As I Ebb'D With The Ocean Of Life Comments

This is one of Whitman's greatest shorter poems. It is one of his most modern works and is a poem continuously referenced as an influence by contemporary poets as diverse as Galway Kinnel and Frank Bidart. Rarely do we see Whitman in such a state of profound doubt and psychological struggle. It also teaches very well. Balancing it with the ending of Song of Myself shows just how far this poet has traveled away from the bluster of that work in just a few short years. His own felt-rejection from the literary community and the brutal realities of the civil war are clearly playing upon his mind here. Powerful stuff.