Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Tweet-a-Week VII: Peter Doyle

Well, Peter Doyle appears to have a bit of an incomplete biography, so parts of his life are fuzzy. BUT, we do know that he had a very important place in Whitman's life.

Doyle was a streetcar conductor in Washington DC who met Whitman in 1865. Their friendship grew instantly, quickly turning into a romantic relationship which lasted up until Whitman's death in 1892. There relationship is unexpected for several reasons, including the fact that Whitman was Doyle's elder by 24 years, and that Doyle possessed only a rudimentary education compared to Whitman's high level of literacy. However, Whitman felt more comfortable with the "working man", which was certainly the class that Doyle belonged to. The young man also ultimately assisted Whitman in the creation of his Lincoln sketches, having been present at the president's assassination. But I suppose the most important thing is that Doyle and Whitman were simply there for each other as companions, providing the emotional intimacy that all people require.

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