O Captain ! My Captain ! - Wikipedia O Captain ! My Captain ! This is the latest accepted revision, reviewed on 31 October 2017. Whitman 's notes for a revision of `` O Captain ! My Captain ! '' Whitman 's lecture on Lincoln, invitation, 1886 `` O Captain ! My Captain ! '' is an extended metaphor poem written in 1865 by Walt Whitman, about the death of American president Abraham Lincoln. The poem was first published in the pamphlet Sequel to Drum - Taps which assembled 18 poems regarding the American Civil War, including another Lincoln elegy, `` When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom 'd ''. It was included in Whitman 's comprehensive collection Leaves of Grass beginning with its fourth edition published in 1867. The poem emphasizes or shows grief and sorrow. Contents 1 Text 2 Analysis 3 Modern versions 4 See also 5 References 6 External links Text An 1887 handwritten draft of Whitman 's 1865 poem `` O Captain ! My Captain ! O Captain ! My Captain ! our fearful trip is done ; The ship has weather 'd every rack, the prize we sought is won ; The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting, While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring : But O heart ! heart ! heart ! O the bleeding drops of red, Where on the deck my Captain lies, Fallen cold and dead. O Captain ! My Captain ! rise up and hear the bells ; Rise up -- for you the flag is flung -- for you the bugle trills ; For you bouquets and ribbon 'd wreaths -- for you the shores a-crowding ; For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning ; Here captain ! dear father ! This arm beneath your head ; It is some dream that on the deck, You 've fallen cold and dead. My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still ; My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will ; The ship is anchor 'd safe and sound, its voyage closed and done ; From fearful trip, the victor ship, comes in with object won ; Exult, O shores, and ring, O bells ! But I, with mournful tread, Walk the deck my captain lies, Fallen cold and dead. Analysis This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( March 2013 ) Walt Whitman composed the poem `` O Captain ! My Captain ! '' after Abraham Lincoln 's assassination in 1865. The poem is classified as an elegy or mourning poem, and was written to honor Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States. Walt Whitman was born in 1819 and died in 1892, and the American Civil War was the central event of his life. Whitman was a staunch Unionist during the Civil War. He was initially indifferent to Lincoln, but as the war pressed on, Whitman came to love the president, though the two men never met. The fallen captain in the poem refers to Abraham Lincoln, captain of the ship that is the United States of America. The first line establishes the poem 's mood, one of relief that the Civil War has ended, `` our fearful trip is done. '' The next line references the ship, America, and how it has `` weathered every rack '', meaning America has braved the tough storm of the Civil War, and `` the prize we sought '', the preservation of the Union, `` is won ''. The following line expresses a mood of jubilation of the Union winning the war as it says `` the people all exulting ; '' however, the next line swiftly shifts the mood when it talks of the grimness of the ship, and the darker side of the war. Many lost their lives in the American Civil War, and although the prize that was sought was won, the hearts still ache amidst the exultation of the people. The repetition of heart in line five calls attention to the poet 's vast grief and heartache because the Captain has bled and lies still, cold, and dead ( lines six through eight ). This is no doubt referencing the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and Whitman 's sorrow for the death of his idol. In the second stanza the speaker again calls out to the captain to `` rise up and hear the bells, '' to join in the celebration of the end of the war. The next three lines tell the captain to `` rise up '' and join in on the revelries because it is for him. He is the reason for their merriment : `` for you the flag is flung -- for you the bugle trills ; for you bouquets and ribbon 'd wreaths -- for you the shores a-crowding ; for you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning ''. Everyone is celebrating what Lincoln accomplished ; the abolition of slavery and the unification of the people after a fearful war. Again the poet calls to the Captain as if he had never fallen. The poet does not wish to acknowledge the death of his beloved Captain, and he even asks if it is some dream ( line 15 ) that the Captain has fallen `` cold and dead ''. The third stanza begins in a somber mood as