Think about the rhetorical and ideological complexity of one or two of Whitman’s “mobilization”
poems in Drum-Taps. What is Whitman’s central purpose in these poems? Do the poems ultimately
romanticize war, or do they ultimately call such romanticization into question? What do you make of
the poems’ complexity? (Mobilization poems include “First O Songs for a Prelude,” “Eighteen SixtyOne,” and “Beat! Beat! Drums!”)
Sample Solution
