研究StudyAComparativeStudyofWhitmanandFrost

论文导读：teacherforyears.AndFrost，too，onceworkedasafarmerforsixyears.Theseruralexperiencesbroughtthemclosetonatureanddevelopedtheirloveofnature，whichisreflectedinmanyoftheirpoems.Thirdly，bothofthemwrotepoemsinastylethatwasdifferentfromthatofotherpoetsoft
摘要：Whitman and Frost are both famous poets in American literar摘自：本科毕业论文结论www.7ctime.com
y history. They shared a great deal in common. This paper attempts to make a study of the two poets by means of comparing their similarities and differences.
关键词：Whitman； Frost； similarities； differences
中图分类号：G623.31
Walt Whitman and Robert Frost are both famous poets in American literary history. The former lived in the 19th century and the latter in the 20th century， but they shared a great deal in common. So this paper attempts to make a study of the two poets by means of comparing their similarities and differences.
I. Similarities. Although Whitman and Frost lived in two different times， they were similar in many ways. Firstly， both of them did various jobs and had rich life experiences， which are important to a poet. Whitman worked successively as an apprentice to a printer， a countryside schoolteacher and an editor of various newspapers.Frost worked early or late as a shoemaker， schoolteacher， farmer and college professor. Secondly， they both loved nature. Whitman was born in a village on Long Island and lived there till 1823 when he was four years old. After he had grown up， he served as a countryside school teacher for years. And Frost， too， once worked as a farmer for six years. These rural experiences brought them close to nature and developed their love of nature， which is reflected in many of their poems. Thirdly， both of them wrote poems in a style that was different from that of other poets of their time. Whitman， being the father of the free verse， wrote poems in the new poetic style while other poets in the 19th century wrote in traditional forms. In the 20th century， the free verse became more and more popular and the majority of poets accepted the style， but Frost held to the traditional forms by writing poems with beat and rhyme. Finally， they both wrote poems in simple language so that the general public could understand. As is known to all， Whitman’s most well—known collection of poems is Lees of Grass. What does the name mean？ It refers to common things and common people， because they are as common as lees of grass. The name implied that these poems were written about common people and for common people. And Frost， he learned from a 19th century British Romantic poet Wordsworth by adopting common terms to express feelings and depicting daily situations and events.
II. Differences. In spite of the similarities stated above， there exist m论文导读：earslaterthanWhitmanandenjoyedmuchmoreopportunitieoreducation.Third，differentstylesofwritingpoems.Thoughhelivedinatimefifty—fiveyearsearlierthanFrost，WhitmanwrotepoemsinthefreeversewhileFrostdidinthetraditionalforms.In1848，WhitmanpaidisittoNewOr
any differences between them as well. First， different family backgrounds. Whitman was born in a poor family. His father was a poor farmer in a village. But Frost’s father once worked as a school principal and then a journalist， and his grandfather bought him a farm in 1900. Second， different education backgrounds. Whitman received only elementary education and then dropped out because of poverty while Frost continued his schooling till he entered Harvard University， although he studied at Harvard for only two years and then had to stop due to his lung disease. Of course， Frost was born fifty—five years later than Whitman and enjoyed much more opportunities for education. Third， different styles of writing poems. Though he lived in a time fifty—five years earlier than Frost， Whitman wrote poems in the free verse while Frost did in the traditional forms. In 1848， Whitman paid a visit to New Orleans， Chicago and the Western Frontier. Soon after that he started to write poems in a new style he created ———— the free verse. But Frost， although he lived in the 20th century when most of the poets wrote in free verse， stuck to the traditional forms. He said that writing poems without beat and rhyme is just like playing tennis without the net and therefore rarely wrote in the free verse. Fourth， different treatments when alive. Although today Whitman and Frost are both considered to be great poets in the U.S. literary history， they enjoyed different treatments when they were alive. Whitman had to pay by himself for the publication of the first edition of Lees of Grass and none of the poem booklet was sold. All of them were given away as presents but soon received more critici than praise. In 1914， The two collections were forably commented. British critics’ praises caused the American publishing community’s attention. Three U.S. publishing companies quickly invited him for publication. Soon his poems were popular among American readers and became famous. Later， Frost won four Pulitzer Prizes and was invited to teach or research at universities. He was unofficially honored Poet Laureate in his late years. At his 75th and 85th birthdays the U.S. Senate made resolutions to pay homage to him. In 1961 he was invited to President JohnKennedy’s inauguration ceremony to read his poem specially written for this occasion， an honor that few poets had enjoyed.