Carl Sandburg was one of the greatest poets of his time. He lived from January 6, 1878 to July 22, 1967 (poets.org). During this time, he received three Pulitzer Prizes. These Pulitzer Prizes were for the following, Cornhuskers (1918), Abraham Lincoln: The War Years (1939), and Complete Poems (1950). The techniques he used helped him to earn these prizes. His main techniques used to make his poetry unique and exceptional were his discussion of a wide variety of issues, showing the change in the world, use of imagery, and heavy use of dialogue.
Sandburg’s poetry addresses a wide variety of issues, which he uses to spark criticism and arguments over each of his views. One of the main goals of poetry is to challenge one’s ideas and to make …show more content…
The world around us is always in constant change, and we have to adjust to those changes. One must be diverse and flexible in order to be able to survive in today’s world. David Maas writes about the use of this element in Sandburg’s poems, saying, “Sandburg, in many of his poems, illustrates the principle of constant change- that no one thing is the same at two different times- calling for the dating subscript extensional device.” Sandburg expresses the constant change by saying “no one thing is the same at two different times,” which shows that while you may be doing the same activity, that activity has experienced changes. One could look at sports, for example to express this. In Major League Baseball, players play baseball every day, but the rules of the game change. One of the changes that has been made is that a player is no longer allowed to run over the catcher. In the poem “Joliet”, Sandburg writes about how the rivers and canals have been changed. Sandburg states that the rivers were built by God and the canals were built by humans. He says, “The river course laid out/ A thousand years ago” (Hunter, Carl Sandburg), and he says that the canals were built ten years ago. These may not be exactly correct, but it shows that over time these rivers have been changed to be canals. Sandburg uses this change to show the similarities and differences of the world to the …show more content…
Imagery is defined as “descriptive language that evokes sensory experience (in any or all sense modes)” (Linder). By Sandburg’s use of imagery, he is able to get the readers involved and be able to draw them in. Sandburg uses imagery in his poem “Chicago,” in which he says, “Fierce as a dog with tongue lapping for action,/ cunning as a savage pitted against the wilderness.” (Linder). These two lines have a use of simile, metaphor, and imagery. The reader can use his description of the dog’s tongue in order to picture the kind of fierceness that he is writing about. Using imagery gives the reader the opportunity to picture the situation in his/her head, and to assess the writing in whatever way they interpret it. In the poem “Fog,” Sandburg uses a cat in order to describe the movement and action of the fog. He says, “The fog comes/on little cat feet.” (Gioia 112). By giving the reader the vision of the cat, the reader is able to know exactly what the fog is doing. Sandburg describes the fog as being stealthy, like a cat, and quietly appears and disappears. Sandburg uses imagery in order to give his readers a better understanding of what is going on and he also uses dialogue throughout his
Sandburg’s poetry addresses a wide variety of issues, which he uses to spark criticism and arguments over each of his views. One of the main goals of poetry is to challenge one’s ideas and to make …show more content…
The world around us is always in constant change, and we have to adjust to those changes. One must be diverse and flexible in order to be able to survive in today’s world. David Maas writes about the use of this element in Sandburg’s poems, saying, “Sandburg, in many of his poems, illustrates the principle of constant change- that no one thing is the same at two different times- calling for the dating subscript extensional device.” Sandburg expresses the constant change by saying “no one thing is the same at two different times,” which shows that while you may be doing the same activity, that activity has experienced changes. One could look at sports, for example to express this. In Major League Baseball, players play baseball every day, but the rules of the game change. One of the changes that has been made is that a player is no longer allowed to run over the catcher. In the poem “Joliet”, Sandburg writes about how the rivers and canals have been changed. Sandburg states that the rivers were built by God and the canals were built by humans. He says, “The river course laid out/ A thousand years ago” (Hunter, Carl Sandburg), and he says that the canals were built ten years ago. These may not be exactly correct, but it shows that over time these rivers have been changed to be canals. Sandburg uses this change to show the similarities and differences of the world to the …show more content…
Imagery is defined as “descriptive language that evokes sensory experience (in any or all sense modes)” (Linder). By Sandburg’s use of imagery, he is able to get the readers involved and be able to draw them in. Sandburg uses imagery in his poem “Chicago,” in which he says, “Fierce as a dog with tongue lapping for action,/ cunning as a savage pitted against the wilderness.” (Linder). These two lines have a use of simile, metaphor, and imagery. The reader can use his description of the dog’s tongue in order to picture the kind of fierceness that he is writing about. Using imagery gives the reader the opportunity to picture the situation in his/her head, and to assess the writing in whatever way they interpret it. In the poem “Fog,” Sandburg uses a cat in order to describe the movement and action of the fog. He says, “The fog comes/on little cat feet.” (Gioia 112). By giving the reader the vision of the cat, the reader is able to know exactly what the fog is doing. Sandburg describes the fog as being stealthy, like a cat, and quietly appears and disappears. Sandburg uses imagery in order to give his readers a better understanding of what is going on and he also uses dialogue throughout his