The New Poetry

Chicago
READING 3 Understand the
Grass
structure and elements of
poetry. 7 Draw conclusions Poetry by Carl Sandburg
about how an author’s sensory
language creates imagery in
literary text. RC-11(A) Reflect
on understanding to monitor
Meet the Author
comprehension.

Carl Sandburg 1878–1967

When Carl Sandburg died in 1967, he ran out of money, he returned to

President Lyndon Johnson was among the the Midwest, writing for journals in
first to sing his praises. “Carl Sandburg,” Chicago and joining the lecture circuit.

did you know?

the president declared, “was more than the His skill as an orator eventually earned
voice of America, more than the poet of him a job in Milwaukee as an organizer
Carl Sandburg . . . its strength and genius. He was America.” for the Wisconsin Social-Democratic
• considered running Johnson’s feelings were not unique. Party. While living there, he married
for president of the Americans everywhere cherished Sandburg, Lillian Steichen, who, like Sandburg, was
United States. believing his verse celebrated their spirit and committed to fighting social injustice.
• worked as a war speech as well as championed their cause.
correspondent during
Literary Celebrity In 1912, the couple
World War I. A Hobo at Heart Sandburg grew up in moved to Chicago, where Sandburg
• wrote books for children.
America’s heartland in Galesburg, Illinois. became a reporter, editorial writer, and
From his Swedish immigrant parents, columnist for the Chicago Daily News.
• spoke before Congress
about Abraham Lincoln.
August and Clara Sandburg, he learned Two years later, his verse began to appear
to value hard work and education. His in Poetry, a prominent literary magazine.
family’s poverty, however, forced Sandburg With the publication of his poetry
to curtail his schooling at 13 in order to collections Chicago Poems, Cornhuskers,
go to work. He labored at various jobs, and Smoke and Steel, Sandburg gained
ranging from shining shoes to delivering a reputation as the poet of the common
milk. When he turned 19, he left home to people. The poetry readings he gave
explore the American West, becoming one further heightened his popularity.
of the many hoboes who hop hopped freight Interspersing poetry with commentary
trains in order to travel free. and folk songs sung in his melodious
baritone, Sandburg enthralled audiences
Social Activist When tthe Spanish-
wherever he went.
erupted in 1898,
American War erupte
Sandburg served for eight months Sandburg won a number of awards
After his return,
in Puerto Rico. Afte and honors, including the 1951 Pulitzer
Lombard College
he studied at Lomba Prize for poetry for Complete Poems and
receiving a
but left without rece the 1939 Pulitzer Prize for history for
diploma. Overtaken once again by Abraham Lincoln: The War Years, the
rambled about the
wanderlust, he rambl last volume in a six-volume biography.
country, soaking up America’s
sights and songs.
so When
Author Online
Go to thinkcentral.com. KEYWORD: HML11-928

928
literary analysis: tone and diction
Some poems exhibit a subtle tone that is difficult to perceive
and nearly impossible to describe. Others practically break
forth with trumpets in the first stanza. Whether gently or
Would you
boldly, poets generally convey tone, or attitude toward the
subject, through diction (word choice and syntax) and choice rather live
of details. In the first lines of “Chicago,” Carl Sandburg’s
diction creates a tone of admiration for a hard-working city: in the city
Hog Butcher for the World,
Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat,
or the
Player with Railroads and the Nation’s Freight Handler;
Stormy, husky, brawling,
country?
City of the Big Shoulders. . . . “If you would be known, and not know,
Read these two poems by Sandburg aloud to help you identify vegetate in a village; if you would know,
the tone of each. If you read with emotion, your tone of voice and not be known, live in a city,” wrote
may provide you with clues to the poem’s tone. the poet Reverend Charles Caleb Colton.
What benefits and drawbacks do you
Review: Personification associate with city living? with country
living? What kind of place inspires you
reading skill: synthesize details the most? In the poems that follow,
In “Chicago,” Sandburg presents a long list, or catalog, of Carl Sandburg explores different
qualities, images, and statements about the city. Collectively, settings that have affected him.
this sensory language helps create vivid imagery of the city.
As you read, pay close attention to the sensory language that QUICKWRITE Think about a city or a
Sandburg employs, and note how he uses it to create imagery. place in the country where you would
After you read the poem, you’ll be asked to synthesize like to live. What aspects of this setting
numerous details into a single, coherent impression. particularly appeal to you? How might
living there enrich your life? Spend
a few minutes writing in response to
Complete the activities in your Reader/Writer Notebook. these questions.

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 Chicago
Carl Sandburg

Hog Butcher for the World,

Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat,
Player with Railroads and the Nation’s Freight Handler;
Stormy, husky, brawling,
5 City of the Big Shoulders: a a SYNTHESIZE DETAILS
The brief descriptive
phrases in lines 1–5, also
They tell me you are wicked and I believe them, for I
known as epithets, are
have seen your painted women under the gas lamps almost like nicknames; in
luring the farm boys. fact, some of them have
And they tell me you are crooked and I answer: Yes, it come into common use.
is true I have seen the gunman kill and go free to What do they tell you
about the city’s economy
kill again. and industry?
And they tell me you are brutal and my reply is: On the
faces of women and children I have seen the marks
of wanton1 hunger.
And having answered so I turn once more to those who
sneer at this my city, and I give them back the sneer
and say to them:
10 Come and show me another city with lifted head singing
so proud to be alive and coarse and strong and cunning. b b TONE AND DICTION
Flinging magnetic curses amid the toil of piling job on Lines 6–8 contain harsh
words such as wicked
job, here is a tall bold slugger set vivid against the
and brutal. Identify
little soft cities; the language in lines
Fierce as a dog with tongue lapping for action, cunning 9–10 that counters this
as a savage pitted against the wilderness, harshness. What does it
Bareheaded, reveal about Sandburg’s
feelings toward the city
Shoveling, as well as its critics?

