Fog — Carl Sandburg
Original text • Stanza-wise explanation • Bilingual (English + हिन्दी) • NCERT Q&A • Extra Questions
Writer: Carl Sandburg (1878–1967) — American poet and Pulitzer Prize–winner, known for simple, vivid imagery from everyday life.
Summary (EN): The poet likens fog to a quiet cat. It arrives softly, sits still watching over the harbour and city, and then slips away without noise.
सार (HI): कवि धुंध की तुलना चुपचाप आने वाली बिल्ली से करते हैं—वह धीरे आती है, थोड़ी देर ठहरकर शहर-बंदरगाह को देखती है और फिर शांति से चली जाती है।
Lines 1–2: “The fog comes / on little cat feet.”
Fog arrives as quietly as a cat tiptoeing in — soft, stealthy, almost unnoticed.
धुंध बिल्ली की तरह दबे पाँव आती है — नर्म, धीमे और बिना शोर के।
Lines 3–4: “It sits looking / over harbour and city”
The fog pauses and watches both sea and land — ships, water, streets, people.
धुंध ठहरकर समुद्र और शहर — दोनों को निहारती है।
Lines 5–6: “on silent haunches / and then moves on.”
“Silent haunches” completes the cat image — sitting quietly on bent legs, ready to glide away; the fog lingers briefly and slips off.
“Silent haunches” बिल्ली की शांत बैठने की मुद्रा दिखाती है; धुंध थोड़ी देर ठहरकर चुपचाप आगे बढ़ जाती है।
- Theme: Transient presence of nature; quiet mystery of fog.
- Tone: Calm, observant, fleeting.
- Devices: Extended metaphor (fog = cat), personification, visual imagery.
1. (i) What does Sandburg think the fog is like? (ii) How does the fog come? (iii) What does ‘it’ in the third line refer to? (iv) 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.
(i) A cat. (ii) Quietly, “on little cat feet.” (iii) The fog. (iv) Arrives softly; sits and looks; moves on silently.
(i) बिल्ली जैसी। (ii) दबे पाँव। (iii) धुंध। (iv) धीरे आना, बैठकर देखना, चुपचाप चल देना।
2. You know that a metaphor compares two things by transferring a feature of one thing to the other (See Unit 1). (i) Find metaphors for the following words and complete the table below. Also try to say how they are alike. The first is done for you. Storm — tiger (pounces over the fields, growls) Train Fire School Home
Samples: Train—iron serpent; Fire—hungry wolf; School—buzzing hive; Home—safe harbour.
उदाहरण: ट्रेन—लौह-सर्प; आग—भूखा भेड़िया; स्कूल—गूंजता छत्ता; घर—सुरक्षित बंदरगाह।
3. Does this poem have a rhyme scheme? Poetry that does not have an obvious rhythm or rhyme is called ‘free verse’.
Free verse — no fixed rhyme scheme.
मुक्त छंद — निश्चित तुक का अभाव।
A1) What is the central image of the poem?
Fog as a cat (extended metaphor).
धुंध को बिल्ली के रूप में दिखाना (विस्तृत रूपक)।
A2) Explain “silent haunches”.
Cat-like posture: quietly sitting on bent legs, ready to move.
बिल्ली की मुद्रा: झुके पंजों पर चुपचाप बैठना, चलने को तैयार।
B1) How does the poet present the movement of fog without directly describing weather?
By personifying the fog as a cat—tiptoes in, sits, watches, and leaves—thus showing arrival–pause–departure subtly.
धुंध को बिल्ली बनाकर—दबे पाँव आना, बैठना, देखना, आगे बढ़ना—आना–ठहरना–जाना संकेतित है।
B2) What contrast is implied by “harbour and city”?
Sea vs land; nature vs human space—fog covers both, uniting them.
समुद्र बनाम शहर; प्रकृति बनाम मानव-स्थान—धुंध दोनों पर छा जाती है।
B3) Why is the cat an apt metaphor for fog?
Cats move softly, sit and watch, then slip away—exactly how fog behaves.
बिल्ली चुपचाप आती–देखती–चली जाती है; धुंध भी ऐसा ही करती है।
C1) “It sits looking / over harbour and city” — Identify device and meaning.
Device: Personification/extended metaphor. Meaning: Fog pauses and observes entire landscape.
अलंकार: व्यक्तिकरण/विस्तृत रूपक। भाव: धुंध रुककर पूरे परिदृश्य को देखती है।
C2) “and then moves on.” — What tone does this create?
Calm, transient tone—nature’s quiet, passing visit.
शांत, क्षणभंगुर भाव—प्रकृति का चुपचाप आना-जाना।
D1) Name two devices used in the poem and quote one example each.
Metaphor: “on little cat feet.” • Personification: “It sits looking”.
रूपक: “on little cat feet.” • व्यक्तिकरण: “It sits looking”.
D2) How does free verse help the poem?
Mimics the natural, unrhythmic drift of fog; no rigid rhyme = quiet realism.
धुंध की प्राकृतिक, अनियमित चाल को दर्शाता है; तुक का अभाव = शांत यथार्थ।
E1) True/False: (i) The poet hears the fog coming. (ii) Fog dominates only the city. (iii) The poem compares fog to a dog.
(i) False (arrives quietly) • (ii) False (harbour + city) • (iii) False (cat).
(i) ग़लत • (ii) ग़लत • (iii) ग़लत (बिल्ली)।
F1) The word “haunches” suggests: (a) running fast (b) sitting posture (c) loud roar (d) heavy rain
Ans: (b)
उत्तर: (b)
F2) The mood of the poem is mainly: (a) angry (b) fearful (c) calm (d) comic
Ans: (c)
उत्तर: (c)
F3) The poem’s central device is: (a) hyperbole (b) extended metaphor (c) alliteration (d) paradox
Ans: (b)
उत्तर: (b)
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