Analysis of Tones Across Walt Whitman's O Captain! My Captain! and Ralph Waldo Emerson's Abraham Lincoln Eulogy Anonymous 8th Grade

In 1865, the assassination of Abraham Lincoln broke the hearts of many in the country. For abolishing slavery, Lincoln was praised by thousands, even after his death. Writers were inspired to write tributes, such as Walt Whitman with his poem, “O Captain! My Captain!”, and Emerson's eulogy at the funeral for Lincoln. Both pieces of literature set a mournful and sorrowful tone, but they also incorporated celebratory tones in their work to praise him as well. Even though both authors were depressed about Lincoln's death, they were still able to commemorate him with tones of admiration. Walt Whitman and Emerson were so greatly impacted by his death that their words were quite similar to each other, and their tones were almost the same. In addition to the tones, both writers were also able to use creative writing in order to form metaphors that related to Lincoln.

There are metaphors placed throughout the Walt Whitman poem, with most of them pertaining to the life of Lincoln. When he states, “O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done,” (Whitman 1) he’s saying that the war is over. In the poem, the “trip” Whitman mentions can refer to the recently ended Civil War. This suggests that the captain is actually Lincoln and that his...