1. wanton: without limitation.

930 unit 5: the harlem renaissance and modernism

South of the Loop (1936), Charles Turzak. Color woodcut, Image 102/3˝ × 113/4˝, sheet 111/4˝ × 15˝. Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art, Northwestern University, 1992.73
© Joan Turzak Van Hees.

15 Wrecking, Analyze Visuals

Planning, What qualities of the
Building, breaking, rebuilding, city are emphasized
by both the horizontal
Under the smoke, dust all over his mouth, laughing with and the vertical lines in
white teeth, this woodcut? Refer to
specific areas of the print
Under the terrible burden of destiny laughing as a young when giving your answer.
man laughs,
20 Laughing even as an ignorant fighter laughs who has
never lost a battle,
Bragging and laughing that under his wrist is the pulse, and
under his ribs the heart of the people,
Laughing!
Laughing the stormy, husky, brawling laughter of
Youth, half‑naked, sweating, proud to be Hog
25 Butcher, Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat, Player with
Railroads and Freight Handler to the Nation.

chicago 931
 Grass
Carl Sandburg

Pile the bodies high at Austerlitz and Waterloo.1

Shovel them under and let me work—
I am the grass; I cover all. c c PERSONIFICATION
Reread lines 1–3. Sandburg
uses personification in
And pile them high at Gettysburg establishing the speaker
5 And pile them high at Ypres and Verdun.2 for this poem. Who is the
Shovel them under and let me work. speaker and what is its
Two years, ten years, and passengers ask the conductor: role in these scenes?
What place is this?
d TONE ANd dICTION
Where are we now?
Identify several examples
of repetition in this poem.
10 I am the grass. What tone is established
Let me work. d by the repetition of these
words and/or phrases?

1. Austerlitz (ôPstEr-lGtsQ) and Waterloo: sites of significant battles during the

Napoleonic Wars (1800–1815).
2. Ypres (CPprE) and Verdun (vEr-dOnP): sites of significant battles during World War I.

Le Plateau de Bolante (1917), Félix Vallotton. Oil on canvas. Musée d’Histoire Contemporaine,
Paris. © Musée d’Histoire Contemporaine-BDIC.

932 unit 5: the harlem renaissance and modernism

After Reading

Comprehension
1. Recall What negative aspects of Chicago are presented in lines 6–8? READING 3 Understand the
2. Clarify What scenes are referred to in “Grass”? structure and elements of
poetry. 7 Draw conclusions about
how an author’s sensory language
Literary Analysis creates imagery in literary text. RC-
11(A) Reflect on understanding to
monitor comprehension.
3. Synthesize Details Think about the litany, or list, of images and ideas in
“Chicago.” Based on the accumulation of detail in this poem, what general
statement can you make about the people who live and work in the city?
4. Compare Tone and Diction Identify the tone of each poem. Are the tones similar
or different? Cite at least three examples of diction that reveal tone in each poem.
5. Evaluate Personification Sandburg uses personification in “Chicago” as
well as in “Grass,” giving human characteristics to objects, animals, or ideas.
Describe the figure who personifies Chicago. What words and phrases
capture his most important traits?
6. Analyze Style What poetic or other stylistic devices underscore Sandburg’s
characterization of Chicago as a brash, brawling, vibrant city? Consider such
elements as line and stanza shape, rhythm, and other formal conventions.
Be specific, citing examples from the text.
7. Interpret Setting and Theme Both “Chicago” and “Grass” depict a strong
sense of place, each containing some contradiction. For each poem, identify
this contradiction and use it to help you formulate a theme statement. Give
evidence to support your answers.
8. Compare and Contrast Writers Carl Sandburg was greatly influenced by the
poetry of Walt Whitman (see page 530). Compare and contrast the two poets
in terms of the following points, citing specific lines from their work. Can you
see Whitman’s influence in Sandburg’s poems? Explain why or why not.
• use of catalog or litany • tone and diction
• use of repetition and parallelism • ideas about America

Literary Criticism
9. Critical Interpretations Imagist poet William Carlos Williams once criticized
Sandburg’s poetry as “formless.” Even some of Sandburg’s supporters
conceded that this was true. Do you agree or disagree? Cite evidence to
support your response, also explaining whether you would count yourself
among his supporters or his critics, and why.

Would you rather live in the city or the country?

In his poems “Chicago” and “Grass,” Carl Sandburg uses vivid imagery to make
surprising statements about the city and the country. If you were going to write
a poem about the city or the country, what imagery would you use? Explain.

chicago / grass 933