Chicago - Carl Sandburg

I like Carl Sandburg. Well, not HIM, but his poetry. I never met him (smile), but I might have liked him if I had.

I have to admit: I am not a poetry person. WHAT?!?!? A literature teacher who isn't a 'poetry person'? Is that like a librarian who doesn't like to read? Not exactly. It's not that I don't like poetry; I do. Poetry is just low on my list of favorite genres. If I have a choice, which I often do now, I will select a novel over any other genre anytime. But I digress. Back to poetry.

I do like Sandburg's poetry. The fog on 'little cat feet.' Love that poem.

But my favorite is "Chicago." City of the big shoulders, hog butcher, so descriptive of the city that is proud--and alive--and vibrant--and has history.

This was a fun poem to teach to high school kids because it was easy to understand, it was descriptive, and Chicago was just up the road, hop on I-80, and zip right into the Windy City. Some of my students had never been to Indianapolis, but they had been to Chicago.

Many of my current students probably do not remember M*A*S*H, the television series with Alan Alda, Mike Farrell, Wayne Rogers, Loretta Swit, Henry Morgan, Jamie Farr and many more. In one episode Hawkeye (Alda) and Trapper (Rogers) were hungry for ribs Hawkeye called his favorite ribs joint, Adam's Ribs, in Chicago and ordered ribs and sauce (he forgot the slaw). At some point in the episode Hawkeye talks about the great city of Chicago where he went to medical school and began quoting from Sandburg's poem 'city of the big shoulders' and so on. Of course I was so excited that poetry was being quoted on a major television show.

I always think of that when this poem is read in this course. Christina just commented on her experiences at a Bears game this fall and how the poem depicted the people of Chicago. She will probably always think of the two together--the game, the poem. I will always thing of M*A*S*H when we read 'Chicago.' Sandburg knew what he was doing.

http://www.tv.com/mash/adamand039s-ribs/episode/43258/recap.html?tag=episode_recap;recap"