Read and analyze "When I heard the Learn'd Astronomer" by Walt Whitman. What Romantic ideas does it express, and how does the structure of the poem reinforce the meaning?

When I heard the learn'd astronomer;

When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns before me;

When I was shown the charts and the diagrams, to add, divide, and measure them;

When I, sitting, heard the astronomer, where he lectured with much applause in the lecture-room,

How soon, unaccountable, I became tired and sick;

Till rising and gliding out, I wander'd off by myself,

mystical moist night-air, and from time to time,

Look'd up in perfect silence at the stars.

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English

Leon Tucker

19 March, 06:49

Read and analyze "When I heard the Learn'd Astronomer" by Walt Whitman. What Romantic ideas does it express, and how does the structure of the poem reinforce the meaning?

When I heard the learn'd astronomer;

When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns before me;

When I was shown the charts and the diagrams, to add, divide, and measure them;

When I, sitting, heard the astronomer, where he lectured with much applause in the lecture-room,

How soon, unaccountable, I became tired and sick;

Till rising and gliding out, I wander'd off by myself,

mystical moist night-air, and from time to time,

Look'd up in perfect silence at the stars.

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Answers (1)

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Melanie Walsh · Answer 1

He shows that just being educated and knowing how things work does not mean that you truly and deeply understand and enjoy nature. Scientific explanations remove the magic that nature can have and explaining a star can never be as great as observing stars during a night. That is what Whitman is trying to say.