Dear Sir,
I am not blind to the worth of the wonderful gift of “Leaves of Grass.” I find it the most extraordinary piece of wit and wisdom that America has yet contributed.
I am very happy in reading it, as great power makes us happy. It meets the demand I am always making of what seemed the sterile and stingy nature, as if too much handiwork, or too much lymph in the temperament, were making our western wits fat and mean.
I give you joy of your free and brave thought. I have great joy in it. I find incomparable things said incomparably well, as they must be. I find the courage of treatment which so delights us, and which large perception only can inspire.
I greet you at the beginning of a great career, which yet must have had a long foreground somewhere, for such a start. I rubbed my eyes a little, to see if this sunbeam were no illusion; but the solid sense of the book is a sober certainty. It has the best merits, namely, of fortifying and encouraging.
About This Letter
Historical Context
Written after Emerson read the first edition of 'Leaves of Grass' in 1855. This letter of praise from America's leading intellectual gave Whitman crucial early recognition.
Significance
This letter launched Whitman's career by providing validation from America's most respected literary figure. Whitman controversially used Emerson's praise in promoting later editions.
About Ralph Waldo Emerson
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) was the leading figure of American transcendentalism, whose essays and philosophy profoundly influenced American thought and literature.
About Walt Whitman
Walt Whitman (1819-1892) was an American poet whose 'Leaves of Grass' revolutionized American poetry with its free verse and celebration of democracy and individualism.
Additional Resources
- Walt Whitman Archive Comprehensive digital archive of Whitman materials
- Emerson Texts Online Complete works and correspondence of Emerson