TONE OF LOST:The tone of the poem “Lost” is sad because he is lost with no one to help him. Carl Sandburg, in this poem uses the metaphors of a drifting boat and a lost child to convey the emotions of sadness, isolation and loneliness. Sandburg spent much of his life in Chicago, so it is reasonable to assume that the lake he refers to is Lake Michigan, a huge lake more akin to an inland sea.An initial reading of the poem immediately generates feelings of sadness and pity, especially for the lost child to whom Sandburg compares the boat.CENTRAL IDEA OF LOST:Carl Sandburg’s poem seems to specifically address feelings of loneliness and a search for safety and meaning in life. While the simple story of being lost on the lake trying to seek shore is there, beneath lies a lot of potential interpretations, all of which are just that. The poem revolves around raw emotions, almost at a breaking point trying to find safety, a way. The lake, is acting as a mirror to one’s inner feelings of sadness and despair.The poem forces the reader to read the poem with a mindset as if his life is penned down.CONCLUSION:This is a short poem, but has a lot of meaning to it. “Lost’ seems to be a true reflection of life. The poem expresses how one feels when they are lonely. It creates an atmosphere of the sad and despairing tone by creating an alienated individual on a lake. The straightforward poem is filled to brim with emotions and feelings of desperation and sadness thus making the reader question his own life.