Robert Frost

In a well-constructed essay, explain how Frost uses imagery and figurative language to communicate the central theme of this poem. In the poem “Mending Wall”, Robert Frost uses language and paragraph structure in order to develop controversial ideas about the necessity of change and stirring rebellion, and about maintaining individuality One of the prevalent themes present in this poem is that of change, and when it is necessary. When describing the uselessness of the wall, the speaker says, “My apple trees will never get across. And eat the cones under his pines”. Here, the speaker emphasizes that the wall is not needed, and implies that there is no use in mending the wall, therefore advocating for change. The speaker’s believes that the wall is not necessary, shown when he says, “There where it is we do not need the wall”. He clearly sees no use for the wall anymore and is thinking practically. Logically, maintaining the wall is simply a waste of time and resources, as it is no longer needed. Frost relays the theme of change and rebellion through the speaker’s questioning of old customs as time goes on. After the speaker suggests that they perhaps break down the wall the reaction he receives is, “He only says Good fences make good neighbors”. The neighbor’s repetition and insistence of this proverb shows his devotion to tradition and his unwillingness to change. This proverb has most likely been passed down over generations, once again reinforcing the idea that the neighbor is obsessed with custom and tradition.

The fact that the poem ends with this line suggests that no change was established, and that the wall remained. The young, refreshing voice of change is clearly overshadowed by the elder opinion that change is unnecessary if the current system is working. This is an extremely powerful and controversial message , which is especially interesting during a time of such political uproar in America Another message clear in Frost’s poem is that of the importance of individuality. For example, in lines 8 and 9, the speaker says, “And on a day we meet to walk the line/ And set he wall between us once again”. The order of these lines is meant to express the irony of he situation. The only time the two neighbors converse or meet is when they are trying to ensure that they won’t be bothered by each other for the rest of the year. This exposes the American culture as an individualistic one, and subtly criticizes the American belief in autonomy. In addition, when describing the mending of the wall, the speaker says, “One on side”. This emphasizes the fact that even when working together towards a common goal, the two are separated. Once again, this stresses the importance of individuality in the American culture ; the fact that even when we all want the same thing , we refuse to work together to achieve it, and we look out for our own self-interests first. Lastly , in line 18 , the speaker describes himself and his neighbor by saying , “He is all pine and I am apple orchard”. The juxtaposition between these two items is once again meant to ite the fact that they live in the same describe the separation between the two. neighborhood (and are therefore likely from a similar social class), they are still completely separate beings. Again, through this, Frost hopes to express the idea that individuality is one of America’s core values. Through his usage of language and his paragraph structure, Frost conveys controversial views on American society and its perception of change and individuality.

As this Idea being applied to Frost’s writing career, Frost Is being drawn to wildness and darkness In life and forgets about his responsibilities of writing poems. In ‘Gathering Leaves’, “but a crop is a crop” (ALL) has two levels of interpretation. The first “crop” refers to the gathered leaves and harvested crops while the second “crop” refers to reward and value. This suggests that the value lies in the effort of gathering leaves. As for Frost’s poetic creations, the effort in gathering ideas is its own value.

He confirms his value in poetic creations and finds his motivations to carry on. Moreover, the two poems have stated that Frost has to go on with his life and work hard to fulfill his responsibilities in life and work. In Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening’, “l have promises to keep” (L 14) refers to Frost who has to keep his promises to fulfill responsibilities in real life. Also, “miles to go before I sleep” (ALL-LA 6) has two levels of meaning. On the surface, it means that Frost still has a long way to cross the woods before he can rest.

Frost deep down wants to express that he has a long Journey before his death. In ‘Gathering Leaves’, “and whiffs to say where the harvest shall stop? (LOLL) Is a rhetorical question which Is used to show that the harvest shouldn’t stop. It symbolizes Frost’s work as a poet. It tells that Frost should not stop but get on with his Job and collect ideas for his writing instead to fulfill his responsibilities as a poet. Next, I’m going to discuss about the three differences In content between the two poems by Robert Frost.

