Life and Death in Poetry
analytical Essay
2084 words
Life and death are two things that we as humans must all face. The road from one to the other, from life to death, is a long and at times, both joyous and painful one. Robert Frost’s poems are a prime example of these times and trials. The poems I chose for this paper highlight them, and with Frost’s allegory, they present a sort of silver lining to the string of dark and dreary words he’s pieced together for these poems. The depressing tone to the poems “Acquainted with the Night”, “Nothing Gold Can Stay”, and “Stopping by the Woods on a Snowing Evening” could be attributed to the death of many of Frost’s family members, and how despite this he overcame it all, and at the end of his life, was a successful writer. These poems to not go into great explanation of the details of Frost’s life, however, I believe that they are representations of the things path that he’s walked, and how he viewed his actions and death in general. The first line in the poem, “I have been one acquainted with the night.” (Frost) – suggests that Frost, or the personified character in the poem states that he has met darkness. This does not describe death, more so trials and tribulations in life that we have all faced. There doesn’t need any specifics to this, simply because not everyone’s life goes along the same track or path. The second stanza, “I have walked out in rain – and back in rain.” – is letting us know that Frost has been in and out of sadness and depression. A metaphor for such sadness could be likened to rain. The next two lines give a better description of how this poem is a better representation of how difficult life can be for us all. “I have outwalked the furthest city light. I have looked down the saddest city lane.” (Frost) I belie... ... middle of paper ... ...Cited Doyle, John Robert, Jr. 1988. The Literature Resource Center. 3 August 2010 . Frost, Robert. New Enlarged Anthology of Robert Frost's Poems. New York: Washington Square Press, 1971. Hotchman, Jhan. "An overview of "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening." Literature Resource Center. 3 August 2010 . Klinkowitz, Jerome and Patricia B Wallace. The Norton Anthology of Americal Literature. Seventh. Vol. Volume D. New York City: Norton, 2007, 2003, 1998, 1994, 1989, 1985, 1979. 5 vols. Murray, Keat. Literature Resource Center. 1 August 2010 .
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how the two lines describe how we willingly walk into darkness, whether or not we know that there is darkness ahead. the character's decisions have led him out of the furthest city lights.
- Analyzes how youth is bright at the beginning, but as you grow older, you are unable to hold onto it. we all wish we could go back to our childhoods, when time was easier.
- Compares the first stanza of frost's poem to how, sometimes, we are distracted by things that seem very trivial when we look back at them.
- Analyzes how the horse physically alerts the rider, to ask if stopping here is a mistake. in life, it may be feasible to rest, stop and just relax.
- Analyzes how frost's poems are a prime example of these times and trials. the depressing tone to the poems "acquainted with the night", "nothing gold can stay" and "stopping by the woods" is attributed to his family members' death.
- Analyzes how frost's poem bridges the gulf between the persona’s conception of god and his spiritual capacity. the character drops his eyes in shame, unwilling to explain such deeds to them.
- Analyzes how the second stanza describes a cry that pulls the character from his reverie, but frost does not make this strange action clear within his writing.
- Analyzes how the clock tells the reader that the characters actions are neither right nor wrong. frost's "nothing gold can stay" proves that life is short.
- Analyzes how doyle's quote is a perfect explanation of how frost wants us to view youth, and life in general.
- Analyzes how the rider's horse is uneasy with not being able to rest where there should be a farmhouse near.
- Analyzes how the rider remembers the dedication and promises he has to keep, even though we don't know what they are. the unifying theme of life and death is a feasible theme for frost's poetry.
- Describes frost's poems in the new enlarged anthology of americal literature.
Related
- analytical
- Poetry Analysis: The Road Not Taken, By Robert Frostanalytical essay“Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought and the thought has found words.” Robert Frost is one of the worlds most renowned and beloved American poets whose work was enthused through the use of American colloquial speech, he wrote poems about rural life that captivated everyone’s mind. Frost was born in San Francisco on the 26th of March 1874, at the tender age of eleven after his father’s death the family moved to New England. Some of his most important poems include: “The Road Not Taken”, “Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening”, and “Fire and Ice” are examples of ways Frost utilized nature to depict that he was indeed a contemplative human being. Frost employs the theme nature to determine his
In this essay, the author
- Explains that robert frost is one of the world's most renowned and beloved american poets whose work was enthused through the use of american colloquial speech.
- Analyzes how frost's poem "the road not taken" raises many mysterious, unanswered questions. the speaker knows he is open to choose either path, but doesn't know in advance.
