In "Tree At My Window," Robert Frost addresses a tree growing outside of his bedroom window with these words: "But tree...You have seen me when I slept, ... I was taken and swept / And all but lost. / That day she put our heads together, / Fate had her imagination about her, / Your head so much concerned with outer, / Mine with inner, weather." In these lines Frost conveys several emotions and themes that infiltrate many of his works. These common themes include darkness, nighttime, isolation, inner turmoil and the premonition of death. It is through these recurring images that we are able to glimpse into Robert Frost's life, and see how greatly his life effected his poetry.
Robert Frost endured many emotional hardships in his life. Some
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It was during this time of transporting his family back to America that Frost wrote "The Road Not Taken."
In "The Road Not Taken," Frost speaks of "Two roads...in a yellow wood" and the decision that he must make in choosing one path over the other. He "looked down one as far as I could / To where it bent in the undergrowth...Then took the other, as just as fair," and scrutinized its possibilities and potential in comparison to the first road. He eventually comes to a decision, deciding to "[keep] the first for another day! / Yet knowing how way leads on to way, / I doubted if I should ever come back." But is he satisfied with his decision? Of course not! "I shall be telling this with a sigh / Somewhere ages and ages hence: / Two roads diverged in a wood and I - / I took the one less traveled by, / And that has made all the difference." He is not satisfied with his decision, as is made apparent when he says that he will be "telling this with a sigh" somewhere in the future. However, one does not have to be satisfied with their decision to accept it. Choosing the "road less traveled by" "has made all the difference" in his life, but Frost does not specify that his choice was the one that produced the best possible outcomes in his life.
Many of Frost's poems concern his future and making decisions that will effect the rest of his life. The poem "An Old Man's Night" was first published at the
The overall tone of Robert Frost’s poem, “The Road Not Taken,” is foreseen as regretful yet satisfied through his word choice. For example, in the poem, Frost wrote of two paths where he could travel; however, both far and both equal. The word choice alludes to two paths in life, maybe a job in New York being a writer or a fellowship with many opportunities for more out of his line of work. He wrote in his poem, “I shall be telling this with a sigh, Somewhere ages and ages hence…” (Frost, 1916, p.1) The word choice shows how he often thought about his choice and thought of how things could be different with regret. Additionally, Frost wrote, “Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back.” This also showed how he
In the poem, The Road Not Taken, written in 1916, the mood feels anticipatory and conflicted because it is written regarding someone who has walked upon two paths in the woods and has to make a choice on which road to take. Frost expresses the idea that once a decision is made, there is no turning back for a second chance. His purpose was to possibly teach a life lesson to the audience or maybe even teach his own self based on the fact that the road the narrator is yet to take represents events going on in his life possible consisting of a mid-life crisis, career, or marriage. The poem reflects how in life, some people may lose their way just as Frost did when he was battling his own self. Frost states, “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, and sorry I could not travel both” which emphasizes the idea that having a sense of decisiveness is a significant value to have in life, something in which Frost lacks.
The speaker decides on a path. In lines 16-20, Frost writes “I shall be telling this with a sigh somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference. As I mentioned earlier, the speaker sighs in line 16, wishing he could have taken both roads. He opted to choose the grassy road that wanted wear (line 9). The speaker reflects back on this decision, noting that his choice has made all the difference in his life. To me, this last line reflects contentment and gratification in his earlier life choice.
Frost uses several techniques in his poem, but perhaps the most significant is his use of the metaphor. First, he describes “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood” (1). The roads represent the different choices that people have to make in life and how there isn’t always one choice to be made. Each path is an important decision which he must make, so he has to choose carefully when examining each path. When he “looked down one as far as (he) could to where it bent in the undergrowth” (4-5), this represents him not being able to predict and see the future. The forest represents the unknown, and he cannot see or predict his unknown future. One may think that his choice
In “The Road Not Taken,” Robert Frost leaves a major theme of making choices. The poem is about a man traveling and he comes across a fork-in-the-road. He must make a decision on which way he will keep traveling. One way seems familiar to him. It is by far the safer and easier route to go down. But that does come with a price. The road has been used a lot and may be more difficult to travel down even though it seems easier. He ends up choosing the road less traveled. It did not seem as convenient at the time but he states that it helped him in the long run. Not only does “The Road Not Taken,” have a theme about choices, but it also holds a theme about choosing the road less taken. Taking chances and choosing the road less traveled can have many benefits in the long run.
