Whitman is today regarded as America's Homer or Dante, and his work the touchstone for literary originality in the New World. In <em>Leaves of Grass</em>, he abandoned the rules of traditional poetry - breaking the standard metered line, discarding the obligatory rhyming scheme, and using the vernacular. Emily Dickinson condemned his sexual and physiological allusions as `disgraceful', but Emerson saw the book as the `most extraordinary piece of wit and wisdom that America has yet contributed'. A century later it is his judgment of this autobiographical vision of the vigor of the American nation that has proved the more enduring.<br><strong></strong> About the Series: For over 100 years <strong>Oxford World's Classics</strong> has made available the broadest spectrum of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, voluminous notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.