by Walt Whitman (1819 - 1892)
Not heaving from my ribb’d breast only
Language: English
Not heaving from my ribb’d breast only; Not in sighs at night, in rage, dissatisfied with myself; Not in those long-drawn, ill-supprest sighs; Not in many an oath and promise broken; Not in my wilful and savage soul’s volition; Not in the subtle nourishment of the air; Not in this beating and pounding at my temples and wrists; Not in the curious systole and diastole within, which will one day cease; Not in many a hungry wish, told to the skies only; Not in cries, laughter, defiances, thrown from me when alone, far in the wilds; Not in husky pantings through clench’d teeth; Not in sounded and resounded words — chattering words, echoes, dead words; Not in the murmurs of my dreams while I sleep, Nor the other murmurs of these incredible dreams of every day; Nor in the limbs and senses of my body, that take you and dismiss you continually — Not there; Not in any or all of them, O adhesiveness! O pulse of my life! Need I that you exist and show yourself, any more than in these songs.
About the headline (FAQ)
Confirmed with Whitman, Walt, Leaves of Grass. Philadelphia: David McKay, [c1900]; Bartleby.com, 1999, http://www.bartleby.com/142/40.html.
Authorship:
- by Walt Whitman (1819 - 1892), no title, appears in Leaves of Grass [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by James Rolfe , "Not heaving from my ribb'd breast only", 1990 [ bass or bass-baritone and piano ], from Four songs on poems by Walt Whitman, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2016-09-15
Line count: 18
Word count: 183