- Analyzes how the poem is a closed form, with an established pattern, and the iambic tetrameter and rhyming scheme of abaab.
- Analyzes how "fire and ice" is similar to the first poem because the speaker is conversing with himself as he contemplates the world's fate.
- Analyzes how frost's poem, "stopping by woods on a snowy evening," is open form because it does not have an established pattern but more free verse technique.
1314 wordsRead More - The Life of Robert Frostanalytical essay...ach other “Frosts poetry has a very vast range, from extremely long detailed poems, like ‘after apple picking” and “a servant to servants” or relatively short like, “A soldier” or “A question” (which is only four lines). Each of his poems encompasses something different but all have a strong sense of sameness when it comes to the message he wants to communicate to us. A brook in the city represents to a great extent, Frosts overall style and view on poetry. The poem has a rhyme scheme, he uses a vast amount of figures of speech and his language is colloquial, this goes for most, if not all of Frosts poetry. The poem also encompasses his thoughts and views on mankind and their response to the universe. Frost wants us as the reader to comprehend his message and find some sort of wisdom in it. If we do, then Frost has accomplished what he set out to do with his poetry.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how frost uses nature as imagery as a source of narrative to metaphorically position something else.
- Explains that frost's straightforward style of verse is pervaded because of raw emotion and a sense of loss. he used iambic meter and played around with the requirements and amplified its colloquial nature.
- Analyzes how frost's poem, a brook in the city, represents a more formal, natural, postindustrial way of life.
- Analyzes how society exploits nature, which can be detrimental to human beings. frost's line indicates that man has lost all sense of passion and drive due to monotonous life.
- Analyzes how frost's poetry encompasses something different but all have a strong sense of sameness when it comes to the message he wants to communicate.
- Analyzes how frost's poem "a brook in the city" illustrates his concerns of ever changing human life and man’s attitude towards nature and preservation.
1000 wordsRead More - The Manifestation of Death in Poetryanalytical essayDeath is a reality that can be interpreted in many ways. Some people fear the possibility of no longer living and others welcome the opportunity for a new life in the afterlife. Many poets have been inspired by death, be it by the approaching death of loved ones or a battle for immortality. Just as each poet is inspired differently, each poem casts a different hue of light on the topic of death giving readers a unique way to look at death.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how donne's fearless portrayal of death as a sappy, powerless slave is based in his belief in the after life.
- Analyzes how emily dickinson's poem "because i could not stop for death" portrays death as a polite gentleman who ushers people into the afterlife.
- Analyzes how dylan thomas' "do not go gentle into that good night" reflects his impassioned plea to fight the death of a loved one. dickinson and donne differ on the presentation of death.
- Introduces laurie g. kirszner and stephen r. mandell's literature: reading, reacting, writing.
1219 wordsRead More - Modern Frostanalytical essayFrost is far more than the simple agrarian writer some claim him to be. He is deceptively simple at first glance, writing poetry that is easy to understand on an immediate, superficial level. Closer examination of his texts, however, reveal his thoughts on deeply troubling psychological states of living in a modern world. As bombs exploded and bodies piled up in the World Wars, people were forced to consider not only death, but the aspects of human nature that could allow such atrocities to occur. By using natural themes and images to present modernist concerns, Frost creates poetry that both soothes his readers and asks them to consider the true nature of the world and themselves.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how frost's "directive" and "desert places" imply that isolation and self-exploration are necessary for psychological survival.
- Compares frost's views on nature with those of hemingway, thoreau, emerson, and eliot.
- Analyzes how shelley's "ozymandias" reflects on the finite impact that man has in the grand scheme of the eternal natural world.
- Analyzes how frost's guide/narrator relays all the terrors and hardships of a personal spiritual journey in terms of the walk in the woods portrayed.
- Analyzes how frost felt loneliness and isolation as necessary states for spiritual discovery in "desert places" and "directive."
- Analyzes how frost sets up the poem as a philosophical guide to understanding one's personal identity through the interactions of civilization with the natural world.
- Analyzes how frost uses language and imagery in "desert places" to heighten the sense of loneliness and isolation in the poem.
- Analyzes how frost's reference to the holy grail is confirmed by his later mention of a passage from the book of mark.
