Class 10 English First Flight Poem Fog by Carl Sandburg: Master the Class 10 English poem “Fog” by Carl Sandburg. Get a complete line-by-line Hindi explanation, word meanings, simplified NCERT solutions, poetic devices, and important extra questions for board exams.
1. About the Author
कार्ल सैंडबर्ग (Carl Sandburg) एक प्रसिद्ध अमेरिकी कवि, लेखक और संपादक थे। उनका जन्म 1878 में इलिनोइस (Illinois), अमेरिका में हुआ था। उन्हें उनके बेहतरीन साहित्य के लिए तीन बार पुलित्ज़र पुरस्कार (Pulitzer Prize) से सम्मानित किया गया था। कार्ल सैंडबर्ग की कविताएँ अपनी सादगी और प्राकृतिक दृश्यों के सुंदर वर्णन के लिए जानी जाती हैं। “Fog” (कोहरा) उनकी सबसे छोटी लेकिन सबसे प्रसिद्ध और प्रभावशाली कविताओं में से एक है, जिसमें उन्होंने प्रकृति के एक साधारण दृश्य को बहुत ही खूबसूरती से पेश किया है।
2. Difficult Words Meaning in Hindi
- Fog (फ़ॉग): कोहरा / धुंध
- Harbour (हर्बर): बंदरगाह (जहाँ समुद्री जहाज़ आकर रुकते हैं)
- Haunches (हॉन्चेस): जांघ और कूल्हे / पिछले पैरों के बल उकड़ूँ बैठना
- Silent (साइलेंट): खामोश / शांत
3. Explanation of Each Stanza in Hindi
Stanza 1
The fog comes
on little cat feet.
व्याख्या (Explanation): इन पंक्तियों में कवि कोहरे (Fog) की तुलना एक छोटी बिल्ली से करते हैं। जिस तरह एक बिल्ली दबे पाँव (बिना कोई आवाज़ किए) चुपचाप घर के अंदर आती है, ठीक उसी तरह सर्दियों में कोहरा भी बिना किसी शोर के, बहुत ही शांति से शहर में प्रवेश करता है। किसी को उसके आने की भनक तक नहीं लगती।
Stanza 2
It sits looking
over harbour and city
on silent haunches
and then moves on.
व्याख्या (Explanation): कवि कहते हैं कि जब कोहरा शहर में आ जाता है, तो वह पूरी जगह को अपनी चादर में ढक लेता है। यह बिल्कुल वैसा ही लगता है जैसे कोई बिल्ली अपने पिछले पैरों के बल (उकड़ूँ) शांति से बैठकर बंदरगाह (harbour) और पूरे शहर को निहार रही हो। कुछ समय तक शहर पर छाए रहने के बाद, जैसे बिल्ली चुपचाप अपनी जगह से उठकर चली जाती है, वैसे ही कोहरा भी बिना किसी आवाज़ के धीरे-धीरे छँट जाता है और आगे बढ़ जाता है।
Q1. What is the fog directly compared to in the poem?
A) A silent ghost
B) A dark cloud
C) A little cat
D) A stealthy thief
Answer: C) A little cat
Q2. What does the phrase “on little cat feet” suggest about the arrival of the fog?
A) It arrives with heavy footsteps
B) It comes very silently and softly, without making any noise
C) It brings small animals into the city
D) It moves very quickly and aggressively
Answer: B) It comes very silently and softly, without making any noise
Q3. What does the fog do while it is over the city?
A) It destroys the buildings
B) It sits looking over the harbour and city
C) It creates heavy rain and thunderstorms
D) It purrs loudly like a cat
Answer: B) It sits looking over the harbour and city
Q4. What is the meaning of the word “haunches”?
A) The roof of a tall building
B) A type of ship in the harbour
C) The back and upper legs of an animal (sitting with knees bent)
D) The soft paws of a cat
Answer: C) The back and upper legs of an animal (sitting with knees bent)
Q5. Which primary poetic device is used throughout this poem to describe the fog?
A) Simile
B) Extended Metaphor
C) Oxymoron
D) Hyperbole
Answer: B) Extended Metaphor
Q6. How does the fog leave at the end of the poem?
A) It slowly turns into rain
B) It blows away with a loud howling wind
C) It simply moves on, quietly and unpredictably
D) It waits for the sun to melt it
Answer: C) It simply moves on, quietly and unpredictably
Q7. Who is the author of the poem “Fog”?
