The poem 'O Captain! My Captain!' is a metaphorical poem that was written by Walt Whitman. The subject of this extended poem is the death of Abraham Lincoln, who was the President of the United States from 1861 to 1865.
Here is a link to the full poem: http://www.poetry-online.org/whitman_o_captain_my_captain.htm.
This poem was written shortly after Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. It is referred to as a metaphorical poem because there are several metaphorical references made throughout the verses. The poem is narrated from the point of view of a member of the ship's crew.
• The captain mentioned and honored so often in the poem refers to Abraham Lincoln's presidency.
• The "ship" represents the country of the United States of America.
• The "fearful trip" that is undertaken by the ship refers to the past events of the American Civil War.
There are several other references made in the poem. The way that the narrator speaks about the captain (My Captain) implies that the captain is very dear to him and he is more to his men that just a leader. A relationship like one between a father and son is implied.
Indeed, in the very last verse of the poem, the narrator states "my father does not feel my arm", which again refers to the captain lying there.
The second and third line of the poem state "the prize we sought is won,
the port is near", the crew are close to home and yet all they can talk about is their captain lying dead on deck. The emotional words that are used to show how the men felt about their captain ('O heart!') shows how a leader and his men can form a bond through serving together.
Even though their journey was successful and they are almost safely home, the crew cannot be happy because they have lost their father figure.
Here is a link to the full poem: http://www.poetry-online.org/whitman_o_captain_my_captain.htm.
This poem was written shortly after Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. It is referred to as a metaphorical poem because there are several metaphorical references made throughout the verses. The poem is narrated from the point of view of a member of the ship's crew.
• The captain mentioned and honored so often in the poem refers to Abraham Lincoln's presidency.
• The "ship" represents the country of the United States of America.
• The "fearful trip" that is undertaken by the ship refers to the past events of the American Civil War.
There are several other references made in the poem. The way that the narrator speaks about the captain (My Captain) implies that the captain is very dear to him and he is more to his men that just a leader. A relationship like one between a father and son is implied.
Indeed, in the very last verse of the poem, the narrator states "my father does not feel my arm", which again refers to the captain lying there.
The second and third line of the poem state "the prize we sought is won,
the port is near", the crew are close to home and yet all they can talk about is their captain lying dead on deck. The emotional words that are used to show how the men felt about their captain ('O heart!') shows how a leader and his men can form a bond through serving together.
Even though their journey was successful and they are almost safely home, the crew cannot be happy because they have lost their father figure.