The central concern of this poem is that it is a metaphor for human connectivity and the journey of life. At first, it seemed as if he was simply writing about his ferry ride, but further on, it became apparent that he was comparing his experience to people of the present and future who take the same ferry ride. I reached this idea through the comparison of his personal life in New York to the lives of those who have also walked the same streets, and that he loves the city and sharing the love of it with others.

The below excerpt uses repetition and lists, which helps you understand the poem more thoroughly by making you feel like you can relate to his emotions, which is a form of human connectivity. Little every day moments are cherished by people no matter when or where you are.

“Just as you feel when you look on the river and sky, so I felt, 
Just as any of you is one of a living crowd, I was one of a crowd, 
Just as you are refresh’d by the gladness of the river and the bright flow, I was refresh’d, 
Just as you stand and lean on the rail, yet hurry with the swift current, I stood yet was hurried, 
Just as you look on the numberless masts of ships and the thick-stemm’d pipes of steamboats, I look’d.”