Firstly, the durations of the two actions, stopping by woods and harvesting, are different. For Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening’, Frost is Just attracted by the nature and stop by the woods to observe the beauty of the nature. He will soon leave and continue his Journey in life to fulfill his responsibilities of writing. However, for ‘Gathering Leaves’, it Is a continuous working routine. It symbolizes the repeating routine of writing, Including gathering Ideas and poetic creations. Frost won’t stop because he knows that he has to get on with his life as a poet.

Secondly, the reasons to go on are different in the two poems. In ‘Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening’, it is said that Frost has miles to go before he sleeps (Al 5-ALL) which indicates that he has to continue his Journey in life to fulfill his responsibilities. Is hard work in L 16. “But a crop is a crop” (ALL) suggests the value of gathering leaves lies in the effort itself. Therefore Frost carries on with his Journey because he finds it rewarding. Thirdly, the emotions throughout the two poems differ.

In ‘Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening, the repetition of “and miles to go before I sleep” in L 15 and L 16 suggests a tired tone of the speaker. However, Frost has to go on to fulfill his responsibilities and resist the attraction from the darkness. As in ‘Gathering Leaves’, “but a crop is a crop” (ALL) suggests a determined tone of the speaker since he knows he he can get the reward by putting effort in gathering ideas for writing. To discuss about the similarities in form between the two poems, there are two. To begin with, the two poems are quatrains.

They have regular patterns which suggest that Frost has to take regular steps to move on the Journey. Also this indicates the routine tasks of the writer as a poet. Besides, the two poems used the poetic device of enjambment. In ‘Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening, the use of enjambment suggests that Frost goes on with his journey as a poet. While in ‘Gathering Leaves’, it suggests the continuous routine asks of gathering ideas as a poet and also the movements of light leaves when they try to escape from the catch of Frost.

The last word on the second line rhymes with the last word on the fourth line in each stanza. This suggests the continuous routine tasks of a poet again. In addition, the lengths of line and rhythms are different. ‘Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening’ has longer lines and the rhythm is comparatively slower. It is because Frost enjoys admiring nature and he is not rushing through his Journey. For ‘Gathering Leaves’, it has a faster rhythm and the lines are shorter. It is use to mimic the movements of leaves. The leaves are very light in weight. Hey keep escaping and running away fast.

Robert Frost’s “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” is a poem that, at first glance, seems to simply describe the author’s journey through the woods. The poem’s language is uncomplicated and the rhyme scheme flows smoothly. Also, the subject matter is easily relatable to the audience; the poem speaks of things such as woods, snow, and a horse, which any reader can identify with or visualize. These qualities make it easy for the reader to take this piece at face value without reading into what the words mean rather than just what they say.

Upon taking a closer look, however, the poem is undoubtedly the author’s memento mori. This becomes evident at the end of the poem, where there is an interruption in the flow of the language that elicits reconsideration of the poem’s facade of simplicity. Up until the last stanza, all the lines run seamlessly together. Then, the first two lines of the last stanza read “The woods are lovely, dark and deep/ But I have promises to keep. ” What causes the reader to consider a second look at these two lines is the word “but. This word usually signals to the reader that what follows is in contradiction to what precedes it; however, in this case the second line does not contrast the first.

Therefore, the reader must search for what is being contrasted. The author is not merely commenting on the “lovely, dark and deep” woods, but is contemplating something. To better understand what is being contemplated, a broader look at the poem is necessary. The first stanza the author writes, “He will not see me stopping here/ To watch his woods fill up with snow. This implies that the author is thinking about spending a considerable amount of time in these woods, which would be necessary to watch them fill with snow. The second stanza says that this snowy evening is “The darkest evening of the year. ” It is possible that it means literally dark; however, it is more likely that the author is figuratively speaking as to say his darkest, or most depressing, evening. The third stanza speaks of “downy flake,” which invokes images of soft down, commonly used as a pillow filling.

The last two lines of the poem mention “miles to go before I sleep,” in which “sleep” is a euphemism for death. These six lines, when examined together, imply that the author is depressed and considering these woods as a final resting place. The author’s thought of spending much time, in this case eternity, in the woods using the downy flake to rest his head upon can be interpreted as his contemplation of memento mori. This brings the reader back to the word “but. ” What is the author contrasting when he states that he has “promises to keep? The author is saying that although these woods are “lovely, dark and deep” and would make an ideal final resting place upon death, there are “miles to go,” or more life to live before the journey of life ends. After reflecting on one simple word, “but,” which leads to an examination of the piece as a whole, it is evident that the this poem is the author’s memento mori in which mortality is contemplated and a final resting place is considered while stopping by woods on a snowy evening.

