Descartes posed a very interesting question in his work Discourse on Method; how can we validate our existence? According to Descartes, our ability to think confirms our presence in this world. He goes on to say that our “whole essence or nature” is independent of everything but our soul (Section 4). It is very difficult for me to imagine my soul as an independent unit. Growing up, I was taught to believe that every part of me coexisted and was in sync with each other. The idea of existing without a body is quite unsettling given my past understanding of this topic. In addition to exploring the idea of the body and the soul as two separate units, Descartes goes on to question the existence of elements like “…the heavens, the earth, light, heat” (Section 4). He claims that the existence of these elements solely depends on the existence of God. Without God, who Descartes describes as someone who has no imperfections, these elements would only exist through one’s imagination and senses. As Descartes so eloquently put, “trying-to-understand-through imagination is even more absurd than trying-to-hear-or-smell-with-the-eyes, because there is this difference: the sense of sight gives us much assurance of the reality of its objects as do the senses of smell and hearing, whereas our imagination and our senses could never assure us of anything without the aid of our understanding” (Section 4). According to Descartes’ philosophy, if we don’t believe in God then we can’t be 100 percent sure of the existence of everything around us. Even though I grew up in a very religious household where I was taught that God is the center of the universe, I do not necessarily agree with Descartes’ philosophy. I believe that everyone has imperfections and God is no exception to this rule. There isn’t a singular being that’s more perfect than another and to set that kind of expectation were one being is more powerful and perfect than another is almost inhumane.

I was taught that it’s not polite to talk about myself too much in front of other people, Walt Whitman, obviously had another idea about this.

The title of this poem is extremely misleading because the author writes this poem as if he’s “everything.” He represents, contains and is connected to everything. So essentially he’s celebrating everything throughout this 52-sections- long poem. He’s right, what’s not worth celebrating anyway?

“Unscrew the locks from the doors! Unscrew the doors themselves from their jambs!”(24-5,6) Out of 52 sections, I like this sentence the most.  Somehow I saw “The Scream” by Edvard Munch in my head when I read this. Eleven years of Chinese schooling taught me to be humble, modest, and respectful. Teachers wanted us to be obedient and comply with the rules.( Now that I think of this, it’s quite reasonable because when you have 60 kids in one class, things could get really messy.) Countless examinations and tests numbed our interests for every subject. We are tamed, indifferent, and cynical.  “Go to school, get a good grade, try to graduate ASAP and get a good job. Then buy a house, get a car, marry a good girl and start your own family” is my parents’ plan for me. I loathe every single bit of it. I don’t want to get sucked in this vicious circle and I am working on finding a way out of it.

BMCC was the first college that I attended. I spent one semester there then got transferred to Baruch. I had just changed my major even though I had already taken some intermediate accounting class. I was so lost. People say accounting is a really solid major that will get you a job. I didn’t know what I really want so I went for it. After a year of studying I realized it’s not for me, nope, absolutely not. So I followed my heart, and changed it to finance. And now I am happy and resplendent like the noonday sun just like Raj in the BigBangTheory.

Fanliang Cen

When I started to read Song of Myself, I was confused on what Whitman was trying to refer to. However as I continued to read I started to realized that he refers to the universe and self-themes frequently. For example he calls himself kosmos, which means universe. I feel like he wants to be a part of the universe and there are also times he seems to want to be in individual. Majority of the time I feel like am just like everyone in the world, but when I think about it I’m unique. Everyone takes different journeys including myself.

I believe my first major decision of my life was in high school. I was an 18 year old, who didn’t know what I really want to do with my life. I choose to go to Stony Brook University majoring in Mechanical Engineering. Why? Because my brother was a mechanical engineer and he was my role model. After the third semester, I realized mechanical engineering was not for me. However I didn’t know how to tell my family that I will not graduate on time if I switched majors. So I decided to continue the classes and try to graduate on time. As classes got harder, I became really stressed because now my family is upset that my GPA is dropping. Finally I came out and told my family that I want to change majors and I plan to transfer to Baruch for accounting. I really enjoyed my accounting internship last summer and I am glad I choose accounting because it really suits my personality. Now here I am a senior at Baruch majoring in accounting. Baruch is really a turning point of my life.

