Whitman was inspired to write Leaves of Grass based on Ralph Waldo Emerson's clarion call for a truly American poet who would tell of its glories, virtues and vices. In 1855, Whitman self published a small, slim volume containing twelve poems, which included Song of Myself, I Sing the Body Electric, and others which went on to gain immortality. Whitman himself wanted the book to be small enough to be carried in a pocket and though some 800 copies were initially printed, this edition did not even contain the author's name.