A Snowy Evening with Robert Frost Robert Frost once said, “It begins as a lump in the throat, a sense of wrong, a homesickness, a loneliness. It is never a thought to begin with. It is at best when it is a tantalizing vagueness. ” (“Poetry Foundation” n. d. ). This poem holds a lot of mystery in its meaning which has a variety of interpretations. John T. Ogilvie who wrote, “From Woods to Stars: A pattern of Imagery in Robert Frost’s Poetry” interprets this as a poem about the journey through life. James G. Hepburn who wrote, “Robert Frost and His Critics” took a different approach.

He believes this poem to be about the aesthetics and moral action. This poem contains a variety of literary devices that not only describe the scenery but also the scene itself. Despite its critics who believe this poem to be about the scenery and moral action, Robert Frost’s poem is best understood as a journey through life, because its literary design allows many to have interpreted it this way. “To watch his woods fill up with snow” “To stop without a farm house near/ Between the woods and frozen lake/ The darkest evening of the year. ” “The only other sound’s the sweep/ Of easy wind and downy flake. “The woods are lovely, dark and deep,” (842-843). The description of the woods is seductive because of the rhyme scheme, AABA/BBCB/CCDC/DDDD. Robert Frost has made comments about the form of this poem, “a series of almost reckless commitments I feel good in having guarded it so. [It is]…my heavy duty poem to be examined for the rime pairs. ” (Frost on Stopping by Woods N. D. ). The English language is not as rhyme friendly as other languages such as Italian or French. The English language is a melting pot of many different languages limiting the amount of words that rhyme.

As John Ciardi says, “In ‘Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening’ Frost took a long chance. He decided to rhyme not two lines, but three in each stanza. Not even Frost could have sustained that much rhyme in a long poem. ” (Ciardi, How Does a Poem Mean? ). This allows the reader to be hypnotized by the rhythm Frost has created. By repeating the ‘o’ sound, ‘though’ also starts the series of rhymes that will soon get the better of the reader. For example this is seen clearly in the opening lines of the poem, “Whose woods these are I think I know. His house is in the village though; / He will not see me stopping here/ to watch his woods fill up with snow/. ” (842). As the reader begins to recognize the pattern of the poem it guides them into the same drowsy feeling as the narrator is experiencing. James G. Hepburn, who wrote “Robert Frost and His Critics,” says, “Each of the first three stanzas begins flatly; each rises, with the last line or two lines, towards the spell; but not until the end of the third stanza is the rise powerful, and not until the opening of the fourth and final stanza is the rise sustained rather than broken. So from the above lines and evidence we can interpret these lines as follows. The narrator is most likely returning home from some errand that took him far away from his home. He is riding his horse late at night or late day and has stumbled upon some beautiful scenery. This is when he decides to stop and take in everything that he is seeing. When the narrator first stopped in the woods he has a good idea of whose land this is, which is stated in the first two lines. Rueben A.

Bower who wrote, “The Poetry of Robert Frost: Constellations of Intention” says, “The very tentative tone of the opening line lets us into the mood without quite sensing where it will lead, just as the ordinariness of ‘though’ at the end of the second line assures us that we are in the world. ” Robert Frost did not start this poem with the magical whimsy of the woods but instead with the mood they contain (Hepburn 1962) “Whose woods these are I think I know. / His house is in the village though; / He will not see me stopping here/ to watch his woods fill up with snow/. (842). By doing this he allows the reader to have a better understanding of why the narrator would stop to look upon this beautiful scenery. As Hepburn says in his article, “Robert Frost and His Critics” “The mood that the poem induces in the reader nullifies his acceptance of the intention expressed by the traveler. The sum of the reader’s experience of the poem is different from the meaning of the traveler’s experience of the woods. Presumably the traveler goes home to supper, to his duties, and to the rest of his journey through life; but these things are not the poem. Frost made some comments on the factors mood plays in a poem, “… the poet’s intention is of course a particular mood that won’t be satisfied with anything less than its own fulfillment. ” (Hepburn 1962). This poem isn’t a recreated experience but meant to be an experience in itself. This poem has some interesting symbolism in it takes us on a journey through a man’s life. When the narrator first stops, instead of questioning himself, he questions what the horse thinks, “My little horse must think it queer” (842).

