Lilacs
They're in the title and in almost every section of the poem. So, yeah, of course we know that lilacs must symbolize something bigger than spring. From the very beginning we understand that those l...
Western Fallen Star
That "drooping" western star is chockfull of symbolism. Early on we understand the relation between this "great star disappeared" and the untimely disappearance of the speaker's hero (Lincoln)—sa...
Hermit-Bird
Ah, that grumpy, little swamp thrush. It's alone, it hates most folks, and yet it can't help singing its head off. It also can't help symbolizing the mysterious and unconscious world where the spe...
Death
Death never looked so good in Whitman's elegy. It's not personified, like as a Grim Reaper, but rather as a "Dark mother always gliding near with soft feet." Isn't that sweet? We just can't get ove...
The Civil War
We can't forget about the time period in which this elegy was written, when all of those coffins were making their way to the grave. The speaker feels very passionately about the toll the war has t...