A) Robert Frost
B) Walt Whitman
C) Carl Sandburg
D) Adrienne Rich
Answer: C) Carl Sandburg
4. Given Exercise Solution in English
1. (i) What does Sandburg think the fog is like?
Answer: Sandburg thinks the fog is like a little cat.
(ii) How does the fog come?
Answer: The fog comes very silently and softly, just like a cat comes on its little paws without making any sound.
(iii) What does ‘it’ in the third line refer to?
Answer: In the third line, ‘it’ refers to the fog.
(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.
Answer: No, the poet does not explicitly use words like “as” or “like” to say the fog is a cat (he uses a metaphor, not a simile). However, three things that indicate the fog is compared to a cat are:
- It comes on “little cat feet” (stealthy movement).
- It “sits looking… on silent haunches” (sitting posture of a cat).
- It silently “moves on” (unpredictable and quiet departure).
2. (i) Find metaphors for the following words and complete the table below. Also try to say how they are alike.
Answer:
| Word | Metaphor | How they are alike |
| Storm | Tiger | pounces over the fields, growls, and destroys with wild energy. |
| Train | Giant Snake | slithers along the iron tracks, hisses as it stops, and is very long. |
| Fire | Angry Monster | devours everything in its path, breathes heavy smoke, and leaves ashes. |
| School | Beehive | buzzes with the constant activity and chatter of busy students. |
| Home | Warm Nest | provides a safe, cozy, and comforting shelter from the outside world. |
(ii) Think about a storm. Try to visualise the force of the storm… Write a poem about the storm comparing it with an animal.
Answer: (Sample Poem)
The storm gallops in,
Like a wild, untamed black horse.
Kicking the dust into the sky,
Neighing loudly with thunderous voice.
It stomps on the roofs,
Shakes the ancient trees,
And when it finally tires,
It trots away, leaving a sudden, quiet breeze.
3. Does this poem have a rhyme scheme? Poetry that does not have an obvious rhythm or rhyme is called ‘free verse’.
Answer: No, this poem does not have any rhyme scheme. There are no rhyming words at the ends of the lines (like feet/city/on). Therefore, this poem is written in free verse.
5. Another Important Questions and Their Answers
Short Answer Type Questions
Q: Why does the poet compare the fog to a cat?
Answer: The poet compares the fog to a cat because both share similar characteristics. A cat moves very silently on its padded paws, sits on its haunches quietly to observe its surroundings, and leaves suddenly without making a noise. Similarly, the fog approaches the city silently, covers it for a while as if watching over it, and then quietly clears away.
Q: How does the fog affect the city and the harbour?
Answer: The fog covers the entire city and the harbour like a thick blanket. It engulfs the surroundings in a dense mist, making everything look hazy and still, as if the fog is sitting quietly and watching over the human world.
Long Answer Type Question
Q: The poem “Fog” is a beautiful example of an extended metaphor. Explain.
Answer: An extended metaphor is a comparison between two unlike things that continues throughout a poem. In “Fog”, Carl Sandburg brilliantly uses the extended metaphor of a cat to describe the fog. He doesn’t just say the fog is like a cat; he gives the fog the living, breathing actions of a feline.
First, the arrival of the fog is compared to a cat entering a room on “little cat feet”—completely unnoticed and silent. Then, the fog settling over the city and harbour is compared to a cat sitting on its “silent haunches,” quietly observing its territory. Finally, just as a cat gets bored and wanders away without a sound, the fog slowly lifts and “moves on.” By mapping the elusive and silent nature of a cat onto a weather phenomenon, Sandburg creates a vivid and memorable image of nature’s quiet power.
6. Poetic Devices for This Poem
- Metaphor (Extended Metaphor): The entire poem is a metaphor. The poet directly compares the fog to a cat without using words like “as” or “like”. Every action of the fog is described as an action of a cat.
- Personification / Zoomorphism: The fog is given the living attributes of an animal (a cat). It has “feet,” it “sits” on “haunches,” and it “looks” over the city.
- Enjambment: The continuation of a sentence without a pause (punctuation) beyond the end of a line.
- Example: “It sits looking / over harbour and city” (The sentence flows smoothly from line 2 to line 3).
- Free Verse: The poem has no specific meter or rhyme scheme. It flows naturally like everyday speech.