River Roads - A poem by Carl Sandburg


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Carl Sandburg - River Roads

LET the crows go by hawking their caw and caw.
They have been swimming in midnights of coal mines somewhere.
Let ’em hawk their caw and caw.
 
Let the woodpecker drum and drum on a hickory stump.
He has been swimming in red and blue pools somewhere hundreds of years
And the blue has gone to his wings and the red has gone to his head.
Let his red head drum and drum.
 
Let the dark pools hold the birds in a looking-glass.
And if the pool wishes, let it shiver to the blur of many wings, old swimmers from old places.
 
Let the redwing streak a line of vermillion on the green wood lines.
And the mist along the river fix its purple in lines of a woman’s shawl on lazy shoulders.

Added: on April 27th, 2007 at 12:31 AM | Viewed: 2546 times | Comments and analysis of River Roads by Carl Sandburg Comments (1)

River Roads - Comments and Information
Poet: Carl Sandburg Poem: 2. River Roads Volume: Cornhuskers - Cornhuskers Year: Published/Written in 1918 Poem of the Day: Aug 20 2006 Comment 1 of 1, added on April 27th, 2007 at 12:31 AM. “River Roads,” is a free-verse poem with no particular pattern in its stanzas. This poem is a little hard to understand, but it shows the feelings of the poet for the concept of leaving nature alone. He is almost implying that humans are interfering with nature and that we should leave them alone. The literal meaning seems to be that we are not letting crows caw, let a woodpecker drum on the trees, and so on. There obviously is a figurative meaning to (almost) all lyric poems. The theme is to try and tell humankind to leave nature alone, for we were once part of nature, too. The only important literary device is personification. “And if the pool wishes, let it shiver to the blur of many wings, old swimmers from old places.” Nature has its own wills and humans can interact with nature peacefully. Sameer Kapadia from United States More Comments >> Are you looking for more information on this poem? Perhaps you are trying to analyze it? The poem, River Roads, has received one comment so far. Click here to read it, and perhaps post a comment of your own. Of course you can also always discuss poems by Carl Sandburg with others on the American Poems poetry forum!

Poem Info
Poet: Carl Sandburg Poem: 2. River Roads Volume: Cornhuskers - Cornhuskers Year: Published/Written in 1918 Last read: Jul 24 2008, 10:38PM Poem of the Day: Aug 20 2006 Viewed 2546 times. Added on April 27th, 2007 at 12:31 AM.

Sandburg Info
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