"When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer" p339

This poem is about a person who becomes enlightened by the teachings of an astronomer. This poem shows the result and views of the transcendentalists of the time. Walt Whitman shared these views. The speaker becomes "tired and sick," (5) from the teachings which are alien to him. At the end of the poem, he looks up at the stars and becomes awestruck. The speaker's views about the stars is different from before he entered the lecture hall. This poem symbolizes how an act of nature that can appear to be so simple is actually shrouded behind a cloud of confusion. This poem also serves the purpose of representing the views of the transcendentalist which is to obtain a better understanding of the world around us. The world is universal and all humans can understand the same meaning from these phenomonons. Whitman uses parallel syntax to provide the story for why the speaker contains the views which he possesses. The parallel sentences contain, "When I," (1-4).
I personally liked this poem because it shows the different ways that you can view the world around you. I am also personally shocked and inspired by the universe and this poem speaks to me because of that sense.