Question

excerpt from \song of myself\
walt whitman

section 3
i have heard what the talkers were talking, the talk of the beginning and the end,
but i do not talk of the beginning or the end.

there was never any more inception than there is now,
nor any more youth or age than there is now,
and will never be any more perfection than there is now,
nor any more heaven or hell than there is now.

urge and urge and urge,
always the procreant urge of the world.
out of the dimness opposite equals advance, always substance and increase, always sex,
always a knit of identity, always distinction, always a breed of life.

what does whitman achieve by dismissing the \talk of the beginning and the end?\

• he prioritizes explaining the world scientifically.
• he criticizes focusing on historical events.
• he emphasizes living in the present moment.

Explanation:

Analyze the highlighted text

The question asks what Whitman achieves by dismissing the "talk of the beginning and the end." In the highlighted lines of Section 3 of "Song of Myself," Whitman writes:
"I have heard what the talkers were talking, the talk of the beginning and the end,
But I do not talk of the beginning or the end."

Connect to Whitman's themes

Using the Whitman Poetic Themes and Transcendentalist Philosophy knowledge points, we analyze his focus on the immediate experience. Immediately following these lines, Whitman writes:
"There was never any more inception than there is now,
Nor any more youth or age than there is now,
And will never be any more perfection than there is now,
Nor any more heaven or hell than there is now."
This repetition of "than there is now" emphasizes that the present moment contains all the inception, perfection, and existence that ever was or will be.

Evaluate the options

• "He prioritizes explaining the world scientifically." -> Incorrect. Whitman's focus here is spiritual and experiential, not scientific.
• "He criticizes focusing on historical events." -> Incorrect. While he dismisses looking only to the past ("the beginning") or future ("the end"), his primary goal is positive affirmation of the present rather than a critique of historical study.
• "He emphasizes living in the present moment." -> Correct. By rejecting talk of the beginning and the end, and declaring that everything exists "now," he highlights the supreme importance of the present.

Answer:

• He prioritizes explaining the world scientifically.
• He criticizes focusing on historical events.
• He emphasizes living in the present moment. (Correct answer)