I can see why Walt Whitman is often cited as the father of American poetry. His poems devote an abnormal amount of patriotic support for the American way, which I think is uncommon among poets. But there's are also an astounding array of insights on philosophy, the soul, and the nature of things. I didn't think he was all that arrogant, he was just indulging in the Unity of All, a transcendent state of mind that makes it prone to appearing superior to the misunderstood. Also uncommon among writers is his ability to engage the reader into his poems (awkwardly he'll even "grope" you through the pages a few times). I highly admire his more mystical poems, some of which are favorites of mine that I've highlighted in the Table of Contents:
Song Of Myself (A genuine classic. Really amazing. Everyone needs to read this.)
One Hour to Madness & Joy
Facing West from California's Shores
Out Of the Cradle Endlessly Rocking
Rise O Days from Your Fathomless Depths
Bivouac On a Mountain Side
Passage To India
Thou Orb Aloft Full-Dazzling
The Mystic Trumpeter
Pensive On Her Dead Gazing
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