Walking Down Park
By Nikki Giovanni
walking down
park
amsterdam
or columbus do you ever stop
to think
what it looked like
before it was an avenue
did you ever stop to
think
what you walked
before you
rode
subways to the stock
exchange (we
can’t be on
the stock exchange
we are the
stock
exchanged)
did you ever maybe wonder
what
grass was like before
they rolled it
into a ball and
called
it central park
where syphilitic dogs
and
their two-legged tubercular
masters fertilize
the corners and
side-walks
ever want to know what would happen
if your life could be
fertilized
by a love thought
from a loved one
who
loves you
ever look south
on a clear day and not see
time’s squares
but see
tall Birch trees with sycamores
touching
hands
and see gazelles running playfully
after the
lions
ever hear the antelope bark
from the third floor
apartment
ever, did you ever, sit down
and wonder about what freedom’s
freedom
would bring
it’s so easy to be free
you start by loving
yourself
then those who look like
you
all else will come
naturally
ever wonder
why
so much asphalt was laid
in so little space
probably so we would
forget
the Iroquois, Algonquin
and Mohicans who could
caress
the earth
ever think what Harlem would
be
like if our herbs and roots and elephant ears
grew
sending
a cacophony of sound to us
the parrot parroting black is beautiful
black is beautiful
owls sending out whooooo’s making love
...
and me and you just sitting in the sun trying
to
find a way to get a banana tree from one of the
monkeys
koala bears in the trees laughing at our
listlessness
ever think its possible
for us to be
happy
Analysis
"Walking Down Park" is an insightful poem that compares the modern works of people and the past in which nature was dominant. Nikki Giovanni uses a lot of metaphors and analogies to communicate her idea with depth. It is very visually descriptive and helps the reader "see" what she is talking about. She uses metaphors such as "if your life could be fertilized by a love thought from a loved one who loves you" to describe the love and the happiness that you can get from the simplicity and peace of an easy life. She wants to communicate that the busy lives of people have grown to chaos and people don't even have the time to stop and admire the things that bring them true happiness. The analogy of "what grass was like before they rolled it into a ball and called it central park"is used to compare the current man made society to the all natural world were there was freedom for all kinds of creatures to roam. Her whole overview of this poem is basically describing the past and the present with figurative language to enhance the meaning of the poem. "Did you ever wonder..." gives the reader a thoughtful tone that makes them think about everything in the end. The last line signifies the basic main idea; she states that with the busy, hectic lifestyles of people, she is asking if it is ever possible for them to be happy.
walking down
park
amsterdam
or columbus do you ever stop
to think
what it looked like
before it was an avenue
did you ever stop to
think
what you walked
before you
rode
subways to the stock
exchange (we
can’t be on
the stock exchange
we are the
stock
exchanged)
did you ever maybe wonder
what
grass was like before
they rolled it
into a ball and
called
it central park
where syphilitic dogs
and
their two-legged tubercular
masters fertilize
the corners and
side-walks
ever want to know what would happen
if your life could be
fertilized
by a love thought
from a loved one
who
loves you
ever look south
on a clear day and not see
time’s squares
but see
tall Birch trees with sycamores
touching
hands
and see gazelles running playfully
after the
lions
ever hear the antelope bark
from the third floor
apartment
ever, did you ever, sit down
and wonder about what freedom’s
freedom
would bring
it’s so easy to be free
you start by loving
yourself
then those who look like
you
all else will come
naturally
ever wonder
why
so much asphalt was laid
in so little space
probably so we would
forget
the Iroquois, Algonquin
and Mohicans who could
caress
the earth
ever think what Harlem would
be
like if our herbs and roots and elephant ears
grew
sending
a cacophony of sound to us
the parrot parroting black is beautiful
black is beautiful
owls sending out whooooo’s making love
...
and me and you just sitting in the sun trying
to
find a way to get a banana tree from one of the
monkeys
koala bears in the trees laughing at our
listlessness
ever think its possible
for us to be
happy
Analysis
"Walking Down Park" is an insightful poem that compares the modern works of people and the past in which nature was dominant. Nikki Giovanni uses a lot of metaphors and analogies to communicate her idea with depth. It is very visually descriptive and helps the reader "see" what she is talking about. She uses metaphors such as "if your life could be fertilized by a love thought from a loved one who loves you" to describe the love and the happiness that you can get from the simplicity and peace of an easy life. She wants to communicate that the busy lives of people have grown to chaos and people don't even have the time to stop and admire the things that bring them true happiness. The analogy of "what grass was like before they rolled it into a ball and called it central park"is used to compare the current man made society to the all natural world were there was freedom for all kinds of creatures to roam. Her whole overview of this poem is basically describing the past and the present with figurative language to enhance the meaning of the poem. "Did you ever wonder..." gives the reader a thoughtful tone that makes them think about everything in the end. The last line signifies the basic main idea; she states that with the busy, hectic lifestyles of people, she is asking if it is ever possible for them to be happy.