Poem Analysis Shel Silverstein

Where the Sidewalk Ends

By Shel Silverstein

The poem points out the main differences between the great world of childhood, full of joy and imagination, with no worries, and the land of grown-ups where things are different. The boundaries between the two are where the sidewalk ends and the street begins.

The sidewalk provides children with safety, comfort and causes no worries while the street is full of dangers and responsibilities. The line “Yes we'll walk with a walk that is measured and slow” urges us not to hurry towards the place where the sidewalk ends as there might be, we assume, no turning point.

The writer’s attitude is positive as he presents the place to be just like a magical land where “the grass grows soft and white”, “the sun burns crimson bright” and “the moon-bird rests from his flight/to cool in the peppermint wind”.

I recommend this popular poem to children who need to be warned about the hardships of adult life as well as to grown-ups who need to be reminded how amazing childhood days were.