By questioning the horse, he is really questioning his own reasons, which people often do while they make life decisions or everyday decisions. The horse is also a symbol of time the horse is questioning his stopping and urges him to move on to prevent the further loss of time (Anonymous). When the narrator’s horse shakes his harness bells, he then becomes a symbol, as John Ciardi thinks, “.. order of life that does not understand why a man stops in the winter middle of nowhere to watch snow come down. ” The horse is the will power persistent in the subconscious of a man.

The horse urges him to get back to his business by the shake of his harness bells which is indirectly contrast the narrator who would like to stay in the woods. Even though his horse is urging him to be responsible he continues to be enticed by the soft lull of the woods just like the reader is. For example, “He gives his harness bells a shake/ To ask if there is some mistake. ” (842). The sound of the horses harness bells is contrasting against the sounds of the woods described as, “The only other sound’s the sweep/ Of easy wind and downy flake. (843). This is the woods contradicting the symbolism of the horse making their presence relevant. In life there are often two main choices to be made. Similar to this poem the narrator can either stay in the woods or go back to his everyday life. The speaker is going ahead and his ‘sleep’ may be the symbol for the end of his life. The journey in this poem turns out to be more complicated than the life of an average man. The darkness of the woods is symbolic of the ‘easy’ way out or the path people before him have taken.

The wind and downy flakes also have a similar symbolism. While the flakes appear to be soft, they are also cold which is less forgiving. The reader and the narrator share all of the experiences together as the poem goes on. For example, the line “The darkest evening of the year. ” (842) is a correlation between life and the obligations he is carrying. This line also adds an unbroken curve of rhythm. As Ruben A. Bower (1963) goes on to explain, it adds to the sense of moving into a spell-world.

We note the linking rhymes that tie in with the first stanza. Different symbols in this poem though reveal that stop in the poem could be referring to death or the journey through life. In this phrase “Between the woods and frozen lake”, the wood becomes a symbol of life while the frozen lake signifies death. When the speaker reaches the woods, he finds a world offering perfect, quiet and solitude, existing side by side with the realization that there is also another world, a world of people and social obligation. Both worlds have a claim on the poet.

He stops by the wood on this “darkest evening of the year” to watch them “fill up with snow”, and remains there so long that his “little horse” shakes his “harness bells” to ask if there is “some mistake” (842). That little horse’s action reminds him of the “promises” he has to keep and the miles he still has to travel. (843). The theme of this poem is a journey, and not simply a journey through the woods but through life itself. There is an expectant tone throughout the poem. The narrator stops for a brief time to meditate and realizes he needs to continue on his journey through the woods and his journey through life.

This poem also has a “romantic” theme as well as subject. Again the speaker is returning home and stops to take in the beautiful scenery. As the urgency to move on becomes more apparent the narrator begins to regret that he must leave. The narrator is romanticizing what he is passing which is time and pleasure. “He gives his harness bells a shake/ To ask if there is some mistake. / The only other sound’s the sweep/ Of easy wind and downy flake. ” (842-843). For example, the words “lovely” “snow” “lake” “evening” and “easy wind and downy flake” (840-843) are all romantic in nature.

Also the way the narrator talks about nature makes the loving relationship he has with it a romantic notion. “The only other sound’s the sweep/ Of easy wind and downy flake. ” (843). It is also seen in this line, “To watch his woods fill up with snow. / … Between the woods and frozen lake/ The darkest evening of the year. ” (842). As Jeffrey Meyers says, “The theme of “Stopping by Woods”–despite Frost’s disclaimer–is the temptation of death, even suicide, symbolized by the woods that are filling up with snow on the darkest evening of the year.

The speaker is powerfully drawn to these woods and–like Hans Castorp in the “Snow’ chapter of Mann’s Magic Mountain–wants to lie down and let the snow cover and bury him. The third quatrain, with its drowsy, dream-like line: “Of easy wind and downy flake,” opposes the horse’s instinctive urge for home with the man’s subconscious desire for death in the dark, snowy woods. The speaker says, “The woods are lovely, dark and deep,” but he resists their morbid attraction. ” (Meyers 1996).

