"O Captain! My Captain!" is an extended-metaphor poem written by Walt
Whitman in 1865 about the death of U.S. president Abraham Lincoln. Well
received upon publication, the poem was Whitman's most popular during
his lifetime. Whitman was employed by the federal government in
Washington, D.C., through much of the Civil War, and, though he never
met Lincoln, Whitman felt a connection to him and was greatly moved by
his assassination. "My Captain" was first published in The Saturday
Press on November 4, 1865, and appeared in Sequel to Drum-Taps later
that year. He later included it in the collection Leaves of Grass and
recited the poem at several lectures on Lincoln's death. Critical
opinion has shifted since the mid-20th century, with scholars deriding
its conventionality and unoriginality. In popular culture, the poem
experienced renewed attention after it was featured in Dead Poets
Society (1989), and is frequently associated with the star of that film,
Robin Williams.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O_Captain!_My_Captain!>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1860:
New Zealand Wars: A property dispute between the colonial
government and Māori landowners in Waitara instigated the First
Taranaki War.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Taranaki_War>
1957:
A plane crash (wreckage pictured) on the slopes of Mount
Manunggal killed Philippine president Ramon Magsaysay and 24 others.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1957_Cebu_Douglas_C-47_crash>
1991:
In a referendum, nearly 70 percent of voters in nine Soviet
republics agreed that the Soviet Union should be preserved.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991_Soviet_Union_referendum>
2011:
First Libyan Civil War: The United Nations Security Council
adopted Resolution 1973, authorizing military intervention in Libya to
protect civilians.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_1973>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
clarsach:
(music) A small triangular wire-strung harp of Gaelic origin; a Celtic
harp.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/clarsach>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
O Liberté, que de crimes on commet en ton nom! O Liberty, how
many crimes are committed in thy name!
--Madame Roland
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Madame_Roland>