Fog Flashcards
Style
Fog’ is a short poem of six lines. It is split into two stanzas. It is a free verse poem. The poem doesn’t have any regular rhyme scheme. The poem is an extended metaphor. The poet uses the metaphor of a cat to describe the fog. The fog comes in, stays and engulfs everything in its fold silently, almost imperceptibly. Before moving on, it sits looking over the harbour and the city before disappearing in feline mystery.
Fog Comes As a Cat:
The poet sees the fog as a cat. It comes on its tiny silent feet as a cat does when it is stalking. Like a cat, it moves in imperceptibly and in complete silence. So, the poem ‘Fog’ becomes an extended metaphor.
Sits on Silent Haunches:
The fog comes silently and engulfs the whole landscape in its fold. The poem presents the dual imagery of fog and cat. The fog turns into a cat. And the cat turns back into the fog. The fog moves in at a slow pace and then stops and gradually covers the whole landscape or seascape and the harbour. The fog like a cat keeps on lying for hours, It keeps on overlooking the harbour and the city below. The atmosphere all around is filled with silence and mystery. And then, like a stalking cat, it moves on. It disappears silently unnoticed.
What is the fog looking over?
cat and city
poet
Carl Sandburg
The poet actually says that the fog is like a cat”, With reference to the poem, ‘Fog’ explain this statement.
The fog is compared to a cat. He says 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. The way the fog sits is very much like a cat sitting on its haunches, looking here and there.
How does the poet make the fog like a living creature?
The poet describes the fog as a cat. He does so through a metaphor. The fog is the cat itself. As a cat jumps and lights on its soft silently, the fog also comes down noiselessly. Then it moves on like a cat.
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 a 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.
Describe the similarities that have been mentioned in the poem between the fog and a cat.
It is a dual image that changes and merges again in the original. The fog changes into a cat and the cat changes into the fog. Both of them come silently unseen and suddenly. Both engulf everything underneath them. The fog engulfs everything, the harbour and the city in its fold. The fog sits silently as a cat sits on its haunches. Then it disappears and moves ahead.
Which aspect of nature Carl Sand-burg presents 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.
What metaphor has the poet used in the poem ‘Fog’? Do you think it is appropriate?
In the poem Tog’, Carl Sandburg has metaphorically compared the fog to a cat. The first strange thing about the metaphor is the comparison of a 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. This is as if the fog remains a silent spectator of the happenings in the city. 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.
How does Carl Sandburg describe the arrival, stay and departure of the 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.