The journey threw life and the temptations of death and the peace it may bring some individuals is the theme of this poem. Although some may not agree with this interpretation of Robert Frost “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” like James G. Hepburn who thinks, “This poem is a tribute to the New England sense of duty.. ” (Hepburn 1962). But as you have seen this poem is about a journey through life. The way the poem uses literary tactics lead us to this very specific interpretation. As Robert Frost once said, “A poem begins in delight and ends in wisdom. ” (Frost on Stopping by Woods N. D. ).

‘Out Out’ is a poem that tells the story of a young boy cutting his hand off while chopping wood and then dies, and how those around him cope with the death. This poem shows many techniques which are quite common in Frost’s poems; such as imagery, ambiguity and it also has a universal theme to it. This poem can be perceived to have several themes, one of which may be the lives of those living in rural areas and how they have to get on with their lives when they have lost someone close, because there is nothing else they can do. Another theme to the poem could be that of child labour in rural areas, and although the poem is set in Vermont, this is a universal theme, as child labour is known to exist all over the world.

The first line of the poem, ‘The buzz saw snarled and rattled in the yard’ does many things for the poem. For a start, the line sounds quite threatening to us and immediately we think that the saw will later become a problem or an issue. The line also personifies the saw, which further makes us believe that the saw will later play a major role in the poem. Frost also personifies the saw by using words like snarled and rattled which makes the saw seem beast-like. The word buzz is onomatopoeic which again personifies the saw.

The next line, ‘And made dust and dropped stove-length sticks of wood’ describes the saw’s purpose in the poem; it makes us more familiar with the saw. The next few lines set the scene of the poem, ‘Five mountain ranges one behind the other, Under the sunset far into Vermont’. Some say that this is a reference to the bible, in Psalms*. The image that this line creates is soothing and contrasts with the first line, which can be perceived as being threatening. The phrase ‘Under the sunset’ is ambiguous; it can be interpreted as a soothing image for some but for others it may resemble an ending of something more than just day.

Generally, the first five lines set the scene of the poem. They tell us more about where the poem is set and what kind of life the boy lives- a rural life.

The seventh line goes on to say ‘And the saw snarled and rattled, snarled and rattled’, which is a repetition of the first line. The repetition here is used to show that a long time is passing by while the saw is being used and that perhaps the job is monotonous. This line also brings us back to the reality that the poem is trying to show us. The 2 lines just before line seven gives us a soothing and peaceful image but amongst all this beauty there is this saw, a saw that Frost describes as dangerous.

‘Call it a day, I wish they might have said’ has a tone of regret and sympathy, showing that the persona knows what will happen to the boy, and this leaves us to think what will happen and we are left to fear the worst. ‘To please the boy by giving him the half hour that a boy counts so much when saved from work.’ This line shows more regret and it is at this point that we realise that the poem involves a young boy and this saddens and worries the reader even more. The line also subtly suggests that if it was ‘called a day’ then perhaps the incident with the saw would not have happened.

In line 14, the boy’s sister comes to him to tell him that it is time for dinner. At this point we are slightly relieved, as the word ‘supper’ which is used in the line, relates to normality and we all feel safe in the domesticity and regularity of our own home and therefore, we think that perhaps what we had predicted to happen would not come true.

Frost, again personifies the saw in lines 15 and 16, ‘At the word, the saw, as if to prove saws knew what supper meant…’ Again, Frost makes us fear the worst, and in the next line our fears come true, ‘Leaped out at the boy’s hand, or seemed to leap- He must have given the hand’. In the last phrase of this line, Frost has used irony; when someone gives their hand it usually means they are greeting someone or making an agreement on something. Frost words it in such a way as if he is suggesting that the boy welcomed the saw. He then goes on to say in line 18 ‘However it was neither refused the meeting. This again implies that the boy did nothing to stop the saw from hurting him. ‘The boy’s first outcry was a rueful laugh’. In this line we are shown that the boy did not cry at first but laughed at his careless mistake, laughed as if to stop himself from crying, or perhaps just because the fact that he had hurt himself hadn’t sunken in yet.

