How do the rhythm and meter of "Chicago" contribute to the meaning of the poem's lines?

One of my favorite parts about "Chicago" by Carl Sandburg is the
fact that if you turn the physical poem on it's side, it looks like a city skyline. You may think
that this has nothing to do with the poem's rhythm, but I believe it
does.

The first five lines grab your attention and set a tone of
size and stature. Sandburg's diction, "Hog Butcher," "stormy," "brawling," "City of the Big
Shoulders" are rather intimidating.

In, the second "stanza," the
lines get larger, like the big skyscrapers of Chicago. Remember, that they didn't exist in 1916
when Sandburg wrote the poem, but it makes it easier to understand. The subject matter is
difficult: The city is "brutal," "crooked" and "wicked" and the lines set a rhythm of speed and a
sense of overwhelming presence, again, intimidating outsiders. Meanwhile, the insider, the
speaker, is proud to be a part of Chicago and all the "negatives" that come with
it.

Again the rhythm abruptly halts with a list of five descriptive
and powerful words: "Bareheaded/Shoveling/Wrecking/Planning/ Building, breaking,
rebuilding."

Finally, in the last stanza, the pace becomes
overwhelming again, describing the laughter of the speaker. This serves as the final point, in
which the speaker is "proud to be Hog Butcher, Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat, Player with
Railroads and Freight Handler to the Nation." The pace, rhythm and diction make the reader feel
as if it is impossible not to pay attention to
Chicago.