Poem- Fog
Carl Sandburg
Introduction
The poem, Fog, showcases Sandburg’s rich imagination and creative genius. In the poem, he
uses a common weather phenomenon like fog to comment on different aspects of nature.
Central Idea
The poet has given a very lively picture of the fog in this poem. He compares it with a cat. It
comes as silently as a cat. It spreads all over the city and the harbour. It is everywhere. It seems
that it is sitting on its haunches, silently. Then suddenly it gets up and moves to some other
place. This poem is about the beauties of nature. However, due to our busy life we fail to enjoy
the beauty of nature.
Theme
Sandburg also describes how the fog overlooks or engulfs the ‘city’ and the ‘harbour’, which
represent the world of humans. In this way, nature, through fog, disrupts human life, and
asserts its power over humanity.
Sandburg compares the fog to a cat throughout the poem. Cats are usually known to be
independent and solitary creatures. Therefore, this comparison highlights the indifference of
nature towards humans.
Summary
Fog descends upon a city silently like a cat quietly enters a room.
Just like a cat sits on walls or window sills, the fog settles down on the city and its ports.
For a brief time, it covers the city and then moves on to its next destination, as silently
as it arrived.
Poetic Devices
Rhyme Scheme
The poem does not have a rhyme scheme since it is written in free verse.
Metaphor
Sandburg extensively uses metaphors in the poem to draw comparisons between
nature and a cat.
In the line ‘The fog comes on little cat feet’, Sandburg has indirectly compared the fog
with a cat.
He also compares the fog settled over the city to a cat sitting on its hind legs in the line
‘It sits looking over harbour and city on silent haunches and then moves on’.
In the same line, the poet says that fog leaving the city is like a cat leaving a place
quietly.
Personification
The words ‘It sits looking/over harbour and city’ are an example of personification.
The fog, which is a thing, has been shown doing the actions of sitting and ‘looking’ here.
Imagery
Sandburg uses simple words to create a vivid description of the fog.
The phrases ‘the fog comes on’, ‘sits looking’ and ‘moves on’ invoke imagery of
movement in the poem.
The phrases along with ‘little cat feet’ and ‘silent haunches’ come together to compare
the actions of the fog to that of a cat.
Transferred Epithet
The phrase ‘on silent haunches’ is an example of transferred epithet. Here, ‘haunches’
are not ‘silent’. Rather, the phrase refers to how a cat silently sits on its back legs.