the poet has finally accepted that the Captain is dead and gone. Here there is vivid and darker imagery such as `` his lips are pale and still '' and the reader can picture the dead Captain lying there still and motionless with `` no pulse nor will ''. In line 17, the poet calls out `` My Captain, '' and in line 18, the poet refers to the Captain as `` My father ''. This is referring to Lincoln as the father of the United States. Lines 19 and 20 are concluding statements that summarize the entire poem. The United States is `` anchor 'd safe and sound ''. It is safe now from war with `` its voyage closed and done, from fearful trip, the victor ship, comes in with object won ''. In line 21, the examples of apostrophe, ordering `` shores to exult, '' and `` bells to ring '' are again referring to how the nation is celebrating while `` I with mournful tread, Walk the deck my Captain lies, Fallen cold and dead ''. Throughout the paper there is a distinct rhyme scheme, which is unusual for Whitman. The rhyme scheme in `` O Captain ! My Captain ! '' is AABCDEFE, GGHIJEKE, and LLMNOEPE for each stanza respectively. Two examples of alliteration are in line 10 `` flag is flung '', as well as in line 19 `` safe and sound ''. Repetition occurs many times in this poem, for example `` O Captain ! My Captain '', and `` fallen cold and dead ''. `` O Captain ! My Captain ! '' became one of Whitman 's most famous poems, one that he would read at the end of his famous lecture about the Lincoln assassination. Whitman became so identified with the poem that late in life he remarked, `` Damn My Captain... I 'm almost sorry I ever wrote the poem. '' Modern versions Walter Huston recited the poem, with special musical underscoring by Victor Young, on a 1947 Decca Records album titled Our Common Heritage. The recording was rebroadcast as part of a 1954 Memorial Day edition of the WNBC poetry radio program Anthology. A musical version of the poem appears on Carolyn Hester 's 1965 live album At Town Hall. In 1996, Israeli songwriter Naomi Shemer translated the poem to Hebrew and wrote music for it. This was done in addition to several prior translations in order to mark the anniversary of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin 's assassination which took place one year earlier, in 1995. The song is since commonly performed or played in Yitzhak Rabin memorial day services all around Israel. `` Passage '', a Z. Randall Stroope composition for SATB choir, has a similar message to `` O Captain ! My Captain ! '' and actually quotes one section : `` Captain my captain, rise up and hear the bells. Rise up, for you the flag is flung ! For you bouquets and ribbon 'd wreaths ''. After actor Robin Williams ' death in August 2014, fans of his work used social media to pay tribute to him with photo and video reenactments of the Dead Poets Society `` O Captain ! My Captain ! '' scene. See also Abraham Lincoln cultural depictions References Jump up ^ Peck, Garrett ( 2015 ). Walt Whitman in Washington, D.C. : The Civil War and America 's Great Poet. Charleston, SC : The History Press. p. 85. ISBN 978 - 1626199736. Jump up ^ Peck 2015, p. 120. Jump up ^ Planer, Lindsay. Carolyn Hester At Town Hall at AllMusic. Retrieved April 16, 2014. Jump up ^ Szathmary, Zoe ( 12 August 2014 ). `` ' # O Captain, My Captain ' : Robin Williams ' fans take over social media with tributes and memorials dedicated to the legendary comic ''. Daily Mail. Retrieved 2014 - 11 - 15. Jump up ^ Idato, Michael ( 14 August 2014 ). `` Robin Williams death : Jimmy Fallon fights tears, pays tribute with ' Oh Captain, My Captain ' ''. The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2014 - 11 - 15. External links Wikisource has original text related to this article : O Captain ! My Captain ! O Captain ! My Captain ! public domain audiobook at LibriVox Walt Whitman Leaves of Grass ( 1855 -- 1892 ) `` Crossing Brooklyn Ferry '' ( 1855 ) `` Hush 'd Be the Camps To - Day '' ( 1865 ) `` I Sing the Body Electric '' ( 1865 ) `` A Noiseless Patient Spider '' ( 1891 ) `` O Captain ! My Captain ! '' ( 1865 ) `` One Hour to Madness and Joy '' ( 1860 ) `` One 's Self I Sing '' ( 1867 ) `` Out of the Cradle Endlessly Rocking '' ( 1859 ) `` Patrolling Barnegat '' ( 1856 ) `` Pioneers ! O Pioneers ! '' ( 1865 ) `` Prayer of Columbus '' ( 1900 ) `` Song of Myself '' ( 1855 ) `` Song of the Open Road '' ( 1856 ) `` This Dust Was Once the Man '' ( 1871 ) `` When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom 'd '' ( 1865 ) Sections Calamus Sea - Drift Drum - Taps Other works Franklin Evans ( 1842 ) Life and Adventures of Jack Engle ( 1852 ) Democratic Vistas ( 1871 ) Adaptations Elegiac Ode ( 1884 ) Sea Drift ( 1906 ) A Sea Symphony ( 1909 ) Ode to Death ( 1919 ) Morning Heroes ( 1930 ) Sea Drift ( 1933 ) Dona nobis pacem ( 1936 ) Secular Cantata No. 2 : A Free Song ( 1942 ) When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom 'd ( 1946 ) The Wound - Dresser ( 1989 ) Lilacs ( 1996 ) Symphony No. 2 ( 1999 ) Dooryard Bloom ( 2004 ) Life and honoraria Walt Whitman Award Walt Whitman Birthplace State Historic Site Walt Whitman House The Long Islander Walt Whitman Bridge Walt Whitman High School ( Maryland ) Walt Whitman High School ( New York ) Walt Whitman Shops Abraham Lincoln 16th President of the United States ( 1861 -- 1865 ) U.S. Representative from Illinois ( 1847 -- 1849 ) Presidency First inauguration Perpetual Union Lincoln Bible Second inauguration Civil War Confiscation Acts President Lincoln 's 75,000 volunteers War based income tax Seaports blockade RMS Trent Affair Habeas Corpus suspended Emancipation Proclamation West Virginia statehood Overland Campaign strategy Hampton Roads Conference Tour of Richmond Ten percent plan Reconstruction 13th Amendment abolishing slavery Dakota War of 1862 Department of the Northwest Homestead Act of 1862 National Banking Acts Thanksgiving Day Birchard Letter Bixby letter National Academy of Sciences Department of Agriculture Pardons State of the Union Address, 1863 1864 Cabinet Judicial appointments Assassination Funeral and burial Lincoln Catafalque Speeches Lyceum address ( 1838 ) Peoria speech ( 1854 ) `` Lost Speech '' ( 1856 ) House Divided speech ( 1858 ) Lincoln - Douglas debates ( 1858 ) Cooper Union Address ( 1860 ) Farewell Address ( 1861 ) First inaugural address ( 1861 ) Gettysburg Address ( 1863 event ) Second inaugural address ( 1865 ) Life and views Early life and career Black Hawk War Matson Trial Spot Resolutions Boat lifting patent Hurd v. Rock Island Bridge Co. Baltimore Plot Lincoln 's beard Medical and mental health Poetry Religious views Sexuality Slavery Homes and places Lincoln Birthplace Knob Creek Farm Lincoln Boyhood Memorial Lincoln State Park Lincoln Trail Homestead State Memorial Lincoln 's New Salem Lincoln Home Lincoln Pioneer Village Little Pigeon Creek Community Cottage at the Soldier 's Home Lincoln Bedroom Lincoln Sitting Room Ford 's Theatre Petersen House Lincoln Tomb Elections Republican National Convention, 1856 1860 1864 National Union Party United States presidential election, 1860 1864 1860 campaign song Legacy Presidential Library and Museum Papers Lincoln / Net Bibliography Lincoln Memorial sculpture reflecting pool Mount Rushmore Lincoln 's Birthday Lincoln, Nebraska statue Abraham Lincoln ( Healy painting ) Abraham Lincoln sculpture, Washington D.C. Abraham Lincoln : The Man statue Lincoln Park Abraham Lincoln : The Head of State statue Lincoln Trail State Memorial Lincoln the Lawyer statue Kentucky statue The Peacemakers painting Lincoln Highway Other memorials Photographs Cultural depictions films postage stamps Lincoln penny Illinois Centennial half dollar currency five - dollar bill art Lincoln Prize Abraham Lincoln Association White House ghost Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln Lincoln -- Kennedy coincidences Aircraft Carrier USS Abraham Lincoln Family Family tree Mary Todd Lincoln ( wife ) Robert Todd Lincoln ( son ) Edward Baker Lincoln ( son ) William Wallace Lincoln ( son ) Thomas `` Tad '' Lincoln ( son ) Mary Todd `` Mamie '' Lincoln ( granddaughter ) Abraham Lincoln II ( grandson ) Jessie Lincoln ( granddaughter ) Thomas Lincoln ( father ) Nancy Hanks Lincoln ( mother ) Sarah Bush Lincoln ( stepmother ) Sarah Lincoln Grigsby ( sister ) Abraham Lincoln ( paternal grandfather ) Mordecai Lincoln ( paternal uncle ) Mary Lincoln Crume ( paternal aunt ) John Hanks ( maternal cousin ) Joseph Hanks ( great - grandfather ) Samuel Lincoln ( 17th - century ancestor ) Mary Lincoln Beckwith ( great - granddaughter ) Robert Todd Lincoln Beckwith ( great - grandson ) Timothy Lincoln Beckwith ( great - great - grandson ) Old Bob ( horse ) ← James Buchanan Andrew Johnson → Book Outline Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=O_Captain!_My_Captain!&oldid=807993808 '' Categories : 1865 poems Assassination of Abraham Lincoln Poetry by Walt Whitman Abraham Lincoln in art Hidden categories : Wikipedia pending changes protected pages ( level 1 ) Articles needing additional references from March 2013 All articles needing additional references Articles with LibriVox links Talk Contents About Wikipedia Wikisource Čeština Deutsch Español Euskara Français Italiano עברית ਪੰਜਾਬੀ Português Svenska Українська 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 31 October 2017, at 07 : 04. 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Question: o captain my captain what is it about
Answer: the death of American president Abraham Lincoln