Down the Stream the Swans All Glide

Down the Stream the Swans All Glide - meaning Summary

Humor About Pragmatic Choice

A short comic poem that contrasts romantic imagery with mundane practicality. The speaker watches swans glide down a stream and jokes that riding them is "the cheapest way to ride," then notes the physical discomfort of wet legs and tummies. The final line abandons the fanciful notion in favor of the ordinary bus. The poem gently undercuts romantic illusion with wry, plainspoken common sense.