Generality to Such Specificity

The Red Wheelbarrow
by William Carlos Williams

so much depends
upon

a red wheel
barrow

glazed with rain
water

beside the white
chickens




The first two stanzas speak generally: in the phrase "so much depends" and in the article "a red wheel/ barrow". When this wheel barrow is detailed, however, it gains concrete weight that is then grounded in the precise specificity of the last stanza: "the white/ chickens."