4. From "To a Locomotive in Winter" by Walt Whitman
Fierce-throated beauty!
Roll through my chant with all thy lawless music, thy swinging lamps at night,
Thy madly-whistled laughter, echoing, rumbling like an earthquake, rousing all,
Law of thyself complete, thine own track firmly holding,
(No sweetness debonair of tearful harp or glib piano thine,)
Thy trills of shrieks by rocks and hills return'd,
Launch'd o'er the prairies wide, across the lakes,
To the free skies unpent and glad and strong.
How do the long, irregular lines of this poem communicate meaning?
1. They convey a sense of distaste and dismay at the presence of the locomotive.
2. They describe a serene setting and the poet's thoughts about technology.
3. They evoke a wide-ranging scene, with much sound and relentless motion.