Leaves of Grass · Chapter
We Two Boys Together Clinging explained
A celebration of an inseparable male bond, two boys journeying together through all experiences—physical, adventurous, and defiant—owning no law but themselves and reveling in their shared freedom and power.
What happens
A celebration of an inseparable male bond, two boys journeying together through all experiences—physical, adventurous, and defiant—owning no law but themselves and reveling in their shared freedom and power.
Themes in this chapter
Comradeship and Love
The poem centers on an intense, unbreakable bond between two boys, celebrating their mutual devotion and shared adventures.
Individuality and Self
The pair asserts their own law above all, embodying radical self-ownership and defiance of external authority.
Characters to notice
- Narrator
One of the two boys, speaking as part of the inseparable pair.
- Comradeship and Love
The bond between the two boys embodies the theme of comradeship and love.
Key passages
“We two boys together clinging, One the other never leaving, Up and down the roads going, North and South excursions making”
Two boys hold tightly to each other, never separating as they travel every road and explore all directions.
Opens with the image of an inseparable pair embarking on a journey of shared discovery.
“No law less than ourselves owning, sailing, soldiering, thieving, threatening, Misers, menials, priests alarming”
They acknowledge no authority but their own, engaging in bold, lawless acts that shock the conventional and the pious.
Highlights their radical autonomy and defiance of societal norms.