"We see, as in the universes of the material kosmos, after meterological, vegetable, and animal cycles, man at last arises, born through them, to prove them, concentrate them, to turn upon them with wonder and love -- to command them, adorn them, and carry them upward into superior realms -- so, out of the series of the preceding social and political universes, now arise these States. We see that while many were supposing things established and complete, really the grandest things always remain; and discover that the work of the New World is not ended, but only fairly begun."
Whitman is concerned with progress, for mankind but also for all life. As a naturalist, he understands the interconnectness of nature and man's place within the hierarchy of life. He correctly identifies the significance of the American endeavor as one of evolutionary value. Rather than contenting himself with the exciting opportunities of the young nation, he recognizes the immense need for continual progress and development.
"I hail with joy the oceanic, variegated, intense practical energy, the demand for facts, even the business materialism of the current age, our States. But wo to the age or land in which these things, movements, stopping at themselves, do not tend to ideas. As fuel to flame, and flame to the heavens, so must wealth, science, materialism -- even this democracy of which we make so much -- unerringly feed the highest mind, the soul."
Whitman is a thinker. He condemns the materialism of the Reconstruction Era for contenting itself with the immediate. Instead he advocates for the pursuit of a goal -- human development, of a holistic kind which pertains to the soul. Influenced by Darwin's ideas, Whitman desires to further the progress of human evolution. He envisions this being accomplished, at least in part, by the success of democracy.
"I do not mean the smooth walks, trimm'd hedges, poseys and nightingales of the English poets, but the whole orb, with its geologic history, the kosmos, carrying fire and snow, that rolls through the illimitable areas, light as a feather, though weighing billions of tons."
Here we find some of Whitman's art theory. He believes poetry is a living art, one which must change through time. Rather than admiring the polished poetry of his British predecessors, he reminds the reader that the dramatic discoveries in the field of science alone necessitate a new approach to poetry. He desires a poetry which reflects the complex, nearly impossible nature of the universe, in its most scientifically accurate form.
"Never was there, perhaps, more hollowness at heart than at present, and here in the United States. Genuine belief seems to have left us."
It's difficult to specifically categorize Democratic Vistas. True, Whitman is writing about politics and sociology, but he's doing so with the particular emphasis of an artist and also a participant. He's concerned about his own personal future as well as that of the nation at large. In light of the rapid changes of recent times, he's raising an alarm: we're quickly losing our purpose.
