Hear America Singing” to be too patriotic. Yes the Americans were happy despite the low wages and hard labor, but they were not the only hard laborers. What about the Hispanics, Latinos, and even Asians? They work as hard,or, even harder than the Americans. ” I Hear America Singing” is too patriotic and nationalistic.

  18. kandyse says:

    The poem had a good meaning to it that connected to everyday life. I agree with most of the things stated in the poem. I think one of the most important statements in the poem was “Trust no Future, how’er pleasant! Let the dead past bury it’s dead! Act-act in the leaving Present! Heart within and God o’er head!” If you live trying to fix your past, your future will never be right.

  19. Debbie Valenta says:

    I wonder if Whitman were alive today, what songs would he hear from America? I’m afraid they may not be as happy.

  20. Jomel says:

    he shows they were happy to do their jobs despite the low wages and hard labor, they were just happy to be in America

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