Sandy Cheng

Walt Whitman’s poem “Song of Myself” made me reflect on the different journeys in life, the small and large ones. The different types of journeys you have accomplished in your life are rewarding and gives different achievements to each. As Whitman says in the first line of his poem, “I celebrate myself, and sing myself,” it shows his excitement on the accomplishments he has made while he celebrates his proudness.

Going to Baruch was not my first choice, neither was it my last. I had graduated high school and was not sure of where to go. I was not sure what career path I wanted to choose to take. I had chosen to take the opportunity and start my journey at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. As I started my journey there, I was young. Like Whitman said “I am of old and young, of the foolish as much as the wise, 
regardless of others, ever regardful of others.” I was young and not knowledgeable of what I wanted to do. I was still deciding on the pathway I wanted to take. It was a struggle and a stressful way to deal with it. I had decided to leave that opportunity and start another journey, at a different school this time. This time it was Hunter College. I paid my rights to this school as any other student would. After being there for a year, I have realized “whatever is done or said returns at last to me.” I should have never left my old college. It was not the right path to take. I was in disbelief with that school. It was not somewhere I wanted to be. As I began to realize that, “I accept Reality and dare not question it.” I changed colleges right away. Finally, I had accepted myself. I had chosen Baruch College at the end. As I begin to finish the last part of my journey, I am more than excited to finishing it here. College is a life-changing journey anyone is willing to take. As Whitman says, “Myself moving forward then and now and forever,” you are always on a new journey as you end one chapter in your life and start the next chapter.

At first glance of of Walt Whitman notorious poem, “Song of Myself”, I couldn’t fully grasp the true meaning behind the work. There did not seem to be a firm plott, nor any sort of concrete meaning behind the text. Regardless, I truly believed the poem had to have some sort deeper meaning. I decided to do some research on Whitman to get some background on his work. It seemed as if everyone had their own perspective as to how bring meaning to the poem. Personally I feel as if the poem was intentionally written in a way so that the reader can derive their own meaning. Whitman is essentially focuses on describing himself throughout the poem. He doesn’t base his ideas on a specific plot nor does he try and relate to one specific meaning.

Much like Whitman spoke about himself, I will speak about my personal journey to Baruch. Interestingly enough I come from Long Island just like Whitman. The only major difference is he did not attend school so he prob doesn’t have a story like mine. The time I wake usually depends on when my classes begin that day. My commute from the doorstep of my house to Baruch is an hour and a half. 15 min car ride from my house the the LIRR train station. 45 min train ride on the LIRR. Once in the city I spend 15 min a small coffee shop by penn station. And a 15 min bike ride to Baruch.

What makes this commute so interesting is how structured everything is. Once I do the same routine a few times I start picking up on some interesting things. From the train conductor getting to know me my name to seeing the same people on the bike ride to school. I find that being organized and structuring my day properly is the key the staying productive throughout the day. Whitman says, “There was never any more inception than there is now, Nor any more youth or age than there is now, And will never be any more perfection than there is now, Nor any more heaven or hell than there is now.” From this we learn that although there is so much challenges out there we must learn to remain productive in hopes to achieve our goals.

One question that stood out to me while reading Walt Whitman’s poem Song of Myself was “To be in any form, what is that?” (Section 27). We see so many different faces on a daily basis but never stop to think about what those individuals may be going through or experiencing in their lives. Why is that the case? Many of us are afraid to step out of our comfort zones and experience something new, unfamiliar. Before attending Baruch College, I studied at Hunter College where I expressed no interest in developing any kind of relationships with my classmates. As soon as class was over, I left the building and did not look back. After transferring to Baruch College, my attitude in regards to meeting new people shifted completely. As a Business major, not only did I begin to understand the importance of social networking but also the importance of learning about people’s experiences. By sharing our past experiences, we are letting others gain a better understanding of who we are. In the same sense, it is important for us not to have a “callous shell” and not disregard those around us (Section 27). We need to make a bigger effort to “touch [our] person to some one else’s” and this will, without a doubt, strengthen our relationships with others (Section 27). Therefore from time to time, we should stop and acknowledge those around us because they can have a positive influence on our life.

The words Whitman uses in his poem ‘Song of Myself’ repeats itself in my mind as I pace up and down the platform waiting for the phantom train to arrive, late of course, “Clear and sweet is my soul, and clear and sweet is all that is not my soul.”. Whitman uses this line to create an understanding of what it means to be fully in synch with our body and mind and also aware of our thoughts and feelings and how they may impact the people around us.

