Tackling Poetry on the EOG

Follow these steps:

•Read the poem straight through•Then ask yourself…what is this mainly

about?

Song of myself—Walt WitmanI celebrate myself, and sing myselfAnd what I assume you shall assume,For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you

I loaf and invite my soul,I lean and loaf at my ease observing a spear of summer grass.

My toungue, every atom of my blood, formed from this soil, this air,

Born here of parents born from parents the same, and their parents the same

I, now thirty seven years old in perfect health begin,Hoping to cease not till death.

What is this poem mostly about?

Then

•Read again with pencil in hand•Note your interpretations

Song of myself—Walt WhitmanI celebrate myself, and sing myselfAnd what I assume you shall assume,For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you

I loaf and invite my soul,I lean and loaf at my ease observing a spear of summer grass.

My tongue, every atom of my blood, formed from this soil, this air,

Born here of parents born from parents the same, and their parents the same

I, now thirty seven years old in perfect health begin,Hoping to cease not till death.

Then, answer the questions, marking off choices you know are wrong

•According to the poem, what does the narrator seem to enjoy?

a. eating b. relaxing c. gardening d. parenting

Refer back to the poem as needed.•At the end of the poem, what does the

speaker suggest about himself? a. he misses his family b. he wants to find a job c. he has only a short time to live d. he is starting on a new path in life.

My tongue, every atom of my blood, formed from this soil, this air,Born here of parents born from parents the same, and their parents the sameI, now thirty seven years old in perfect health begin,Hoping to cease not till death.