1980 wordsRead More - An Insight on Robert Frost's Lifeanalytical essayInitially, Robert Frost went through numerous challenges throughout his life. Not only was he raised by a single mother, he was also faced with an agonizing death of his daughter Marjorie. In addition to the death of his third daughter, the Gale Contextual Encyclopedia of American Literature notes that “In the 1930s, Frost suffered the painful death of another daughter” (570). Adding to the death of two of his daughters, he also had two of his sons die. One son, Carol, took his own life. Frost was diagnosed with pneumonia at the age of 32 and almost died as well. Frost also suffered from an emotional crisis for periods of time in his life. Frost and many members of his family battled the serious medical disease of depression. Frost was forced to put his sister and one of his daughters into mental institutions due to depression, and his sister later died in the institution. The death of Fro...
In this essay, the author
- Describes the words of robert frost, who was born on march 26, 1874. he was raised by his mother alone since his father died from tuberculosis when he was eleven.
- Analyzes how frost's hardships in life led to his writing of significant works of literature.
- Analyzes how frost wrote many prodigious poems in his career, including a brook in the city, the road not taken, a minor bird, a patch of old snow, and many more. frost's colloquial tone influenced many poets today.
- Explains that robert frost's passion in composition of literature inspired many people including poets of today’s generation.
- Explains that robert frost is a renowned poet who surmounted numerous calamities, wrote several compositions of literature, and influenced many recent poets.
- Describes william h. pritchard and stanley burnshaw's frost’s life and career.
- Describes frost, robert, american decades, vol. 2: 1910-1919. detroit: gale, 2009. 569-573.
836 wordsRead More - The Deeper Meaning of The Road Not Taken, Fire and Ice, and Birches, by Robert Frostanalytical essay“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. His poems are not what they seem to be at first glance. These deeper layers of complexity can be clearly seen in his poems “The Road Not Taken”, “Fire and Ice”, and “Birches”.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that frost was an adroit thinker, pondering the meaning and symbolism of things he found in nature. frost's poems are straightforward, yet his work contains deeper layers of complexity.
- Narrates how robert lee frost was born in san francisco and moved to massachusetts with his family to be closer to his grandparents. he married his co-valedictorian, elinor miriam white, and spent the next 9 years writing poetry while poultry farming.
- Analyzes how frost's poem "the road not taken" exemplifies the hidden layers of complexity behind its seemingly simple exterior.
- Analyzes how frost's "birches" includes deep layers of complexity that may not be noticed when first read.
1039 wordsRead More - Robert Lee Frost Poetry Analysisanalytical essayRobert Lee Frost was a famous American poet who was always acknowledged for his vivid and unique writing style, which contributed tremendously into him becoming one of the greatest poets of the twentieth century. Throughout his life, Frost has written many amazing poems but like the majority of poets at that time, many of his poems from his early writings went unnoticed. He was known for following a very well organized structure for his writing, a great example for this would be: “The Road Not Taken” and “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening”, which are two of Frost’s greatest pieces as they bring to the table all of his writing characteristics, ranging from the dominant figurative language that makes the poem vivid, to his flexible idealistic
In this essay, the author
- Explains that robert lee frost was a famous american poet who was always acknowledged for his vivid and unique writing style, which contributed tremendously into becoming one of the greatest poets of twentieth century.
- Analyzes how "the road not taken" is a free verse style poem that illustrates disparities and the images of the two roads. the narrator decides that he will recall this cherished incident in the future.
- Concludes that the narrator in "the road not taken" was essentially frost. he chose the path "less traveled by" and used various dictions.
- Analyzes how frost had the opportunity to graduate from harvard twice, yet every time he would choose not to. the connections between the narrator of the poem and frost can be seen.
- Analyzes how frost made up his mind on choosing one path and taking it, a proof of his exceptionality and distinction compared to the average person.
- Analyzes how the poem is composed of four stanzas containing five lines each, which are known as quintains. the metaphorical meaning behind this verse is that sometimes it is hard to know which decision is more beneficial in life.
982 wordsRead More - Frosts Life as a Poetanalytical essayRobert Lee Frost was born in San Francisco, California on March 26 of 1974 and died in Boston, Massachusetts on January 29 of 1963. Though he did not truly start publishing poems until age thirty-nine, Frost obtained four Pulitzer prizes in his writing career and was deemed one of the greatest twentieth century poets. His pastoral writing and skilled use of meter and rhythm has captured the attention of reader’s and critics for decades (Academic American, 345). Frost was very fond of nature and the beauty of things around him and illustrated this in many of his poems. A reviewer stated that Frost was “always occupied with the complicated task of simply being sincere” (Faggen, I). This statement describes the writer well in the sense that Frost’s works are very full of emotion. His use of the English language and the fact that he often seemed to be holding a little something back in his writing has made him one of the most celebrated American writers ever.
