The Trees Summary & Explanation

“Fog” by Carl Sandburg Explanation

First Line: “The fog comes on little cat feet.”

Explanation: The poet begins by comparing the fog to a cat. Just like a cat moves quietly and stealthily on its soft paws, the fog also arrives silently and almost unnoticed. This comparison helps us visualize the gentle and quiet nature of the fog’s arrival.

Second Line: “It sits looking over harbour and city”

Explanation: Here, the fog is personified as if it has the ability to sit and observe. The fog settles over the harbor and the city, much like a cat might sit and watch its surroundings. This line emphasizes the stillness and calmness of the fog as it envelops the area.

Third Line: “on silent haunches”

Explanation: Continuing with the cat metaphor, “haunches” refers to the back legs of a cat when it sits. The fog, like a cat, sits silently on its haunches. This reinforces the idea of quietness and stillness, suggesting that the fog is almost alive, with a presence that can be felt but not heard.

Fourth Line: “and then moves on.”

Explanation: Finally, the fog, like a cat, does not stay in one place for long. It eventually moves on, continuing its silent journey. This line captures the transient nature of fog—it comes quietly, stays for a while, and then leaves just as quietly.

Summary

The poem uses the metaphor of a cat to describe the fog. It arrives quietly, sits and observes the surroundings in a calm and silent manner, and then moves on. The imagery of a cat helps convey the gentle, mysterious, and transient nature of fog.

Difficult Words in the Poem “Fog”

• Harbour: A place on the coast where ships may moor in shelter, especially one protected from rough water by piers, jetties, and other artificial structures.
• Haunches: The back legs and hips of an animal, especially when it is sitting or crouching.

Questions and Answers Based on the Poem “Fog”

Q1

Question: What does Sandburg think the fog is like?

Answer: Sandburg thinks the fog is like a cat.

Question: How does the fog come?

Answer: The fog comes quietly and stealthily, like a cat on little cat feet.

Question: What does ‘it’ in the third line refer to?

Answer: The word ‘it’ in the third line refers to the fog.
Question: 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.

Answer: No, the poet does not explicitly say that the fog is like a cat. However, three things that tell us that the fog is like a cat are:

• The fog comes on little cat feet.
• It sits looking over harbor and city.
• It sits on silent haunches and then moves on.

Q2

Question: Find metaphors for the following words and complete the table below. Also try to say how they are alike.

Question: Think about a storm. Try to visualize the force of the storm, hear the sound of the storm, feel the power of the storm and the sudden calm that happens afterwards. Write a poem about the storm comparing it with an animal.

Answer:

Poem:

The storm roars like a lion,
With a mighty, thunderous cry,
It pounces on the land,
As dark clouds fill the sky.

Its mane of lightning flashes,
Its claws of wind do tear,
The trees bend low in reverence,
To the lion’s mighty glare.

But as quickly as it came,
The lion moves along,
Leaving behind a tranquil calm,
A gentle, soothing song.

Q3

Question: Does this poem have a rhyme scheme? Poetry that does not have an obvious rhythm or rhyme is called ‘free verse’.

Answer: No, this poem does not have a rhyme scheme. It is written in free verse.

Poetic Devices in Poem “Fog” by Carl Sandburg

1. Metaphor

Example: “The fog comes on little cat feet.”

The fog is directly compared to a cat, suggesting it moves quietly and stealthily.

2. Personification

Example: “It sits looking over harbour and city on silent haunches and then moves on.”

The fog is given human-like qualities, such as sitting and looking, which helps to create a vivid image of the fog’s behavior.

3. Imagery

Example: “on silent haunches”

This phrase creates a visual image of the fog sitting quietly, much like a cat would, enhancing the reader’s sensory experience.

4. Simile

Example: While the poem does not explicitly use “like” or “as” to make a comparison, the entire poem is an extended metaphor that functions similarly to a simile by comparing the fog to a cat.

5. Alliteration

Example: “silent haunches”

The repetition of the ‘s’ sound in “silent” and “haunches” adds a musical quality to the poem and emphasizes the quietness of the fog.

6. Enjambment

Example: The lines “It sits looking / over harbour and city / on silent haunches / and then moves on.”

The continuation of a sentence without a pause beyond the end of a line, couplet, or stanza helps to maintain the flow and rhythm of the poem, mimicking the smooth movement of the fog.

7. Symbolism

Example: The fog itself can be seen as a symbol of mystery, uncertainty, or change, as it comes and goes quietly, altering the landscape temporarily.