Trafficker
Trafficker - context Summary
Published in 1916
Published in Sandburg’'s 1916 collection Chicago Poems, "Trafficker" is a brief urban vignette portraying a lone woman waiting at a street intersection. The poem situates a harsh, unsentimental scene of prostitution and social neglect within the city at night, exemplifying Sandburg’'s interest in working-class life and urban realism. Its compact depiction emphasizes public indifference and the exhaustion of a human life reduced to commerce.
Read Complete AnalysesAmong the shadows where two streets cross, A woman lurks in the dark and waits To move on when a policeman heaves in view. Smiling a broken smile from a face Painted over haggard bones and desperate eyes, All night she offers passers-by what they will Of her beauty wasted, body faded, claims gone, And no takers.
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