When he showed his family what had happened he ‘swung toward them holding up the hand, half in appeal but half as if to keep the life from spilling’. In this line, the words ‘half’ and ‘spilling’ create very gory pictures in our minds. ‘Half’ shows the image of half a hand, and ‘spilling’ shows the image of red blood rushing out from his cut hand.

‘Then the boy saw all-‘. In this line Frost has used the word saw as a homonym; it could mean that he ‘saw’ his life flash before him or it could mean ‘that he had sawed off all of his hand’. The pause after the word ‘all’ creates suspense and emphasis and one again we are left to think of the consequences and of what will to the happen the boy.

In line 25 we are told the boy’s response ‘Don’t let him cut my hand off- the doctor, when he comes. Don’t let him sister!’ This makes the whole poem even upsetting because throughout the poem we are told the story from an outsider but here in this line, we are suddenly given the boy’s view on the accident.

The poem reaches an anti-climax in line 32: ‘They listened at his heart. Little- less-nothing! – and that ended it.’ As readers, it is almost impossible to believe that the boy died from the incident, and the fact that the word ‘death’ is not mentioned makes us want to believe that the boy is not dead but has survived. However, some would say that the anti-climax was right at the end of the poem: ‘And they, since they were not the one dead, turned to their affairs’. Here, we would expect the family to grieve and not be able to carry on the way they used, because that is how we would expect people to react in today’s world. The reaction that the boy’s family has showed is that of stoicism and in today’s world, even if we do not realise it, examples of stoicism are common.

Throughout the poem, we can see many of Frost’s common techniques that he uses in many poems. For example, in line 6 he uses ambiguity with the word ‘sunset’ which was mentioned earlier on in this commentary. Many of Frost’s poems are in a conversational tone such as ‘Mending Wall’, ‘Home Burial’ and ‘After Apple-Picking’. To make the poem more conversational in ‘Out Out’, Frost has used words such as ‘so’, so as to make it seem like a live conversation. It could also have been used a gap-filler in the poem.

Overall, I think that ‘Out Out’ is a poem to represent the sadness and grief that families have to go through when they lose someone close and how they have to carry on with their lives just because there is nothing else they can do. It is the harsh truth of losing someone close to you, someone you love.

Robert Frost was born in San Francisco on the 26th March 1874 and died on the 29th January 1963 in Boston. He was one of America’s leading twentieth century poets and won many awards and honours, including four Pulitzer Prizes.

When Frost was eleven, he moved to New England, where his interest in poetry came during his high school years at Lawrence, Massachusetts. He studied at Harvard from 1897 to 1899, although he did not get a formal degree. During his life, he went through many occupations such as working as a teacher and cobbler. He also managed a farm that his grandfather had bought him, but when this failed he decided to sell it and used the money to take his family to England, where he could devote his time to writing poetry. By the time he returned to the United States in 1915, he had written and published a number of collections and became one of America’s most celebrated poets. With each new book – including ‘Mountain Interval’ (1916), ‘New Hampshire’ (1923) and ‘Steeple Bush’ (1947) – fame and publicity amplified.

I do not read much poetry, although I particularly favour the writings of Robert Frost. Many of his poems including ‘The Road Not Taken’ and ‘Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening’ focus on images and descriptions of the natural world. However, they mainly concentrate on conveying a much deeper, more intense message. The teachings of Robert Frost are often very emotional. I very much enjoy reading his poems and trying to interpret their true meanings. I found that writing this essay made me understand the poems that I had already read many times even more clearly.

‘The Road Not Taken’ is a very thoughtful and meaningful poem. The traditional but experimental and unique verses attract readers to the poem, as they are different from other poems. When first read, ‘The Road Not Taken’ comes across as a simple poem based on intricacies of nature. It is clear from the first stanza that it is a poem that aims to paint a detailed picture of a peaceful road that leads into a yellow wood. However, with further readings and analysis, one can easily see that there is a much stronger, deeper meaning behind the smoothly woven words, common in many of Frost’s poems. The poem’s appeal lies in the extended metaphor and extended imagery, devices used very strongly to convey an important message about the twists and turns of life. ‘The Road Not Taken’ is Frost’s portrayal of the challenging choices that one is forced to make in life. I believe that every reader can relate to the poem and although the message is very strong, it is quite easy to interpret as it’s readers can compare the poem to their own experiences.

