Sunday, June 03, 2007

O Captain! My Captain!

This poem was written by Walt Whitman in homage to U.S. President Abraham Lincoln after his assassination in 1865.

O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done;
The ship has weathered 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 ribboned 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.


After the assassination of Israel's Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995, the famous Israeli sonng writer Naomi Shemer translated the poem into Hebrew and composed her own melody, making it a popular song in memorial services.

Rich story behind it. Complete details on the history of the poem and it's usage through the years can be found at Wikipedia.

For me, it was intriguing from the perspective of a seafarer. Quite interesting how I came about it actually. Was chatting with this friend of mine and I happened to ask her for one of her favourite poets. She said Walt Whitman and I just googled it. Voila!

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