You studied a text analysis of the poem "I Hear America Singing," consider how the speaker of the poem describes America as "singing," write a paragraph discussing the central theme of the poem, drawing information from the text. Cite specific evidence to support your analysis.

The dominant theme of the poem “I Hear America Singing” is work, specifically hard and intense manual labor. Whitman clearly dedicates the poem to people who work hard day by day: mechanics, carpenters, masons, boatmen, deckhands, shoemakers, hatters, wood-cutters, ploughboys, mothers, wives or girls.

Using information from the text analysis, you should have noted the following points about the central theme of the poem:

The poet visualizes all Americans working in harmony to build a stronger nation.

Whitman uses the image of people singing while doing their work and creates a visual effect of the nation as one chorus of the various tunes.

Whitman allows American readers to see themselves reflected in the poem, and he establishes a connected identity between Americans of every skill and occupation to illustrate the idea that every American has an equal opportunity to be a part of the American voice.

Explanation: