Clark Street Bridge
By Carl Sandburg
Dust of the feet
And dust of the wheels,
Wagons and people going,
All day feet and wheels.Now. . .
. . Only stars and mist
A lonely policeman,
Two cabaret dancers,
Stars and mist again,
No more feet or wheels,
No more dust and wagons.Voices of dollars
And drops of blood
. . . . .
Voices of broken hearts,
. . Voices singing, singing,
. . Silver voices, singing,
Softer than the stars,
Softer than the mist.
Summary of Clark Street Bridge
- Popularity of “Clark Street Bridge”: The poem ‘Clark Street Bridge’ was written by Carl Sandburg, a great American poet, and author. He is known for writing imagist poems. The poem was published in 1966 in his collection, Chicago Poems. The poem accounts for noticeable changes that occurred on Clark Street Bridge, a symbolic bridge that connects the Chicago River with Clark Street. Using various poetic elements, the writer details how this place changed over the course of time. The poet’s attempt to explain the cohesive, thoughtful, and emotional transition makes this text lifelike.
- “Clark Street Bridge” As a Representative of Reality: The poem centers on Clark Street Bridge, an important tourist attraction located in Chicago city. The poet also illustrates how this spot has lost its originality. The beginning allows the readers to look back in time when there was dust from the feet and wheels on this bridge. This description indicates that Clark Street Bridge was once a very busy place in the past. Unfortunately, the mobility that once marked the center of this place is no more the same. Now, the hustle and bustle of this urban place has turned into silence. This awful silence and foggy mist of the place seemed interrupted by the presence of a lonely policeman and cabaret dancers. He further adds the dark Chicago River hears the voices of dollars, serving as a clue to the city’s heartless business and drops of blood referring to the people engaged in this shaggy commerce. Moreover, this place allows the gigantic chorus of broken hearts to outpour their feelings in melodies. To him, their unheard melodies are softer than the stars and mist.
- Major Themes in “Clark Street Bridge”: The major themes of the poem are the absence of hope, unruly progress, and sadness. Following a sad and somber tone, the poem highlights how time changes, and so do the places. With his magical words, he skilfully paints the past and present images of Clark Street Bridge in the reader’s mind. The poem opens up with the black and white newsreel footage of walkers and crammed wagons. However, as the poem continues, quietness and calmness replace these images. On the one hand, this noticeable transition provides a clue to the rapidly changing world where originality ultimately loses its attraction. While on the other hand, it illustrates how this change has resulted in hopelessness, sadness, and desolation.
Analysis of the Literary Devices Used in Clark Street Bridge
literary devices are useful tools that empower authors to give deeper meanings to their seemingly simple text. A few literary devices in this poem are as follows.
- Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /o/ in “Voices of broken hearts” and the sound of /a/ in “Wagons and people going.”
- Alliteration: Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /th/ and the sound of /s/ in “Softer than the stars.”
- Anaphora: It refers to the repetition of a word or expression in the first part of some verses. Carl Sandburg repeated the words “no more” and “softer than…” in the last stanza;
“Two cabaret dancers,
Stars and mist again,
No more feet or wheels,
No more dust and wagons.”
- Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /r/ in “Two cabaret dancers” and the sound of /ng/ in “Voices singing, singing.”
- Enjambment: It is defined as a thought in verse that does not come to an end at a line break; rather, it rolls over to the next line. For example;
“Voices of dollars
And drops of blood”
- Irony: Irony is a figure of speech in which words are used in such a way that their intended meaning is different from the actual meaning of the words. The writer has used this device in the second stanza of the poem where he presents the second picture of the same place, such as;
“Now. . .
. . Only stars and mist
A lonely policeman,
Two cabaret dancers,
Stars and mist again.”
- Personification: The poem shows hearts and dollars as if they have life and emotions of their own. They are personifications.
- Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. Carl Sandburg has used imagery in this poem, such as; “A lonely policeman”, “Two cabaret dancers” and “And drops of blood.”
Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in ‘Clark Street Bridge’
Poetic and literary devices are the same, but a few are used only in poetry. Here is an analysis of some of the poetic devices used in this poem.
- Free Verse: Free verse is a type of poetry that does not contain patterns of rhyme or meter. This is a free verse poem with no strict rhyme or meter.
- Quatrain: A quatrain is a four-lined stanza borrowed from Persian poetry. Here only the first stanza is a quatrain.
- Rhyme Scheme: The poem follows ABCB in the first stanza, while the rest of the poem uses free verse.
- Repetition: There is a repetition of the verse “Voices singing, singing/Silver voices, singing” which has created a musical quality in the poem.
- Stanza: A stanza is a poetic form of some lines. There are four stanzas in this poem, with each comprising a different number of lines/verses.
Quotes to be Used
These lines are useful while talking about an ancient busy place having lost its cultural or original value.
“DUST of the feet
And dust of the wheels,
Wagons and people going,
All day feet and wheels.”
