Outcasts
An Analysis of Themes of Alienation in Three Poems by Robert Frost
Mike Birbiglia, an American actor and filmmaker once said, “Alienation, I suppose, cannot be hackneyed because it will always exist.” It is always interesting to hear what others think an outcast is. To some, and outcast is someone who does not dress nice or smell good all the time, while to others an outcast is a person who is shy and quiet. Outcast have been around since the beginning of civilization. In ancient times they were called untouchables, in medieval times they were called beggars, but now they go by many names. Some think social class defines the weakest in society; but just because someone is not the same as most, he or she does not deserve to be treated as less than. Robert Frost, one of the most famous American poets, is constantly referred to as someone who described alienation in his poetry. He knew exactly how to develop a clear separation of people within a society in many different ways. Robert Frost demonstrated his views on alienation in three key poems.
In, Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening, Robert Frost clearly outlines what alienation is when one cannot do what pleases him or her. In this story, a man and his horse are traveling on a long journey through the woods where it has just snowed. This man so badly would like to stay and watch the snowfall; the poem reads, “To watch his woods fill up with snow, My little horse must think it queer to stop without a
Robert Frost’s approach to human isolation is always an interesting exploration. His poem of desertion and neglect paired with eternal hopefulness ignite the reader in his poem “The Census-Taker.” All of the elements of a Frost poem are in this particular poem. “The Census-Taker” must be from an earlier time in Frost’s career because the poem is written in an open, free verse similar to the style of his earlier 20th century poetry like “Mending Wall” and “After Apple-Picking.” Also, the language lacks the sophisticated word selection a reader of poetry might find in Wallace Stevens and instead uses simplicity to
Alienation can be defined as a state of being cut off or separate from a person or group of people. There are many factors that cause people to become alienated: race, political views, social status, etc. The texts “The Great Gatsby”, “The Catcher in the Rye”, and the play “Death of a Salesman” all portray characters who are cut off from the rest society. Despite the character's best effort to fit in, they ultimately fail. The authors argue that one's ideology can cause them to be alienated.
In Robert Frost’s poem “To the Thawing Wind,” in the literal sense, he is asking the Southwest wind to come, melt the snow and bring spring, but symbolically he is tired of the winter and wants warm weather. He wants to burst out of his cabin and have a good time, not thinking about poetry. The poet has been confined in his winter cabin and is wanting the wind and rain to melt the snow, so it will change his winter isolation. He has been longing for the “thawing wind” because that is when spring is coming. He is anticipating spring to come because it will bring him inspiration and the freedom needed to be able to do new things and enjoy everything good that comes with this season.
"Out, Out," by Robert Frost is a gruesomely graphic and emotional poem about the tragic end of a young boy's life. It is a powerful expression about the fragility of life and the fact that death can come at any time. Death is always devastating, but it is even more so when the victim is just a young boy. The fact that the boy's death came right before he could " Call it a day" (750) leads one to think the tragedy might have been avoided and there by forces the reader to think, "What if." This poem brings the question of mortality to the reader's attention and shows that death has no age limit.
Robert Frost takes our imagination to a journey through wintertime with 
his two poems "Desert Places" and "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening". These two poems reflect the beautiful scenery that is present in the snow covered woods and awakens us to new feelings. Even though these poems both have winter settings they contain very different tones. One has a feeling of depressing loneliness and the other a feeling of welcome solitude. They show how the same setting can have totally different impacts on a person depending on 
their mindset at the time. These poems are both made up of simple stanzas and diction but they are not straightforward poems.
An outcast is someone who does not fit into the normal crowd. Their opinions and view are different from others. They want the world to be different from it’s current point. An outcast will push themselves to the limit to get what they want. Susan Brownwell Anthony is an outcast because she develops an idea that is different from society’s views on women’s rights, she is a hard worker and stays true to herself.
Robert Frost’s poem “Out, Out –“ is about a boy who has his arm sawed off during work and asks his sister not to let the doctor amputate his arm, he then realizes he’s lost too much blood and then dies while doctors try to save him. After his death everyone else continues on with their work and lives. Frost uses a lot of end-stopped lines, enjambment, repetition and personification among others in his lines of poetry.
Robert Frost had a fascination towards loneliness and isolation and thus expressed these ideas in his poems through metaphors. The majority of the characters in Frost’s poems are isolated in one way or another. In some poems, such as “Acquainted with the Night” and “Mending Wall,” the speakers are lonely and isolated from their societies. On other occasions, Frost suggests that isolation can be avoided by interaction with other members of society, for example in “The Tuft of Flowers,” where the poem changes from a speaker all alone, to realizing that people are all connected in some way or another. In Robert Frost’s poems “Acquainted with the Night,” “Mending Wall,” and “The Tuft of Flowers,” the themes insinuate the idea of loneliness
In Robert Frost’s poem “Out, Out” an overwhelming theme of agony can be sensed as
Robert Frost tells a disturbing story in 'Out, Out, --', in which a little boy loses his life. The title of the poem leaves the reader to substitute the last word of the title, which some would assume would be out because of the repetition. The title is referring to the boy exiting the living world. Frost drags the reader's mind into the poem with the imagistic description of the tools and atmosphere the little boy is surrounded by.
McKays's poem, "Outcast," is the most obvious example of this outsider theme. From the title to the last line there are many references to a feeling of alienation and neglect. The voice in the poem longs for "the dim regions whence my fathers came." The
Robert Frost’s poetic techniques serve as his own “momentary stay against confusion,” or as a buffer against mortality and meaninglessness in several different ways; in the next few examples, I intend to prove this. Firstly, however, a little information about Robert Frost and his works must be provided in order to understand some references and information given.
Poetry is a literary medium which often resonates with the responder on a personal level, through the subject matter of the poem, and the techniques used to portray this. Robert Frost utilises many techniques to convey his respect for nature, which consequently makes much of his poetry relevant to the everyday person. The poems “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening’ and “The mending wall” strongly illuminate Frost’s reverence to nature and deal with such matter that allows Frost to speak to ordinary people.
“The Road Not Taken” and “Nothing Gold Can Stay” are just two of many very famous poems, written by none other than Robert Frost. Robert Frost is a poet that is well known for his poetic contributions to nature, as well as his award winning poems. His poetic ability and knowledge make him an extraordinary author. His past; including schooling, family, and the era in which he wrote influenced nearly all of his poems in some way. This very famous poet contributed to the modernism era, had a family and an interesting life story, and a unique poetic style as well.
Robert Frost is the author of Out Out--, “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening, and Nothing Gold can Stay. His literary work communicates deep meaning through the use of metaphoric language and deception. Being raised most of his life on a farm; his works perceive the natural life of a normal person while out in nature. “Frost believes that the emphasis on everyday life allows him to communicate with his readers more clearly; they can empathize with the struggles and emotions that are expressed in his poems and come to a greater understanding of ‘Truth’ themselves” (Robert Frost: Poems Themes).