Writing has a way of evolving, in many ways. Along with the very broad sense of literature changing over the years, a writer is constantly re-evaluating, reinventing, re-visualizing their own work. This process doesn't stop just because you have been lucky enough to be published. If anything, I would think that would make it worse. People can actually read your stuff now! The desire to make it absolutely perfect probably increases tenfold.
Whitman was not exempt from this. In each new addition of Leaves of Grass, Whitman makes subtle edits, always striving to make it that much better. Even something as (seemingly) simple as changing the title of a piece can have a major effect. For example, the one that stood out the most to me was how Song of Myself became Poem of Walt Whitman, An American in the 1856 version. That title is so much more specific. "Myself" could be anyone, it could be whoever you the reader want, whether that be Walt, yourself, your neighbor; you are given much more freedom of interpretation. But now, it's Walt Whitman. But he doesn't stop there, oh no. He's Walt Whitman, An American. Knowing the times that Whitman lived through, that is a very powerful statement. Think about it. He's not a Northerner or a Southerner, which was probably a big deal at that time. He's an American, part of a whole, part of something big and great and idealistic.
I think that as the years went on, Whitman not only learned about his poem, his writing style; he learned about himself. Which, considering the fact that he was writing "A Song of Himself", is a major factor. The more he learns about himself, the clear the vision for what he wants to express. And that's the beauty of revision. Constant growth.
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