Read it the first time, readers may think that Whitman is only describing what it’s like to ride the ferry around Manhattan. However, read it a second time, and you’ll come to understand that, while Whitman may look like he’s talking about what it’s like to ride a ferry, he is talking about human experiences and connections across time. Whitman only uses the ferry ride to explain what he sees, feels, and experiences, and that his experience will be similar to others regardless of how much time passes. People are connected even though most of us are from different generations. I reached this idea because I noticed how Whitman kept talking about how other and future generations will eventually experience what he experienced.

Below is an example of Whitman using repetition and lists:
“Others will enter the gates of the ferry and cross from shore to shore,
Others will watch the sun of the flood-tide,
Others will see the shipping of Manhattan north and west, and the heights of Brooklyn to
the south and east,
Others will see the islands large and small”
His use of this technique is what helped me infer that his poem is about human connections. By repeating and listing “others,” I realized that he is emphasizing other people and how they’ll come to experience his experiences as well.