Like the other response states, the almost infinite scenes Whitman describes in section 33 of this poem are not individually significant. However, each is part of a unified whole. Whitman is trying to convey the universality of existence, regardless if one is animal or man, rich or poor, fortunate or unfortunate.
The repetition of the word “pleas’d” in the middle part of the section indicates Whitman’s affinity for everyone and everything. He uses a series of antitheses in these lines to illustrate his equal admiration for extreme opposites.
There is a shift beginning with the line “I understand the large hearts of heroes,” as Whitman turns his focus to imagining himself in various roles, including that of a drowned...
(The entire section contains 2 answers and 368 words.)
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