Cavalry Crossing a Ford | Literary Criticism & Book Review

Cavalry Crossing a Ford Critical Overview

"Cavalry Crossing a Ford" is in many ways indicative of Whitman's shorter poems, especially in the vivid description of the scene. The poem differs in the manner in which the speaker situates himself on the periphery of the scene. While the majority of Whitman's work is written in the firstperson, and usually the "I" of the poem is the center of the action or scene, in "Cavalry Crossing a Ford" the first-person "I" of the poem is merely implied and serves solely as a distant observer. This is particularly important in light of the fact that Whitman's biggest critical proponents argue precisely that what distinguishes his poetry is his selfreferential, egocentric outlook on the world. As John Updike explained in his essay "Whitman's Egotheism," Whitman's poetic egotism is "suffused and tempered with a strenuous empathy" and serves to recognize "each man's immersion in a unique and unexchangeable ego." In other...
(read more)