Leaves of Grass · Chapter
Song of the Redwood-Tree explained
A majestic redwood tree, personified as a dying giant, sings its farewell as it is felled by loggers.
What happens
A majestic redwood tree, personified as a dying giant, sings its farewell as it is felled by loggers. The tree celebrates its life and its sacrifice for the coming of a new, democratic civilization, embodied by the 'race of races' that will build a grand future on the American continent.
Free preview opens on this chapter — companions, themes, and character notes appear beside the text.
Narrative arc
Story tension across the book.
- Setup
- Escalation
- Breaking point
- Aftermath
- Closing
The emotional and psychological peak occurs when the speaker fully internalizes the world’s suffering, feeling…
Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.
Follow the arc while readingThemes in this chapter
- Celebration of Nature and the Universe
The redwood is portrayed as a sublime, ancient being whose life and death are part of a cosmic cycle, celebrating its existence even as it falls.
- America and Its People
The poem envisions America as a 'race of races' destined to build a grand, democratic civilization, with the redwood's sacrifice enabling this future.
Characters to notice
- Narrator
The poet who listens to the redwood's song and interprets its meaning for humanity.
- America
The land and the emerging nation for which the redwood sacrifices itself, envisioned as a place of democracy and industry.
- Democracy
The ideal of equality and collective progress that the redwood heralds as the future of the continent.
Key passages
“Farewell my brethren, / Farewell O earth and sky, farewell ye neighboring waters, / My time has ended, my term has come.”
The redwood tree bids a final goodbye to its surroundings, accepting that its life cycle is complete.
The tree's dignified acceptance of death as a natural and necessary transition.
“I see the race of races, / The dominant race, the race of the future, / That shall possess the earth, and build upon it cities, farms, and ships.”
The redwood envisions a new, dominant human civilization that will use the land to create a prosperous society.
The tree's prophetic vision of American expansion and progress.
