Question

Written Response Question for "O Captain, My Captain!" on Commonlit: Considering the events occurring at the time this poem was written, how does the author use the captain, the ship, and the journey as symbols to develop the theme of the poem? Use specific evidence from the test to support your answer. Please help! I'm quarantined and I think I missed this lesson!

Answer 1

This question is incomplete. Here's the complete question.

Read "O Captain, My Captain!", by Walt Whitman

Considering the events occurring at the time this poem was written, how does the author use the captain, the ship, and the journey as symbols to develop the theme of the poem? Use specific evidence from the text to support your answer.

Answer:

The captain represents Abraham Lincoln as the leader of the Union, and the ship and its journey is a symbol of the grand and dangerous endeavor that was the Civil War. The Union had already won over the Confederates, which is depicted in the poem as follows: "the prize we sought is won." But the joy gets obscured by the death of the Captain, who "lies, Fallen cold and dead" on the deck of the ship.

Explanation:

Whitman wrote this poem after Abraham Lincoln was assassinated, which happened when the Civil War was coming to an end.