An Analysis of Frost's "Tree at my Window" The poem "Tree at my Window" was written by Robert Frost, an America poet who was born in 1874 and died in 1963 (DiYanni 624). The narrator in this poem appears to be speaking to the "tree at my window"; then, repeating the phrase in reverse order, he calls it the "window tree," as if to emphasize the location and nearness of the tree. Calling the tree a "window tree," might also suggest that this tree is something he sees through, perhaps to some higher truth, to something beyond the mere physical presence of the tree. As night approaches, the "sash" or movable portion of the window is lowered, perhaps to prevent the air, cooled from lack of the sun's warmth, from entering the house (Webster 1026). The narrator continues, "But let there never be curtain drawn / Between you and me."
Hopkins’ ‘Binsey Poplars’. Of course, to say that the poems are simply about trees is akin to saying that poems are full of words that rhyme. This may be true but it is a description that falls short of the real truth – they are about trees but they are also about life and death, despair and hope. While Philip Larkin’s ‘The Trees’ seems on first reading a very straightforward Ode to the life cycles of trees all around us, Hopkins’ ‘Binsey Poplars’ is a much more complicated and dense narrative that conveys a message that goes far beyond the loss of his beloved poplars. I will explore the themes presented to us by the poets and the techniques, including language and form, employed by both to convey these to the reader.
2000. P.1444 DiYanni, Robert. Literature: Reading fiction, Poetry, and Drama. Compact Ed. The United States of America.
When read literally we see a group of travellers whose passage has been impeded by a tree which has fallen across the path of these travellers, however when we read deeper into the passage we find Frost referring to "Our journey", a term commonly used in existential writing as a description of life, and the tree a representation of the problems or hurdles faced in life. In his poetry Frost commonly refers to life as "his journey" and in this instance Frost has written about the unexpected challenges, distractions and hurdles thrown into life, which can side track or take our minds of the "journey" at hand. Frost continues his existentialist theme by going on to say: "We will not be put off our final goal We have it hidden in us to obtain." Frost believes that every individual has the ability to reach the goals they have set while on their "journey", and every person needs to have goals set, otherwise their would be no need to partake this journey, therefore answering this question "why are we here", and along with his use of natural imagery, simple language and symbolism Frost is able to deal with the major existentialist question and concepts.
Frost uses symbolism of nature and incorporates that symbolism into everyday life situations. The speaker in the poems vary, in the poem “The Pasture”, Frost seems to be directly involved in the poem, where as in the poem “While in the Rose Pogonias”, he is a detached observer, viewing and talking about the world’s beauty. Subsequently, the author transfers that beauty over to the beauty of experiences that are achieved through everyday life. Robert Frost’s intricate meanings are stated in such a way that the reader must dwell so much deeper into the poem than one does when one just reads the poem. The poet has a major theme in all of his poems and that theme is nature.
In addition to that, the rustling that the leaves make creates a type of rhythmic pattern, which the narrator starts to describe as the, “The Sound of the Trees.” Although Frost’s main “Characters” in this story are the trees, they symbolize many aspects of human nature and humans need for self-discovery and exploration. As the poem continues the narrator has begun to take on qualities of the tree that he once did not have .The narrator of this story is intrigued by the nature of trees, and how people deal with them in their everyday lives, an example of this are line 2-3, “Why do we wish to bear/forever the noise of these” (2-3). Throughout life trees make a multitude of noises, some of the sounds louder than others as if they were trying to get away. However, through all of this they are forced to stay in the same location due to roots that that travel deep into the ground for ages, “And that talks no less for knowing,/As it grows wiser and older”(12-13). The urge to travel and explore starts to become imprinted on the life around the trees “I shall set forth for somewhere/I shall make the reckless choice” (19-20),this shows that that the urge to explore is urgent.
The tree shows its connection with humans perfectly through its sad story of its doomed life. "In a Green Night" by Derek Walcott is a poem that looks simple on the outside. Through metaphors, paradoxes, and repetition the poem tells a fable. The poem tells the fable of an artist burdened with his ability to think and create which becomes both his doom and his glory.
New York: Pearson, 2013. 1764-1831. Sophocles. "Oedipus the King." Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Writing.
When analyzing his writing, Frost uses nature to show deeper in depth lesson... ... middle of paper ... ...ert Frost 's poems, I now see his poems in a different perspective. I once thought as many do, that Frost 's poems where about nature but now I know that Frost 's true intention was of “taking life by the throat” (Frost Interview). While others consider him as a nature poet, Frost doesn’t believe himself as one and we can see his perspective in his poems but especially in “Mowing,” “After Apple-Picking,” and “The Road Not Taken.” Frost actually uses nature as an analogy to human life experiences or the troubles that people go through. He reflects these poems back to his personal life and the struggles he has been through also. After researching and reading about Robert Frost I have became very fond his work and enjoy looking deeper into his work trying to picture what he truly meant.
Choice of Life in The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost 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. (Frost 1-5) On the surface, Robert Frost’s poem is a story about a walk on a wooded road, but it had deeper meaning to him and how he feels about "the road." Also, the poem has a universal meaning about life and the choices it presents. Further, the poem is magnificently written in Frost’s own created rhyme style. Lastly, a sigh might just be a sigh to some, but in this piece it means much more to Frost.