As the narrator is walking, he encounters a fork in the road. Both the roads ahead diverge “in a yellow wood”. The uninvited predicament causes him to pause and carefully ponder over his choices – “long I stood”. He has no desire to quickly rush into a decision and wants to be sure as to which road he takes. He “looked down one as far as” he could, to help him make his decision as to which road he will take, but both bend away into the undergrowth. If the reader compares this stanza to real life, they can see that the narrator has come to a point in his life when he has to make a very important decision. He has two choices in front of him that, at a glance seem very much alike (both diverge in a yellow wood). He calmly gathers his previous experiences and resources, showing that he is very much a perfectionist. However, he is unable to find any help that will give him an insight into the future. In life, we try to determine the outcome of our choices but it is very unlikely that we will be able to say exactly what will happen to us – we can only depend on assumptions based on our previous experiences and any insight we may have on other people’s experiences.

After looking down the second road and finding that it was “just as fair”, the narrator decides to travel through it because it was “grassy and wanted wear”. Once he had taken the road and begun travelling, he realised that the “passing there had worn them really about the same.” Taking the road less travelled by describes his personality. He seems to be an individualist and does not wish to take the more commonly used path and be influenced by other travellers’ experiences. By taking the less commonly used road, the traveller sums himself up as being adventurous and daring, he is not afraid to try new things and likes to take risks and gambles. However, when he realised that other people had also been bold enough to take the less-travelled road, he may have felt a bit let down. Every reader can relate to this sort of situation. We all want to be unique, and want to boast about being brave enough to try something new. However, most probably there will be someone who has tried it before us.

In stanza 3, it is clear that both roads “equally lay” and that there was not a less-trodden road. However, the man tries to convince himself that there is a difference in the two roads. He wavers slightly as he realises that his initial interpretation of the two roads was somewhat inaccurate, but retrieves his confidence by saying that he will return to the fork sometime in the future – “Oh, I kept the first for another day” – to see where the first road will lead him. At this point, the reader is introduced to the traveller’s ego as he shoos away the truth that he could be wrong, by saying that it doesn’t matter…he can always come back if things do not go to plan. “Yet knowing how way leads on to way/I doubted if I should ever come back”. Here, he acknowledges the harsh realities of life, which do not allow one to trace their footsteps back to the origin. All people when making a choice, say that they can always try the other option later on if need be. Frost teaches in lines 14 and 15 that, in life and the journey through the woods, there will be many other forks where new choices will have to be made. There will almost certainly never be time to return to the same spot again.

The narrator is walking through ‘the road not taken’ and looks into the future “with a sigh”. He wonders what it will bring – will he be successful and reach his destination or not? There is an element of doubt in his mind – what if? What if he had taken the more common road, what would have happened? When people make choices in life, they always question the future. They hope that what they are doing will result in victory. If one succeeds in their goals, the chances are that they will never look back. On the other hand, if one does not attain their goal, they remember the other options they had and wish that they had chosen one of those, even though that may have also not worked.

The traveller continues to think about the future as he walks and meets other forks (challenges), and considers what he will tell people about his choice…

“Two roads diverged in to a yellow wood, and I –

I took the one less travelled by,

And that has made all the difference”

‘Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening’ comes across as very pensive and serene, describing, as many of Frost’s poems do, tranquil images of nature. Although the poem does not have any direct metaphors and similes, there is a clear use of extended imagery which is the main poetic device in the poem although it takes a couple of reads before one can see it, unlike the subject of nature which can be seen in the first few lines. It is a beautiful poem with a very strong message about life and how it forces people to work and strive away until there is nothing left to fight for.

The first stanza enlightens the reader of the setting and mood of the poem. A man is travelling through woods when he stops to observe the natural world around him. He knows the person “whose woods these are” and knows that “his house is in the village”. The poet’s tone and mood appears dismal as he states that the person in the village “will not see me stopping here/To watch his woods fill up with snow”, although he does not hint why this could be. From this verse, the reader can gather that the narrator is trying to reach a destination, his tone and mood suggesting that maybe he does not wish to go there. The woods are obviously special to him as it causes him to pause at such a desolate place on a snowy evening. The line, “His house is in the village, though”, indicates that the woods are away from the village and any civilisation. The woods are lovely and peaceful, but they are isolated too.

