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Leaves of Grass · Chapter

There Was a Child Went Forth explained

The poem describes a child who becomes one with everything he encounters each day, from natural elements like lilacs and grass to people like his parents and strangers, absorbing all experiences—both beautiful and harsh—that shape his ident

What happens

The poem describes a child who becomes one with everything he encounters each day, from natural elements like lilacs and grass to people like his parents and strangers, absorbing all experiences—both beautiful and harsh—that shape his identity forever.

Themes in this chapter

  • Unity of Soul and Body

    The child's absorption of every object and person illustrates the seamless integration of self with the external world, merging soul and body through experience.

  • Celebration of Nature and the Universe

    Nature is celebrated through vivid imagery of lilacs, grass, morning-glories, fish, water-plants, and the horizon, all becoming part of the child's being.

Characters to notice

  • Narrator

    The narrator observes and recounts the child's transformative journey of becoming one with the world.

  • America

    America is embodied through the diverse scenes of city and country, including the barefoot negro boy and girl, reflecting the nation's people and landscapes.

Key passages

  • “There was a child went forth every day, And the first object he look’d upon, that object he became, And that object became part of him for the day or a certain part of the day, Or for many years or stretching cycles of years.”

    A child ventured out daily, and whatever he first saw, he absorbed into himself, becoming that thing for a moment or for a lifetime.

    This opening establishes the central theme of identity formed through sensory experience and unity with the world.

  • “The mother at home quietly placing the dishes on the supper-table, The mother with mild words, clean her cap and gown, a wholesome odor falling off her person and clothes as she walks by, The father, strong, self-sufficient, manly, mean, anger’d, unjust, The blow, the quick loud word, the tight bargain, the crafty lure.”

    The mother's gentle domesticity and the father's harsh, sometimes unjust nature both become part of the child, shaping his understanding of love and conflict.

    This contrast highlights how the child internalizes both nurturing and flawed aspects of his parents.

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Leaves of Grass — There Was a Child Went Forth Explained