The Blue Book and the 1867 Version

Looking at the Blue Book, it is clear how much Whitman is gathering and slashing and grappling.

In general, I noticed that the places with a lot of revision activity where often the places where Whitman is utilizing listing and/or litanies.  Somehow this makes sense-- if you're going to tighten up a poem, places full of repetition are more likely to have extra stuff and room for new bits than phrases that stand alone.

Here's an example: on page 44 of the Blue Book (page 55 of the website), Whitman is engaging in both listing (phrases beginning in "A[noun]") and the repetition of phrases such as "At home" or "Comrade" to begin lines.  Litany and listing.  And this page is covered in scribbles!  Some are not easy to read, but it is clear that he thought some of the items in his list to be extraneous and others impersonal or dull. 

A wonderful revision emerges:  Whitman changed, "Of every hue, trade, rank, caste, and religion / Not merely of the New World but of Africa, Europe, Asia-- a wandering savage, / A farmer, mechanic, artist, gentleman, sailor, lover, quaker..." and so on TO "Of every hue and caste am I.  Of every rank / A farmer, mechanic, artist, gentleman, sailor, quaker..." etc.  Much less repetitive, maybe even less offensive, and definitely more powerful.  Sometimes cutting the fat helps, especially later in the revision process.

Here we are really seeing the power of Whitman's meaning emerging through the layers of his poem as framed by time.