This specific line stood out to me because it acts as a reminder to myself to not allow the hustle and bustle of New York to affect me negatively. There of course will be times where we step out of this perfect character we aim for and for me it is between the hours of 8am and 9:05am where I dare not describe my soul as sweet. Along with the other hundred people I encounter on my journey to school I am fighting my way onto over crowded trains and weaving my way through crowds of tourists and city strollers, only to endure the smell of unbrushed teeth and sweaty backs.

The satisfaction I feel when I have finally arrived at my destination (school) is as if I have just run a marathon and won, it is a bitter sweet feeling where the sweet reveals itself when I can come home after a long day and say I learned something new today.

Sarah Boateng

It feels like this winter recess lasted way more than month and a half, because I finally had a reason to get up early and get ready for a first day at school. The other day opened my eyes around 7 a.m. and I was looking forward to start a new semester. It looks like the spring has sprung outside my window, as the sun shone my windows and made outside look warm and inviting. I toasted a bagel and brewed coffee, while getting dressed up. Than I put notebook in my new backpack and and closed the doors. As am going towards the subway I see a homeless guy that sits underneath the passaway and I am thinking what kind a life he had before he ended up on the streets. His emontionless eyes staring at one spot and his body covered in blanket looks timelles. It seems time and space is at no importance to him, as well as wheater conditions and sourrounding. I continue walking and I start noticing nature’s beauty: “I lean and loafe at my ease observing a spear of summer grass”. I feel so strong and healthy and I am embracing the life I have, especially when there are so many less fortunate people. In the same point I cannot be younger than I am now, nor be older, therefor we shout embrace our existence on earth, because we don’t know when is the end. ”And will never be any more perfection than there is now, nor any more heaven or hell than there is now.” I think that poet is trying to tell us that we are perfect the way we are, and that we need to live in present, not looking back or in the future. We should enjoy the beauty of life as well as learn to deal with tragedy and pain in life.

Marija Krasojevic

In his poem “Song of Myself,” Walt Whitman presents an appreciation for his life and all the activities that make up his day. He describes the “celebration” of his life and his journey to get to where he stands in the world. He understands that this journey cannot and should not be questioned or challenged. We all have a unique journey that brought us to where we are in life. Without this journey, we would not have the mentality and aspirations that is ingrained in us today. We should always be conscious and grateful for where we came from in the sense of our journeys. Walt Whitman feels that everything in the world is good and for something to be considered “bad,” it must contribute to some greater good.

Similar to Walt Whitman’s journey, I too have a journey that influenced where I stand today. Since I was a sophomore in high school, I knew I wanted to attend Baruch College as a finance major. I was fond of the idea that Baruch was located in Manhattan, which is the heart of most, if not all, distinguished business opportunities. After years of hard work and drive, I received academic scholarship to Baruch and greatly looked forward to my future there. Everyday I am conscious of my journey at Baruch because I feel that the choices I make now will be of great significance to my adulthood. Whitman sums up the meaning of his journey with, “The past and present wilt—I have fill’d them, emptied them, And proceed to fill my next fold of the future.” Through this, he encapsulates that we cannot worry about the past and present as it is already fulfilled. We must look to the future with high hopes and enormous ambitions as we continue and perfect our journey.

Reading Walt Whitman’s poem “Song of Myself” encouraged me to reflect on my own personal daily journey to Baruch. The line in the poem “I hear the sound I love, the sound of the human voice, I hear all sounds running together, combined, fused or following” depicts exactly what comes to mind during my commute to school every morning. There are many different conversations taking place throughout my daily train ride and the sound has truly “infused” into one similar sound that exhibits a typical train ride in New York. As a college student born and raised in New York, the line “my tongue, every atom of my blood, form’d from this soil, this air” relates to me. I decided to stay in New York throughout my college career because I felt that during my time as a college student I would be building myself into the person I would remain for the rest of my life. College is a life changing experience and having the privilege of continuing to grow in the place I have called home throughout my entire life is an honor. Although I am very prideful of my hometown, my daily commute to Baruch is not an easy one. From overly crowded train rides to train delays it can become a bit overwhelming. The line in Walt Whitman’s poem “I accept Reality and dare not question it” stood out to me because it is something that I do on a daily basis. I have accepted my reality of college student struggles without question because it is clear to me that the result will always outweigh any negatives I may face today.