Walt Whitman composed "O Captain!
My Captain!"
in 1865 after the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States.
Written to honor Lincoln, the poem has been classified as an elegy, or mourning poem.

Born in 1819 and died in 1892, the American Civil War was the central event of Whitman's life, during which he was a staunch Unionist.
Though initially indifferent to Lincoln, Whitman came to love the president as the war pressed on; however, the two men never met.

"O Captain!
My Captain!"
became one of Whitman's most famous poems, one that he would read at the end of his famous lecture on Lincoln's assassination.
Whitman became so identified with the poem that late in life he remarked, "Damn My Captain...I'm almost sorry I ever wrote the poem."
Walt Whitman composed "O Captain! My Captain!" in 1865 after the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States. Written to honor Lincoln, the poem has been classified as an elegy, or mourning poem.
Born in 1819 and died in 1892, the American Civil War was the central event of Whitman's life, during which he was a staunch Unionist. Though initially indifferent to Lincoln, Whitman came to love the president as the war pressed on; however, the two men never met.
"O Captain! My Captain!" became one of Whitman's most famous poems, one that he would read at the end of his famous lecture on Lincoln's assassination. Whitman became so identified with the poem that late in life he remarked, "Damn My Captain...I'm almost sorry I ever wrote the poem."
O Captain! My Captain!