Reconciliation by Walt Whitman

It's a story about a soldier who stands over the coffin of an enemy soldier who died in the Civil War and kisses him on the face. On a larger scale, it conveys the message that death and time ultimately wash away all hatred, reminding us that every person — even an enemy — holds the same value and dignity.

Whitman declares that one word reigns supreme: reconciliation, which is also the title of the poem. By likening it to the sky, he implies that it is expansive, unbiased, and envelops everyone equally — encompassing both Union and Confederate soldiers.

They are personifications — Whitman envisions Death and Night as two sisters who tenderly and endlessly cleanse the world of the harm humans inflict on it. This imagery is intentionally gentle and nurturing, transforming what might be seen as intimidating forces into patient guardians.

This is one of Whitman's core beliefs, expressed throughout Leaves of Grass: every human being holds something sacred. By referring to the dead enemy as "divine as myself," he insists that the war cannot take away that man's humanity. The two men were equals in life, despite being enemies, and they remain equals in death.

No. It's a gesture of respect and farewell—the kind of kiss you might give a deceased relative in a coffin. Whitman uses it to demonstrate that reconciliation must be tangible and genuine, not merely an abstract concept. The tenderness of the act is what truly matters.

It's a six-line stanza that showcases Whitman's signature free verse style — lacking a rhyme scheme and fixed meter, it features long, flowing lines that create a rhythmic build. As the poem progresses from the vastness of the cosmic (the sky, Death, Night) to the personal (one man, one coffin, one kiss), the lines become shorter and quieter.

Whitman volunteered as a nurse in Civil War hospitals, witnessing thousands of soldiers—both Union and Confederate—die right before his eyes. This experience made him realize that the men on both sides were equally human and deserving of sorrow. The poem reflects his effort to envision what true healing after the war could resemble.

"Soil'd" refers to being stained or dirtied — whether by blood, violence, or the moral failures inherent in war. Whitman suggests that human conflict continuously soils the world, but Death and Night periodically wash it clean. This reflects a cycle rather than a state that lasts forever.