The Age of Walt Whitman and the Moral Awakening of a Nation

A LECTURE BY KARL FREDRICKSON

“The greatest poet does not moralize—he knows the soul.” Walt Whitman

On January 1st, 1863, the Emancipation Proclamation came into effect, and within two years more than four million enslaved people had gained their freedom. Yes, the Civil War made this possible, but its acceptance by the American people required something else: a gradual shift in consciousness that had been at work for more than two decades.

This evening, we will trace this shift through the rise of a genuine American literature—especially the poetry of Walt Whitman—and the stories of several individuals who, though largely forgotten today, stirred Americans to consider the true nature of the human soul and spirit. These include Laura Bridgman, the first deaf-and-blind American to learn to communicate with others, and Dorothea Dix, who roamed across America bringing awareness to the plight—and innate dignity—of those among us who suffer from insanity. All movements toward equal rights since that time, from women’s rights to the Civil Rights movement to the rights movements of recent decades, are rooted in this search for the true image of the human being.

With eurythmy by Eurythmy Spring Valley Ensemble:
Walt Whitman, Darest Thou Now O Soul.

Tickets: $15 (regular), $9 (students and seniors)
Tickets will be on sale at the door.

For more information, please call (845) 352-5020, ext. 113, or email info@eurythmy.org.