UDGAM SCHOOL FOR CHILDREN
Std. X – English Language and Literature (184)
P 9 – Fog
Name: ____________________ Std /Sec: _____ Roll No. _____
INTRODUCTION
Fog is a very short poem written by Carl Sandburg. He has described the process of arrival
of the fog into a city and the harbour. He has very beautifully compared it to a cat.
POEM AND EXPLANATION
The fog comes
on little cat feet.
It sits looking
over harbour and city
on silent haunches
and then moves on.
Fog is a thick cloud of tiny water droplets present in the atmosphere. It is generally seen
during the winter season. Here the poet describes the advancement of fog towards the city
and the harbour. He says the fog comes on its little feet, very slowly and calmly just like a
cat. One never knows how and when the fog will enter the city. Therefore, fog is compared
to the cat which enters our home in an unpredictable manner. Next, he says that the fog sits
over the whole of the city as a cat sits silently when it sits on the haunches and looks around
at the nearby places and things. After a while the fog leaves the city and moves on. It is a
natural phenomenon that fog does not stay at a place for long and leaves the place after a
few hours.
POETIC DEVICES
Metaphor: Fog is compared to cat (on little cat feet)
Rhyme scheme: There is no rhyme scheme followed. Poem is in free verse
Enjambment: When a sentence continues to next line (It sits looking…then moves on)
Personification: fog has been personified - Fog comes, it sits [
SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS
1. What does Sandburg think the fog is like?
Sandburg thinks the fog is like a cat that comes silently so that no one can sense its
arrival.
2. Does the poet actually say that the fog is like a cat? Find three things that tell
us that the fog is like a cat.
The three things that tell us that the fog is like a cat are:
a) The fog comes slowly and silently like a cat
b) The cat sits on its haunches for some time looking around and then moves away
as it came.
c) Similarly, the fog spreads over the harbour and city for some time. Finally, it
moves away like a cat.
Std. X English Language and Literature (184) 2022 – 2023 Page 1 of 2
3. How does the poet employ the double imagery of the fog and the cat?
The poetic device of metaphor is very effectively used in the poem. The fog is
converted into cat and the cat is morphed back into the fog. The silent arrival of the
fog is like a little cat. The fog stays there sitting like the cat on its haunches.
4. Which aspect of nature does Carl Sand-burg present in the poem ‘Fog’?
The poet presents nature in its raw and natural state. The fog comes as if from
nowhere. It comes suddenly and silently like a little cat. The fog’s power is
overwhelming. It engulfs everything, the city and the harbour in its all-embracing fold.
Then following the law of change, it disappears, no one knows where.
LONG ANSWER QUESTIONS
1. What metaphor has the poet used in the poem ‘Fog’? Do you think it is
appropriate?
In the poem Fog’, Carl Sandburg has metaphorically compared the fog to a cat. The
first strange thing about the metaphor is the comparison of a natural phenomenon
with a living animal. Perhaps the poet wants to emphasize the silent nature and
mysterious ways of the fog, so he has compared the fog to a cat. A cat does not make
a sound when it walks. So also, is the fog, but its presence is apparent. Its ‘silence’
is very much like that of a cat moving on its little feet.
Then the fog stays in its place looking over the harbour and city which creates a hazy
atmosphere all around. The way it sits is very much like a cat sitting on its haunches,
looking here and there before it makes a move. Whatever the purpose may be, both
the fog as well as a cat make their impression and make their presence felt. The
comparison of the fog to a cat seems very appropriate because, reading the poem,
one feels that truly, the fog approaches stealthily, just like a cat.
2. How does Carl Sandburg describe the arrival, stay and departure of fog through
the image of a metaphorical cat?
The poet employs a double image. The fog is converted into a cat and the cat morphs
back into the fog. The arrival of the fog is silent and sudden. It comes as if from
nowhere. Its arrival is like a small cat. It sits and stays for a while. It engulfs everything
in its all-embracing fold. It spreads its fold everywhere from the harbour to the city. It
sits silently as a cat sits on its haunches. The fog stays but not for long. A cat never
stays at one place for a long time. So, the fog moves ahead no one knows where.
Carl Sandburg describes the raw aspect of nature, the all-embracing and prevailing
fog. Its silent power is felt everywhere from the harbour to the city.
Std. X English Language and Literature (184) 2022 – 2023 Page 2 of 2
