# The Master — Leaves of Grass character guide

> The Master in Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman.

**Role:** minor

**Also known as:** the Master, the master, himself

**First appearance:** 0047-song-of-myself

## Who they are

A teacher or lord figure addressed in several poems.

## Relationships

### [Narrator](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/characters/narrator)

_professional_

The Master is a teacher or authoritative figure whom the narrator respects and learns from.

### [Narrator](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/characters/narrator)

_professional_

The Master is a teacher or authoritative figure whom the narrator respects and learns from.

## In the story

### [O Span of Youth!](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/45)

Implied as 'The Lord' who will be present at the narrator's appointed rendezvous.

### [From Pent-Up Aching Rivers](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/from-pent-up-aching-rivers)

Referenced as the pilot to whom the speaker yields the vessel, symbolizing a guiding authority or divine force.

### [The Answerer](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/2)

Referred to as the master among philosophs, embodying perfect sanity.

### [Pioneers! O Pioneers!](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/pioneers-o-pioneers)

Referenced indirectly through the 'mistress' figures—mighty, delicate, starry, and warlike—symbolizing guiding ideals.

### [The Soul's Voyage to God](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/8)

Implied as the 'Elder Brother' found at the journey's end, into whose arms the Younger melts.

### [Faces](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/faces)

Referenced as the source from which all faces descend.

### [The Lord Advances](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/chapters/4)

Referenced as the source from which all faces descend.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/characters/the_master
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/leaves_of_grass_se/characters