A Noiseless Patient Spider
Encyclopedia
"A Noiseless Patient Spider" is a poem by Walt Whitman
, published in 1867 in an edition of Leaves of Grass
.
chooses to use in his poem can be significant because of their secondary meanings. For example, line four of the poem, “it launched forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself,” could have simply stated that the spider was making a web, but the words Whitman
chooses to use carry extra meaning. The idea of the spider “launching” filament supports the idea that there is a correlation between the spider and the speaker and symbolizes the speaker’s attempts to make connections in the universe. The words “out of itself” also support this idea, their connotation leads the reader to think of the filaments as attempts by the speaker’s soul to find meaning, and since they are coming from deep inside the reader, they are coming “out of itself.”
intends them to see. The first, and one of the most important, examples occurs on the first line; “A noiseless patient spider.” This visual image brings pictures of small, perfectly still, spiders sitting on their perfect webs for days and days at a time, completely unmoving, no sign of life at all. It is amazing all the thoughts those four words can bring to mind. The image of the motionless spider, completely alone and isolated, as painted in the first three lines of the poem introduces the idea that the speaker feels alone in the world right off the bat. The image of the “vacant vast surrounding” also hints at the speaker’s possible doubt in the meaning of life. If the spider is the speaker’s soul then the surroundings should be the rest of the universe, and if the rest of the universe is empty and there are no other souls or things for the filaments to connect to, then what is the purpose of “tirelessly speeding them” on? The parallel image found on line eight and nine, “surrounded, detached, in measureless oceans of space,/ceaselessly musing, venturing, throwing, seeking the spheres to connect them,” is a definite reference between the spider's plight and the speaker's. Both the speaker and the spider seem incapable of finding anything else in the universe, or at least anything of any meaning. However they both keep trying, either out of optimistic hope or blindness. It could be that the speaker is incapable of coming to terms with the idea that there could be nothing else in the universe besides himself, “the vacant vast surrounding” and is so optimistic or too incapable of that horrible realization to stop launching “forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself.” The last two lines of the poem can either be interpreted as supporting the idea that the speaker is habitually optimistic or as disproving the idea that the speaker is alone in the universe; “till the bridge you will need be formed, till the ductile anchor hold,/ till the gossamer thread you fling catch somewhere, o my soul.” What ever interpretation the reader chooses to glean from them, the images in “A Noiseless Patient Spider” hold the key to its meaning.
had just come out and tried to express his ideas in prose. The bulk of the content of “A Noiseless Patient Spider” has some relation to symbolism, whether it is the symbol itself or an image clarifying the meaning of the symbol or the thing or idea that is being symbolized. The promontory’s “vacant vast surroundings” (vacant means lonely)symbolize the speaker’s feeling of loneliness and isolation from the rest of the world or his inability to connect with others. The filament that the spider launched forth could be a symbol of the speaker’s attempts to find meaning in the universe, or to find someone or something to make some sort of profound connection with. The verbs describing the spider, “A Noiseless Patient Spider,” are themselves symbols of the speaker's seeming satisfaction that he may show to the outside.
Walt Whitman
Walter "Walt" Whitman was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among the most influential poets in the American canon, often called the father of free verse...
, published in 1867 in an edition of Leaves of Grass
Leaves of Grass
Leaves of Grass is a poetry collection by the American poet Walt Whitman . Though the first edition was published in 1855, Whitman spent his entire life writing Leaves of Grass, revising it in several editions until his death...
.
Word Choice (Diction)
The words that WhitmanWalt Whitman
Walter "Walt" Whitman was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among the most influential poets in the American canon, often called the father of free verse...
chooses to use in his poem can be significant because of their secondary meanings. For example, line four of the poem, “it launched forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself,” could have simply stated that the spider was making a web, but the words Whitman
Walt Whitman
Walter "Walt" Whitman was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among the most influential poets in the American canon, often called the father of free verse...
chooses to use carry extra meaning. The idea of the spider “launching” filament supports the idea that there is a correlation between the spider and the speaker and symbolizes the speaker’s attempts to make connections in the universe. The words “out of itself” also support this idea, their connotation leads the reader to think of the filaments as attempts by the speaker’s soul to find meaning, and since they are coming from deep inside the reader, they are coming “out of itself.”
Imagery
The poem's most prevalent literary technique is undoubtedly imagery; it is difficult to find just one line that does not have a vivid image in it that aids the reader in seeing exactly what Walt WhitmanWalt Whitman
Walter "Walt" Whitman was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among the most influential poets in the American canon, often called the father of free verse...
intends them to see. The first, and one of the most important, examples occurs on the first line; “A noiseless patient spider.” This visual image brings pictures of small, perfectly still, spiders sitting on their perfect webs for days and days at a time, completely unmoving, no sign of life at all. It is amazing all the thoughts those four words can bring to mind. The image of the motionless spider, completely alone and isolated, as painted in the first three lines of the poem introduces the idea that the speaker feels alone in the world right off the bat. The image of the “vacant vast surrounding” also hints at the speaker’s possible doubt in the meaning of life. If the spider is the speaker’s soul then the surroundings should be the rest of the universe, and if the rest of the universe is empty and there are no other souls or things for the filaments to connect to, then what is the purpose of “tirelessly speeding them” on? The parallel image found on line eight and nine, “surrounded, detached, in measureless oceans of space,/ceaselessly musing, venturing, throwing, seeking the spheres to connect them,” is a definite reference between the spider's plight and the speaker's. Both the speaker and the spider seem incapable of finding anything else in the universe, or at least anything of any meaning. However they both keep trying, either out of optimistic hope or blindness. It could be that the speaker is incapable of coming to terms with the idea that there could be nothing else in the universe besides himself, “the vacant vast surrounding” and is so optimistic or too incapable of that horrible realization to stop launching “forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself.” The last two lines of the poem can either be interpreted as supporting the idea that the speaker is habitually optimistic or as disproving the idea that the speaker is alone in the universe; “till the bridge you will need be formed, till the ductile anchor hold,/ till the gossamer thread you fling catch somewhere, o my soul.” What ever interpretation the reader chooses to glean from them, the images in “A Noiseless Patient Spider” hold the key to its meaning.
Figures of Speech
The use of figures of speech in the poem is very different than what is found in most poems. There seems to be only two figures of speech in “A Noiseless Patient Spider,” metaphor and symbolism; however, they are very prolonged examples that encompass the whole poem and are essential to its complete understanding. The entire work is essentially one large metaphor between the spider, isolated on its barren promontory, and the speaker’s soul, isolated in the universe. When the speaker describes the spider's plight, he is actually describing his own, this gives the reader a more profound sense of what the author is talking about than if Walt WhitmanWalt Whitman
Walter "Walt" Whitman was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among the most influential poets in the American canon, often called the father of free verse...
had just come out and tried to express his ideas in prose. The bulk of the content of “A Noiseless Patient Spider” has some relation to symbolism, whether it is the symbol itself or an image clarifying the meaning of the symbol or the thing or idea that is being symbolized. The promontory’s “vacant vast surroundings” (vacant means lonely)symbolize the speaker’s feeling of loneliness and isolation from the rest of the world or his inability to connect with others. The filament that the spider launched forth could be a symbol of the speaker’s attempts to find meaning in the universe, or to find someone or something to make some sort of profound connection with. The verbs describing the spider, “A Noiseless Patient Spider,” are themselves symbols of the speaker's seeming satisfaction that he may show to the outside.