The Love and Friendship in Walt Whitman's "Children of Adam" and "Calamus"

On a grand scale it is the individual and his interaction with others which will form the foundation for the character and potency of a democratic nation of individuals, a "great moral and religious civilization." The purpose of this paper is to examine Whitman's concept of the individual-one who is limitless, powerful, and divine-and to explore the individual's relations with others, seen in healthy and inspiring love and friendship. This study focuses on "Children of Adam" and "Calamus" sections from Leaves of Grass. In the "Children of Adam" poems, Whitman outlines what he terms "amative love" and the divine significance present in male-female relationships. Whitman posits the idea that physical love and procreation are spiritually fulfilling and regenerative. Physical union is shown as an avenue to realization of spiritual and mystical union with the universe. To cultivate the "most friendly nation" on earth and to lay the groundwork for the "great moral and religious civilization," Whitman starts with the "simple separate person." In "Children of Adam" he describes the ideal relationship between a man and woman. In "Calamus" he focuses on the love of a man for his friend. His message is quite clear: Democracy grows and flourishes through the combination of the healthy, individual elements it contains.