The Red Wheelbarrow by William Carlos Wheelbarrow

so much depends

upon

a red wheel

barrow

glazed with rain

water

beside the white

chickens

In "The Red Wheelbarrow," William Carlos Williams states that "so much depends" on the things described in the poem. Yet he does not elaborate on that statement. Williams does not dictate the meaning of the poem by telling readers what depends on the wheelbarrow. Readers are expected to form their own ideas.

What do you think "depends / upon" the red wheelbarrow? What is Williams saying?

Answer in at least one paragraph of 5-7 sentences. Be sure to use Textual Evidence from the poem to support your opinion.

The answer will depend a lot on what level of discourse is taking place in your class. I'll explain below.

Explanation:

In the most basic sense, we understand that a wheelbarrow was essential for most early 20th century farming practices. For a farmer, his entire livelihood and the food supply of his community would depend upon that wheelbarrow.

The issue here, however, is that nothing depends upon this red wheelbarrow. The implication in the lines "glazed with rain / water / beside the white / chickens" is that the wheelbarrow is not being used, and has not been used in some time.

The most essential element to much of the Imagist poetry of W. C. W. is in his mantra, "No ideas but in things." His concern isn't with conveying the importance of the wheelbarrow at all-it's with delivering a concrete portrait of life grounded in reality.

When asked, "What depends upon the red wheelbarrow," the most correct answer, honestly, is "It doesn't matter."

Many things depend on the red wheelbarrow described in Williams's poem. The chickens suggest that this is a farmyard scene, so readers might assume that one thing that depends on the wheelbarrow-something used by farmers to make their work around the farm easier-is the well-being of the farmer and the farmer's family. Expanding this view, readers might also assume, since farmers supply food to markets for consumers to buy and eat, that the well-being of others also depends on the wheelbarrow. Perhaps Williams's poem is about the interconnectedness of people's lives and the importance of seemingly simple or ordinary technology in maintaining those connections.