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Stopping by the on a Snowy Evening Poem by Robert Frost

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Stopping by the on a Snowy Evening Poem by Robert Frost

Some poets have taken an initiative to appreciate the beauty of nature. For instance,

artists and painters paint pictures that symbolize the beauty of nature (Adi, 2020). Looking at

the title of Robert Frost's poem, vivid picture forms on the reader's mind because snow is one

of the beautiful aspects of Mother Nature. However, nature and life are two integral aspects

of human life. As a result, most poets base their works on nature, and also talk about the

quality of life. In this poem, Frost is talking about his long journey to his death. Besides, the

verse shows that the persona is longing for his death. As a result, this essay explores the use

of poetic devices to analyze metaphorical representations of life and death in Robert Frost’s

poem.

First of all, line eight portrays a symbol of poor quality of life and death. For instance,

"The darkest evening of the year” (Frost, 1975) line shows luck of hope, lack of endurance.

Where all hope is gone, all that remains is total darkness. As a result, the poet depicts a lack

of faith and need to live, and he is probably longing or waiting for his death. In this case, the

person does not see the beauty of the snow or life because he has given up all hope; he is only

waiting for Mother Nature to take him home. Line eight is also an example of end-stopped

lines of a poem that indicate the end of an expression. Thus, line eight a Volta for the poem

because it shows the end of the first part of the poem. It can be noted that the end-stopped

line also depicts a change in the tone of the entire poem. For the first part, the tone of the

poem can be perceived as ironic. The first line, "Whose woods these are I think I know"

(Frost, 1975), indicates the use of irony. In this case, irony has been used to depict the irony

or uncertainties of life.

Secondly, sleep has also been used to represent death (Adi, 2020) metaphorically. The

last three lines of the poem indicate that the persona is aware that death is inevitable.

However, as long as he is still alive, he must accomplish some of his life's purposes. Line
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fifteen, "And miles to go before I sleep," the author has used imagery to give a vivid

description of life's purpose. Death, in this case, is metaphorically represented by sleeping.

Besides, line eight that states that “to ask if there is a mistake” deepens the meaning of life

and death. For instance, when people are nearing their end, they tend to reflect on what they

have done wrong to experience death. Also, “harness bells a shake” is a figurative language

that would mean making use of the natural resources. In this case, Frost implies that people

will only achieve creating a connection between themselves and the earth or the world around

them through work. The argument is supported by how most of his poems explore the

relationship between man and the natural environment. Also, line ten marks the beginning of

a new idea that Frost is explaining. Therefore, the end-stooped line and run on lines have

been used by the poet to depict a turning point for the poem.

Finally, the repetition of the last two headings, "And miles to go before I sleep"

(Frost, 1975), also deepens the meaning of the poem. For instance, the lines emphasize the

poet's central idea of death. The emphasis also shows that death is inevitable; it is only a

matter of time (Hashmi et al., 2019). In this case, the farmhouse symbolizes the hope that is

hard to find when death calls. In the poem, the author has managed to explore the relationship

between nature and life.

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References

Adi, W. T. (2020). Symbol and Theme on Robert Frost’Poem by Using Biographical

Perspective. LINGUA: Jurnal Bahasa, Sastra, dan Pengajarannya, 17(1), 15-24.

Frost, R. (1975). Stopping by woods on a snowy evening. Colophon.

Hashmi, M. A., Mahmood, M. A., & Mahmood, M. I. (2019). Stylistic Analysis of Robert

Frost’s Poem “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening”. International Journal of

English Linguistics, 9(3).