# A Broadway Pageant explained — Leaves of Grass

> Chapter companion for Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman.

## What happens

The poem celebrates a grand procession on Broadway, likely a parade welcoming Japanese ambassadors, and uses the spectacle to reflect on America's democratic spirit, its embrace of diverse cultures, and the unity of all peoples under the banner of freedom and equality.

## Themes in this chapter

### America and Its People

The pageant showcases America's diverse populace and its democratic spirit, welcoming foreign representatives as part of a shared human experience.

### Democracy and Equality

The poem emphasizes equality and unity, as the procession includes all classes and nations, reflecting democratic ideals.

## Character check-ins

### America

America is personified as the host of the pageant, embodying democratic ideals and welcoming foreign dignitaries.

### Democracy

Democracy is implicitly celebrated as the driving force behind the inclusive and grand spectacle on Broadway.

### Narrator

The narrator observes and interprets the pageant, connecting the event to broader themes of unity and national identity.

## Key lines

> Over the Western sea hither from Niphon come, / Courteous, the swart-cheek'd two-sworded envoys, / Leaning back in their open barouches, bare-headed, impassive, / Ride to-day through Manhattan.

Japanese ambassadors, dignified and armed with swords, travel from across the Pacific to New York, riding through Manhattan in open carriages.

_This opening sets the scene of the diplomatic visit and the public parade._

> Libertad! I do not know whether others behold what I behold, / In the procession, along with the nobles of Niphon, the errand-bearers, / Bringing up the rear, hovering above, around, or in the ranks marching, / But I will sing you a song of what I behold Libertad.

The speaker addresses Liberty, saying he sees more than the physical procession—he sees a deeper meaning of freedom and unity that he will express in song.

_The narrator interprets the event as a symbol of liberty and universal brotherhood._

> When million-footed Manhattan, unpent, descends to its pavements, / When the thunder-cracking guns arouse me with the proud roar I love, / When the round-mouth'd guns out of the smoke and smell I love spit their salutes, / When the fire-flaunting banners hang, and the flag-staffs are all spotted with star-spangled cloth, / When the long pennants, the signal-staffs, stream forth, and the broad bunting of the star-spangled cloth, / Then, for the pageant of the envoys, the grand procession, I too, with streaming hair, and with all my devotees, join in the procession.

The speaker describes the vibrant scene of Manhattan's streets filled with people, the roar of cannons, the display of American flags, and declares his own participation in the grand parade.

_This passage emphasizes the speaker's immersion in the democratic spectacle._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/a-broadway-pageant
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/leaves_of_grass_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters