"When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer" by Walt Whitman Close Reading Chart

	Examples from Text	Analysis
Linguistic	“the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns” (Whitman 2) “add, divide, and measure them,” (Whitman 3)	The stars, something that are meant to be distant and out-of-reach and more beautiful because of that, have been simplified to numbers on a page, organized and filed and grouped like something Earthly—the whole nature of the stars has been lost.
Semantic	“When I heard…When the proofs…When I was shown…When I sitting” (Whitman 1-4) “much applause in the lecture-/room” (Whitman 4-5)	Anaphora within the first four lines creates repetition, emphasizes how uninspiring a lecture about stars is when compared with the real thing. Enjambment in the lines creates a sense of distorted time, stretched out to accommodate speaker’s attitude towards the lecture room
Structural	“I heard the learn’d” (Whitman 1) “rising and gliding” (Whitman 7) “mystical moist…from time to time” (Whitman 8)	Consonance creates a dull, monotonous effect with the single syllable rhyme, whereas the double syllable rhyme is smoother, more natural, and more appealing to the tongue. Alliteration is used as well, along with another reference to time, which may be to contrast the difference in opinion on time outside vs. in the lecture room.
Cultural	“the learn’d astronomer,” (Whitman 1) “he lectured with much applause in the lecture-/room,” (Whitman 4-5)	In general, we tend to find academic experts to be the most fascinating, simply because their knowledge of their field is so clearly erudite; however, the assertion here is that no matter how intelligent man is, he still can’t compare with what comes perfectly in nature itself.