Edna St. Vincent Millay’s speaker watches the trees lining a city street and imagines how they would sound if the traffic and trains fell silent. Their rustling would be as thin and sweet as any country tree, and people sheltering under them after a rain could hear the same quiet music. But the city air is shrieking, so the leaves seem mute. The speaker feels a tender, slightly wistful longing—she knows the beauty is there, hidden beneath the noise, even if no one else hears it. The mood is reflective and a little melancholy, caught between the harsh present and the gentle sound the wind would make if only the city let it through.
City Trees — Summary
The trees along this city street, Save for the traffic and the trains, Would make a sound as thin and sweet As trees in country lanes. And people standing in their shade Out of a shower, undoubtedly Would hear such music as is made Upon a country tree. Oh, little leaves that are so dumb Against the shrieking city air, I watch you when the wind has come,-- I know what sound is there.