Section+7

In this section, Whitman explains that as a part of nature, everyone is connected to the over-soul, and that death is just as precious as life. In the first two stanzas, the speaker's confident tone reveals his belief in the continuous cycle of life. He asks, “Has any one supposed it lucky to be born” (131)? The speaker expands upon his positive view of death from section six by discussing the value of life, but says that it is also "just as lucky to die, and I know it” (132). In section six, he learns that men's souls are eternally displayed in nature, suggesting that this newfound certainty in the benefits of death results from his appreciation of the continous progression of life. He knows that death is simply the next step in his journey, making it as valuable as life itself. As a result, he values “death with the dying and birth with the new-wash’d babe” (133) because each of these moments contributes equally to life's cycle as they are the beginning and end of everything. To the speaker, a terminally ill patient is just as precious as a baby coming into pediatrics, since both are simply passing from one part of life to the next. He believes in the sanctity of death because he is “not contain’d between [his] hat and boots” (133), meaning he is not restricted to his body, and the death of this skin cannot end his existence. The speaker's body will eventually be destroyed, but his soul will live on forever. He knows that the same concept applies to the person who has just passed away, and that he is lucky to continue to the next part of nature's cycle.

In stanzas two and three, the speaker's use of repetition details his certainty in every being's equal contribution to the over-soul and the constant progression of all life. He describes “manifold objects, no two alike and everyone good” (134). Although each object is different, they are all good because each makes up a unique part of the over-soul. Using the word "good" to describe “the earth, ...the stars, ... and their adjuncts”(135) illuminates their unity as each is part of the same universal spirituality, but still maintains its individuality. Each object makes up a unique part of the oversoul, so each is equally good in its own way. As Whitman explores all of the aspects of nature and their goodness, he emphasizes the sanctity of nature and its overall contribution to the over-soul. The speaker again uses “I know," but now claims that “they do not know" (138), implying that man's soul lives on regardless of his recognition of it. Despite society's depiction of life as a single event, the speaker affirms it as a constant cycle. All parts of life are good because they are simply the next step in an ongoing journey; death can never destroy a man's soul. Instead, death is only a small part of a process that leads to a greater fullfillment as man becomes a part of nature through death.

The speaker's diction in stanzas three through five suggests the equality of all men and the value each life holds. He does not claim to be “an earth nor an adjunct of an earth”, but a “mate and companion of people, all just as immortal and fathomless as myself” (136-37). The phrase "just as immortal and fathomless as myself" (137) is similar in structure to that in Whitman's poem "Reconciliation" as he says "a man divine as myself is dead" (4). Also, this paradox seems to contradict his belief in the sanctity of death since he now claims that all men are immortal, but actually reveals that although death constitutes his passing from this world, his soul will live on in the next. The speaker's existence is not limited to his body; his soul lasts for eternity, making him immortal. Although this suggests a superiority to the human race, he calls himself a "companion" to stress that all men are his brothers and to extend his revalation to apply to everyone through the external existence of their souls. Therefore, “every kind for itself and its own” is interconnected, linking all men together. For the next seven lines, the speaker describes opposites connected to emotion and humanity, such as “male and female” and “lips that have smiled, eyes that have shed tears” (139, 143). Each opposite starts with the words “For me,” explaining that each person is connected to him in some way, and thus proving all the opposites are connected by the over-soul. All of the opposites are part of makind, making them equally good as they all contribute unique parts of humanity.

The last stanza describes man’s tendancy to be ignorant towards the value of all human beings, as the speaker uses punctation to explain his acceptance. He yells “Undrape!, you are not guilty to me, nor stale nor discarded”, which suggests the unification offered by the over-soul as it connects everyone even though some consider themselves "stale" or "guilty" and hide out of shame. The speaker's use of an exclamation mark creates a forceful tone, as he reaches out to even those who are ashamed to be themselves with complete confidence in their value. He does not judge his audience but instead encourages them to see the beauty in their own lives and take pride in themselves. They may resist this concept, but the speaker is “around, tenacious, acquisitive, tireless, and cannot be shaken away” (148). He is firm in his belief that everyone is connected by a source of good, and even if some do not agree, the speaker will persist and continue to promote the beauty of all humans. All men share this quality, and the speaker assures that they must learn to love themselves in the life they have now in order to accept that their souls will live on forever.