# Dread Mother — Leaves of Grass character guide > Dread Mother in Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman. **Role:** minor **Also known as:** Mother, your, yours **First appearance:** 0047-song-of-myself ## Who they are Personified maternal figure, possibly representing nature or death. ## Relationships ### [Narrator](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/characters/narrator) _family_ The Dread Mother is a dark, primordial maternal figure representing death and nature, with whom the narrator has a reverent, fearful bond. ### [Lo](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/characters/lo) _family_ The Dread Mother and Lo are linked as maternal and erotic feminine forces, representing life and death intertwined. ### [Narrator](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/characters/narrator) _family_ The Dread Mother is a dark, primordial maternal figure representing death and nature, with whom the narrator has a reverent, fearful bond. ### [Narrator](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/characters/narrator) _family_ The Dread Mother is a dark, primordial maternal figure representing death and nature, with whom the narrator has a reverent, fearful bond. ## In the story ### [America the Union](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/8) Invoked as 'Protectress absolute' and 'bulwark of all,' to whom all ships, farms, and industries are dedicated. ### [A Song of the Rolling Earth](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/1) The earth is personified as the 'eloquent dumb great mother' who never fails her children with true words. ### [As I Ebb’d with the Ocean of Life](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/as-i-ebb-d-with-the-ocean-of-life) The fierce old mother ocean, endlessly crying for her castaways, representing the relentless force of nature. ### [As I Ebb'd with the Ocean of Life](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/1) The fierce old mother endlessly crying for her castaways. ### [Ebb, Ocean of Life](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/4) The fierce old mother ocean, moaning and crying for her castaways. ### [On the Beach at Night Alone](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/on-the-beach-at-night-alone) Personified as the old mother sea, swaying and singing her husky song. ### [Mother and Babe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/mother-and-babe) The mother figure, depicted as nurturing and protective, with her babe nestling at her breast. ### [When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/when-lilacs-last-in-the-dooryard-bloom-d) Addressed as 'Dark mother always gliding near,' a personification of death. ### [A Nation Announcing Itself](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/2) Invoked as 'O Mother' in the closing plea, representing the nation or its foundational spirit. ### [The Phantom by Ontario's Shore](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/9) Addressed as 'Mother' in the closing exclamation, representing the nation's need for poetic soul. ### [The Individual as the Center of All](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/15) Addressed as 'Mother!' with a subtle sense severe, refusing to treat with anyone but individuals. ### [Confronting the Cosmos](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/18) Addressed directly as 'Mother,' with a plea to bend close and a recognition that her work continues through war and crime. ### [The Return of the Heroes](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/the-return-of-the-heroes) The 'Mother of All' watches over the harvest, her gaze spanning the land and counting the gathered products. ### [Song of the Broad-Axe 7](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/7) The Mother of All who gazes forth and counts the varied gathering of products. ### [Old Ireland](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/old-ireland) Personified as ancient sorrowful mother, once a queen, now lean and tatter'd, mourning over a grave. ### [The Sleepers](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/8) The night is addressed as 'O my mother,' symbolizing a maternal, nurturing force to which the narrator returns. ### [As a Strong Bird on Pinions Free](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/2) Invoked as 'dread Mother,' representing America as a sublime, maternal figure. ### [The Justified Mother of Men](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/5) Portrayed as the old Quaker mother, serene and beautiful, the 'justified mother of men' who embodies the earth's melodious character. ### [As at Thy Portals Also Death](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/as-at-thy-portals-also-death) The buried mother, remembered with love and described as the ideal woman. ### [Pensive on Her Dead Gazing](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/pensive-on-her-dead-gazing) The Mother of All, grieving and commanding the earth to absorb and preserve her dead sons. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/characters/dread_mother - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/characters