In stanza 2, the reader can identify some examples of extended imagery. The coldness of the night (“frozen lake”) and description of it being “the darkest evening of the year” may describe the way he feels as well as his surroundings. “My little horse may think it queer/To stop without a farmhouse near” indicates that the poet is aware that he does not have time to stop and stare at the woods filled with snow, even though he does not want to leave. In life, people are always busy doing things. They often wish to stop and reflect, yet the demanding circumstances around them forbid them to do this, and they are forced to battle away with the day-to-day chores. ‘Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening’ seems to give this sort of message.

In stanza 3, the man has still not moved on and his horse is becoming more and more confused as to where they are. He “gives his harness bells a shake/To ask if there is some mistake”. The horse keeps hurrying Frost by shaking his bells, upsetting the narrator’s thoughts and short break. Even in such a beautiful, soothing place, where the “only other sound’s the sweep/Of easy wind and downy flake”, the traveller is not free from interruption and disturbance. One can easily relate to this – when people try to relax for a little while, away from all the work, others around them seem to think that he or she is being lazy and hurry them along. In the same way, the horse cannot understand as to why Frost is not doing anything, even though it is so cold and dark.

The traveller conveys his feelings towards the woods, saying that they are “lovely, dark and deep”. However, he sadly sighs, admitting that he cannot stay as he has “promises to keep/And miles to go before I sleep”. Maybe the journey that the traveller is travelling through is the journey of life, the one common journey that all human beings have to travel. He has made many promises and has many goals that he wants to achieve in life. Frost implies that it will be a long time before he sleeps, sleep maybe being a metaphor for death as this is really the only time when one is free from the daily circle of work and unrest.

In ‘Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening’ the description of the night being cold and dark emphasises the fact that even in the most impossible situation, one has to struggle on and on until the end. The poem shows that even an animal like the traveller’s horse will hurry you if the work is not done. Also, the choices that one makes in life have to be achieved if success is to be met. No matter what happens, humans have to keep on fighting all the problems and distractions until everything is done. In life, people find rest and freedom very late in life. By the time they have finished all the work and attained all their goals, they are very old and probably cannot enjoy the good things life has to offer. True happiness and rest comes only with death. I think that Frost tries to convey all these messages through the profound images in the poem. I like ‘Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening’ very much, as the multi-layered and poignant messages, in my mind, hold a lot of truth. The emotional and passion-arousing teachings give the poem a very strong identity and cause me to stop and reflect, while comparing them to my own experiences.

When comparing ‘The Road Not Taken’ and ‘Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening’, I find that they are very similar in a number of ways. In both the poems, the woods encountered are travelled into unintentionally. For example, in ‘The Road Not Taken’ the man is walking when he suddenly faces a fork in the road that leads into yellow woods. In ‘Stopping By Woods…’ the traveller is travelling on horseback on a snowy, dark evening as he passes peaceful, wild woods that belong to someone in the village. This could be a metaphor for unknown, unfamiliar circumstances.

Even though one would think that the narrator is a different person each time, both travellers seem very similar. The traveller that takes ‘the road not taken’ is different from others. He seems to be a cool, level-headed, unbiased man who likes to take risks and try new challenges. The man who encounters the woods on a snowy evening is also different from others. Despite the cold and darkness, he insists on staying in the woods for some time. He loves the sense of desertion and loneliness and wants a break from the hustle and bustle of work. The dark and deep woods seem to reflect on him, revealing his dark emotion and depth of character. Both men are peculiar in their actions and views when compared with the majority of people, their deep thinking much the opposite to most of the impulsive minds of today.

Both of the poems written by Frost have the use of extended imagery, giving them the ‘Robert Frost’s poetry’ stamp straight away. Although the poems themselves are simplistic, plain and candid, they have very deep, significant and emotional messages, which teach readers the harsh realities of life. The poems provoke and challenge one’s existence, bringing the true meaning of his words home to the reader, making them so beautiful and unique in their way.