"I celebrate myself, and sing myself, And what I assume you shall assume, For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you". -Whitman 

          The above lines begin Walt Whitman's piece "Song of Myself". Upon reading this work, which I first read in high school, it comes off as rather egotistical; however, after reading further into the text this was not the case. Whitman argues in his writing that he is connected to everyone, hence why he states that "every atom belonging to me as well belongs to you". In class we didn't have to read the entire piece, but if we had read it the undertones of Whitman's belief in the interconnectedness of the world would become apparent. He isn't literally singing a song in ode to himself but rather everyone because he cannot refer to himself without referring to everyone.