Read the poem “Fog,” by Carl Sandburg.

Question

The fog comes
on little cat feet.

It sits looking
over harbor and city
on silent haunches
and then moves on.

Which lines from "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" most likely influenced Sandburg’s poem?
Let us go then, you and I,
When the evening is spread out against the sky
Like a patient etherized upon a table;
The yellow smoke that rubs its muzzle on the window-panes,
Licked its tongue into the corners of the evening,
Lingered upon the pools that stand in drains,
I should have been a pair of ragged claws
Scuttling across the floors of silent seas.
Shall I say, I have gone at dusk through narrow streets
And watched the smoke that rises from the pipes
Of lonely men in shirt-sleeves, leaning out of windows?

Answer 1

In considering Carl Sandburg's poem "Fog," the lines from T.S. Eliot's "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" that most likely influenced Sandburg’s poem are:

• "The yellow smoke that rubs its muzzle on the window-panes,"
• "Lingered upon the pools that stand in drains,"
• "And watched the smoke that rises from the pipes."

These lines evoke a sense of atmosphere and personification of the fog or smoke, similar to how Sandburg characterizes fog as coming in on "little cat feet" and sitting silently. Both poems create a vivid imagery of urban life through natural elements (fog and smoke), capturing a moment of stillness and observation in the city.

Answer 2

Read the poem “Fog,” by Carl Sandburg.

The fog comes
on little cat feet.

It sits looking
over harbor and city
on silent haunches
and then moves on.

Which lines from "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" most likely influenced Sandburg’s poem?
Let us go then, you and I,
When the evening is spread out against the sky
Like a patient etherized upon a table;
The yellow smoke that rubs its muzzle on the window-panes,
Licked its tongue into the corners of the evening,
Lingered upon the pools that stand in drains,
I should have been a pair of ragged claws
Scuttling across the floors of silent seas.
Shall I say, I have gone at dusk through narrow streets
And watched the smoke that rises from the pipes
Of lonely men in shirt-sleeves, leaning out of windows?

Answer 3

In Carl Sandburg's poem "Fog," the lines from T.S. Eliot’s "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" that most likely influenced Sandburg include:

• "The yellow smoke that rubs its muzzle on the window-panes,"
• "Lingered upon the pools that stand in drains,"
• "And watched the smoke that rises from the pipes."

These lines resonate with the imagery and themes of personification and the quiet, watchful presence of natural elements within an urban setting. Sandburg’s depiction of fog coming in on "little cat feet" and sitting "on silent haunches" parallels the evocative way Eliot presents smoke, suggesting a similar atmosphere of mystery and reflection in city life.