The Untold Truth Of Walt Whitman

Few poets have attracted as much heated debate over the nature of their sexuality as Walt Whitman.

"Leaves of Grass" began to grow in notoriety following the release of its third edition in 1860, which saw the inclusion of two new sections, according to Biography. The first, "Children of Adam," was notable for its heterosexual erotic overtones, while another, known as "Calamus," openly portrayed sensual relationships between men that were undeniably homoerotic. This was groundbreaking work, but not everyone in the 19th century appreciated Whitman's candor, while even the earlier editions of "Leaves of Grass" attracted the ire of contemporary critics who reviled Whitman's poetry as "a mass of stupid filth" and "a rotten garbage of licentious thoughts" (via Boston Review).

One of the most famous anecdotes used to cast light on Whitman's romantic life concerns the writer and gay icon Oscar Wilde, who, after meeting Whitman in 1882 told the activist George Cecil Ives that he was certain of Whitman's homosexuality, as Wilde had "the kiss of Walt Whitman still on my lips," according to Bi.org.

The same source states that Whitman is believed to have been in an intense relationship with a bus conductor named Peter Doyle, though there is no evidence to say categorically that their love was sexual in nature. When asked directly about his sexuality, Whitman often obfuscated; in one letter, he described having fathered six illegitimate children with multiple women, though no researchers have ever unearthed whether these people actually existed (via Bi.org).

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