Leaves of Grass: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 18:23, 2 December 2011

Date: 1882

Region: North America

Subject: Racial/Ethnic,Sexual/Gender Orientation

Medium: Poetry

[[File:]]

Artist: Walt Whitman

Confronting Bodies: Oliver Stevens, Boston District Attorney, New England Society for the Suppression of Vice, James R. Osgood

Dates of Action: 1882

Location: Boston, Massachussetts

Description of Artwork: Written by Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass is a critically acclaimed collection of poetry. Walt Whitman spent his life editing and revising the collection though it was first printed in 1855. Some of his poems in the collection like, "Song of Myself, "I Sing the Body Electric" and "Pioneers, O Pioneers" have become enduring, celebratory anthems of Americana and are deeply embedded in the National psyche. Unlike other poetry of the time, which heavily employed allegory and symbolism and upheld religious and spiritual tropes, his poems predominantly engaged the body and the senses.

The Incident: Oliver Stevens, the District Attorney for Boston in cooperation with the New England Society for the Suppression of Vice wrote to Whitman's publisher, James Osgood demanding that certain poems with pronounced allusions to sex and sexual preference, such as "Song of Myself", be revised and that certain poems such as "A Woman Waits for Me" and "To a Common Prostitute" be removed from the collection. He wrote, "We are of the opinion that this book is such a book as brings it within the provisions of the Public Statutes respecting obscene literature and suggest the propriety of withdrawing the same from circulation and suppressing the editions thereof."

Results of Incident: Osgood asked Whitman to make the appropriate changes. He refused stating, "The list whole & several is rejected by me, & will not be thought of under any circumstances." Whitman went on to publish another edition of the collection later that same year with the direction of Rees Welsh & Company. The first printing of the new version sold out on its first day.

Source: [[Category:Poetry]

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 ====Medium: [[:Category:Poetry|Poetry]]====
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-[[File:Tongues_Untied.jpg|right|200 pixels]]
+[[File:]]
 '''Artist:''' Walt Whitman
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 '''Dates of Action:''' 1882
-'''Location:'''
+'''Location:''' Boston, Massachussetts
-'''Description of Artwork:''' Directed by Marlon Riggs, the film is a critically acclaimed, prize-winning examination of the lives of black gay men. Using a blend of poetry, narrative, dance, rap, music and social commentary, it examines the homophobia and racism affecting gay African-Americans.
+'''Description of Artwork:''' Written by Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass is a critically acclaimed collection of poetry. Walt Whitman spent his life editing and revising the collection though it was first printed in 1855. Some of his poems in the collection like, "Song of Myself, "I Sing the Body Electric" and "Pioneers, O Pioneers" have become enduring, celebratory anthems of Americana and are deeply embedded in the National psyche. Unlike other poetry of the time, which heavily employed allegory and symbolism and upheld religious and spiritual tropes, his poems predominantly engaged the body and the senses.
-'''The Incident:''' The American Family Association launched a long campaign against public broadcasting in retaliation for PBS's decision to air the film, "Tongues Untied" as a part of the independently produced P.O.V series. The NEA provided a $5,000 grant for the production of ''Tongues Untied'' along with $250,000 to the P.O.V. series on PBS. The AFA and the Christian Coalition applied pressure to PBS supporters and Congress.
+'''The Incident:''' Oliver Stevens, the District Attorney for Boston in cooperation with the New England Society for the Suppression of Vice wrote to Whitman's publisher, James Osgood demanding that certain poems with pronounced allusions to sex and sexual preference, such as "Song of Myself", be revised and that certain poems such as "A Woman Waits for Me" and "To a Common Prostitute" be removed from the collection. He wrote, "We are of the opinion that this book is such a book as brings it within the provisions of the Public Statutes respecting obscene literature and suggest the propriety of withdrawing the same from circulation and suppressing the editions thereof."
-'''Results of Incident:''' ''Tongues Untied'' aired in July of 1991, but many PBS member stations decided against airing the film, resulting in nearly half of all television households not having access to the film. The FCC received a few indecency complaints against stations airing the film.
+'''Results of Incident:''' Osgood asked Whitman to make the appropriate changes. He refused stating, "The list whole & several is rejected by me, & will not be thought of under any circumstances." Whitman went on to publish another edition of the collection later that same year with the direction of Rees Welsh & Company. The first printing of the new version sold out on its first day.
-'''Source:''' Artistic Freedom Under Attack 1992
+'''Source:'''
-[[Category:1991]]
+[[Category:1882]]
-[[Category:1990s]]
+[[Category:1800's]]
-[[Category:20th century]]
+[[Category:19th century]]
 [[Category:North America]]
 [[Category:United States]]
-[[Category:Racial/Ethnic]]
+[[Category:Sexually Explicit]]
 [[Category:Sexual/Gender Orientation]]
-[[Category:Television]]
+[[Category:Poetry]
-[[Category:Marlon Riggs]]
+[[Category:Walt Whitman]]
 {{DISPLAYTITLE:<span style="font-style: italic;">Tongues Untied</span>}}
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