I hope you all had an amazing weekend! I realize that I did not spend nearly enough time on our previous Poet. Therefore, I am going to continue with Walt Whitman.
One of Whitman's well-known poems is tilted "When I heard the Learn'd Astronomer". When reading his work, I have to say that I can relate to the lethargic feeling of this student of astronomy. Though often it is necessary, sometimes sitting in a classroom does little to keep my interest in learning. I appreciate the stars more when I can personally view them. I love gazing at the sky at night when no lights are around. It is one of the most incredible sights to see. Unfortunately, though I cannot remember all of them, I rather enjoyed studying the star constellations in high-school, and I try to pick out the figures I can recall.
I think that maybe the author is saying that some things simply cannot be learned inside a classroom. Therefore, it takes more then the scientific knowledge of the universe -or maybe even nature- for us to appreciate, enjoy, and or understand the universe.
When I heard the Learn'd Astronomer
When I heard the learn’d astronomer,
When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns before me,
When I was shown the charts and diagrams, to add, divide, and measure them,
When I sitting heard the astronomer where he lectured with much applause in the lecture-room,
How soon unaccountable I became tired and sick,
Till rising and gliding out I wander’d off by myself,
In the mystical moist night-air, and from time to time,
Look’d up in perfect silence