Frost uses the debating between the two roads to show the reader the two choices that are presented to him and how those two choices offer countless amount of possibilities. There are multiple different ways to decipher the poem, but Frost connects with the reader in the sense that no matter what road is taken, another road will later replace the past road. Frost begins to notice one of the two roads looks more worn down than the other, “Though as for that the passing there had worn them really about the same” this is representing real-life traumas and can show the decision making process when choosing between two options. Looking down one of the roads of life before actually following the trail shows a different perspective and point of view from the basic stand point of only seeing a problem one way and never seeing the problem or decision from another point of view. Frost decides in the end to take one of the paths and says he will take the second path another day although he may never go back to the starting point of his journey. It is more than just human instinct to not want to take the more unnatural or harmful pathway; it is easier to take the cleaner path so that the problem will be over with faster and Frost depicts this problem perfectly in the form of a short poem.
The Use of Literary Devices in Robert Frost's Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
Frost uses a multitude of poetic devices, including metaphors, irony, symbolism, hyperbole, and personification “Proclaimed the time was neither wrong nor right. to vividly reinforce the desolation in the mind and the surroundings of the speaker. The uncertainty of the time in the end is a reflection of the uncertainty in the duration of isolation that the speaker would have to continue to endure. In conclusion, this poem displays the transition into night figuratively as the author experiences a broken heart. I have been one acquainted with the night.” (V,2 ). This is a beautiful and dark poem that describes the somber emotions that an individual endures after a separation. This poem can be relatable to anyone as we all have experienced some type of sorrow. Hopefully after experiencing something of this nature we can see the bright lights after being acquainted with the
There are several likenesses and differences in these poems. They each have their own meaning; each represent a separate thing and each tell a different story. However, they are all indicative of Frost’s love of the outdoors, his true enjoyment of nature and his wistfulness at growing old. He seems to look back at youth with a sad longing.
One of Robert Frost’s most well know works: “The Road Not Taken”, is arguably one of the most controversial and misunderstood poems. By just reading the title, it seems fairly simple to assume that the poem is about making choices. When the speaker is presented the two roads he must make a choice as to which path he will take for he: “Could not travel both” (Line 2). As the speaker looks down both paths as far as he can, he deciphers back and forth from believing that the paths are equal to one path is better over the other. The speaker eventually decides which path to take and he states that his choice: “Has made all the difference” (Line 20). The title and plot lead people to believe that the central theme is about choices and the importance
The early and later life of Robert Frost was entailed with many hardships that influenced a variety of themes and key concepts within his works such as thematic ideas surrounding the simple pleasures taken for granted in life until they disappear, evident in Frost's poem "Birches," and city life opposed to farm life, evident in "Acquainted with the Night." Robert Lee Frost was born on March 26, 1874 in San Francisco, California to William Prescott Frost Jr and Isabelle Moody Frost. The two had on other child, Jeanie Frost, in 1876 when their son was two. Frost childhood was pervaded with hardships stemming mostly from the actions of his father. Frost's father was an alcoholic who drank and gambled the family's funds into oblivion while exercising
Frost writes the experience of someone who has a decision to make between two paths. In lines 9 and 10 it states how both paths travelers equally used. This comes to make me think how the decision that the narrator is making is a big life decision since there is really no helpful influence to draw him closer towards one of the paths. In lines 1-4, Frost
The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost, is about someone choosing between two paths in life that have been laid out for them. One is easier than the other, while the other more compelling and mysterious. In this poem, it uses the setting of someone traveling in the woods, finding two different paths to take. One of the paths has been traveled on more, while the other has not. The poem altogether talks about the effect of what making different choices in life has in the long run.
“Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought and the thought has found words,” Robert Frost once said. As is made fairly obvious by this quote, Frost was an adroit thinker. It seems like he spent much of his life thinking about the little things. He often pondered the meaning and symbolism of things he found in nature. Many readers find Robert Frost’s poems to be straightforward, yet his work contains deeper layers of complexity beneath the surface. These deeper layers of complexity can be clearly seen in his poems “ The Road Not Taken”, “Fire and Ice”, and “Birches”.
Frost shows the readers that it is hard to choose something without knowing what will be the result, thus he wants to try both of the options to decide on something, when he says “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,/ And sorry I could not travel both”. Whole poem is constructed of this metaphor, and every line refers to something in life. In the last part where Frost says, “I took the one less traveled by” he implies the idea that people wish to be different from others, thus they are prone to choose the option which had not been chosen by many other people. Instead of saying that he was having hard time deciding on a thing to do, Frost chose to use the metaphor of a road, which forced the readers to use their imagination to understand the real meaning behind what he