Walt Whitman’s, “No Labor-Saving Machine” addresses the importance of a seemingly unimportant person’s life. From my understanding of the short piece, Whitman is answering the age old question of “How will people remember me when I’m gone?” Each line plays a role in depicting this idea and brings in the fear that many have of living an unimportant life. “No labor-saving machine,/ Nor discovery have I made,/ Nor will I be able to leave behind me any wealthy bequest to found a hospital or library,/ Nor reminiscence of any deed of courage, for America,/ Nor literary success, nor intellect – nor book for the book-shelf.” Whitman’s repetition of the word “nor” at the start of lines 2-4 emphasizes the lack of a significant impact the subject of this piece has on the world around them. They have made no contribution to society which eases the burdens of mankind, and likewise have not made any footprints in the literary world. Such a view of a person’s life is not an uncommon one, as in this day and age living a normal life can often be seen as living an irrelevant one.

In the last two lines of the piece, Whitman states “Only a few carols, vibrating through the air, I leave,/ For comrades and lovers,” meaning that a person who lives such an “unimportant” life may only be of meaning to the people closest to them.  This idea is one that correlates with one major theme that I picked up on in the book, “The Little Prince.” The prince in the story seemed to arrive on Earth to meet a person of inconsequence, at least in the grand scheme of his existence. It was merely chance that brought the two together but that meeting opened the eyes of the stranded man in the desert. He learned from the young prince that the worth of something lies in the eyes of the beholder and the connection one makes with it. While a single rose on the prince’s planet was a true rare beauty, on Earth it was just another plant. The difference was that the little prince had a connection with his rose, and it was unique for that reason. Such a connection gave it worth and meaning in a world of millions of seemingly minuscule and unrelated existences. One may leave no significant impact on humankind and may pass away unnoticed, but they will mean the world to the people they make connections with. Such connections give them an importance that surpasses even the most famous inventor or writer.

This piece by Walt Whitman really made me think about my own ambitions in life. At a school like Baruch, so many people are interested in making something of themselves and proving to the world that they are worthy of recognition. Such competition cannot allow for us all to be remembered for some act of genius that improves the world for generations to come. This idea made me start to think, “How will I make my life mean something to the people around me? How will I become the single unique rose in the bush?”