Jungheimer's
Jungheimer's - context Summary
Published in 1916
Published in Sandburg’s 1916 collection Chicago Poems, "Jungheimer's" presents a blunt snapshot of an urban saloon. The poem uses free verse to record scenes of drink, sex and labor with unsparing, observational detail. It exemplifies Sandburg’s early focus on gritty American city life, revealing social variety and roughness without moralizing. The voice is plain, reportage-like, turning a single room into a portrait of modern urban experience.
Read Complete AnalysesIn western fields of corn and northern timber lands, They talk about me, a saloon with a soul, The soft red lights, the long curving bar, The leather seats and dim corners, Tall brass spittoons, a nigger cutting ham, And the painting of a woman half-dressed thrown reckless across a bed after a night of booze and riots.
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