In this essay, the author
- Describes robert lee frost as one of the greatest twentieth-century poets. his pastoral writing and skilled use of meter and rhythm has captured the attention of readers and critics for decades.
- Explains that frost's early years were very adverse. his father, who had serious drinking problems, died of tuberculosis in 1885 and left his mother and sister with very little money after burial expenses.
- Describes frost's transition from high school to college, where he was engaged to elinor white and began teaching at dartmouth.
- Analyzes how frost started writing at a relatively young age in high school and continued to write for the remainder of his life.
- Analyzes how frost received an honorary ma degree from amherst college and became an english professor at the university of michigan.
- Analyzes how frost's life and writings gained a lot of critical attention in his day and after he passed on.
- Illustrates how frost's life was always in flux and had many ups and downs. his biggest obstacle was the death of his family members, especially his wife elinor.
- Analyzes how frost's poem "stopping by woods on a snowy evening" has received criticism from critics, biographers and fellow writers.
- Analyzes how frost's poem "stopping by a woods one snowy evening" speaks volumes about his experience with life in just four stanzas.
- Concludes that frost lived an extraordinary life full of great loss and great triumphs. his poems with their rural depictions and deep meanings have been a favorite of poets and every day readers for decades.
2469 wordsRead More - Robert Frostanalytical essayRobert Frost, perhaps the greatest American poet of the twentieth century, has brought himself great recognition. Many critics have tried to find a faulty side to his writing, but they have had a difficult time because his writing "romanticizes the rural simplicity that he loved while probing into the mysteries of the universe (Estep 2)." Three areas of criticism covered are: a speaker's decision in choosing, a poem broken down into three sections, and Frost's use of metaphors and style in his writing. Born in San Francisco, but raised in New England, many of Robert Frost's poems are representations of his experiences in the northeastern parts of America. He was unsuccessful in college never earning his degree, and for several years he supported his family by tending to a farm his grandfather bought for him. In his spare time, Frost would read and write anything and everything. Discouraged by his unsuccessful life as a poet, he packed up his bags and moved to England. He continued writing and published his first two books of poetry, which would gain him the recognition in America he had been in search of (ExpLit 1). One of Frost's most famous poems is "The Road Not Taken." This poem is about someone who comes to a fork in a path. One path is well beaten and treaded, while the other is less traveled and more difficult. Is the traveler happy with the decision he has made to take the road less traveled? Many critics think he may have had second thoughts.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how frost, perhaps the greatest american poet of the twentieth century, has brought himself great recognition. many critics have tried to find a faulty side to his writing.
- Analyzes how magill's survey of american literature states that there are many contradictions throughout the poem.
- Analyzes how frost's 'birches' is divided into three parts: the scientific explanation of the birches, the boyhood fantasy, and the present day interpretation of their appearance.
- Analyzes frost's use of imagery and metaphors along with stanza and meters, which makes his writing so unique and remarkable.
1217 wordsRead More - Acquainted With The Night By Robert Frost Analysis Essayanalytical essayIn “Acquainted with the night” Robert Frost keenly portrays the speaker stuck in his cycle of depression. The narrator describes his aloneness when the narrator walks on a street. The speaker avoids an eye-contact with watchman he encounters, and where he flatters oneself as he momentarily thinks that the cry that came from another street came for him, while in fact it came for another person. The narrator realizes about his unending cycle of isolation, but his unsuccessful attempts to break the cycle that torments him. This demonstrates Frost’s message about the unbreakable cycle of depression that will last forever.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how frost portrays the speaker stuck in his cycle of depression in "acquainted with the night."
- Analyzes how frost uses various poetic techniques to better convey his message. the narrator maintains a calm and solitary tone, using phrases such as "saddest city lane".
- Analyzes how the speaker lives in a heavily secluded life by his surrounding people, and feels lonely. he uses "i" as the first word in six lines to solidify the subject of isolation as himself.
- Analyzes how frost demonstrates the indestructible vicious cycle through some examples within his poem. the narrator sighs deeply at his situation as he looks up to the "luminary clock".
- Analyzes how frost uses repetition to convey an everlasting cycle. in line two, the narrator refers to the continuous succession of depression.
562 wordsRead More