Robert Frost and Metaphores in Nature
By Matthew Cox

Robert Frost is one of the U.S.’s most revered poets in the 20th Century. Much of his work involves nature, often times as metaphors of human experiences. For example, “The Road Not Taken” symbolizes life’s journey. “Stopped by Woods on a Snowy Evening” is inspired by summer, but represents the winter. “Acquainted By the Night” depicts sense of community in an urban community. “Fire and Ice” talks about how anger and hate destroy the world. “Mending Fences” shows how people need to be friends despite their differences. Robert Frost observes the world arround him to get ideas for his poems.

He is a highly influential poet from the first half of the 20th Century. Many of his poems deal with nature and are inspired by the New England coutryside (wikipedia). For example, “The Road Not Taken” is the first poem the volume Mountain Interval, published in 1916. Also, it is the first piece that Frost prints in italics. The peom suggests a declaration for personal freedom or independence as summed in the lines “One less traveled by” and “ made all the differencce (wikipedia).” Another interpirtation includes Frost making a gentle jab at his friend and poet Edward Thomas. Another theme is that when a person takes one road, there is no turning back. Although someone can still change paths later, nobody can change the past.

The poet writes “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” in 1922 for the collection New Hampshire. The volume is not published until 1923. Frost writes this poem about winter in the summer of 1922 at his home in Shaftsbury, Vermont. It uses imagery and personification to draw the reader in. He spent one night completing the poem “New Hampshire” and sees the morning sun come up. He went out to see the sunrise and got the idea for “Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening.” Frost said that this is his favorite poem that he writes. It uses the iambic tetrameter with an a-a-b-a rhyming scheme. The b rhymes in a chain rhyme after the a rhymes.

“Acquainted with the Night” first appears in the Virginia Quarterly Review and is published in 1928 in the volme West-Running Brook in 1928. The poem inspires a non-fiction book by the author Christopher Dewdney. Common interpritations include descriptions of a community in an urban setting. Various effects show this notion including a cry felt by the narrator which ties together a sense of close-knit belonging. The work is written as a terza rima sonnet with the following rhyming scheme: aba, bcb, cdc ,dad, and aa. The work has an iambic pentameter.

“Fire and Ice” is another poem published in New Hampshire. The writing talks about the end of the world. Fire symbolizes hate and ice represents hate.
Some say the world will end in fire
Some say in ice.
From what I’ve tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
is also great
And would suffice. (Wikipedia)

Although “Fire and Ice” implies a negative idea, “Mending Wall,” printed in 1914, deals with neighboring farmers. This piece appears in the book North of Boston. It concerns one man questioning why he and his neighbor are rebuilding a stone wall dividing their properties. “Mending Walls” is famous for the line “Good fences make good neighbors (wikipedia).” Frost shows his dislike of walls as a way of dividing people. However, he accepts that everyone has personal differences. The title becomes a metaphor for people who make up after disputes.

Robert Frost observes the world arround him to get ideas for his poems. Although he writes about natural phenomena, they represent human feelings and insights. His poem “The Road Not Taken” shows how we make descsions in life. “Stopped by Woods on a Snowy Evening” shows ironic contrasts between summer and winter. “Acquainted By the Night” shows how various conepts hold a community together. “Fire and Ice” depicts how human bitterness is harmful. “Mending Fences” implies how there are no physical barriers to frindships.


Works Cited

“The Road Not Taken.” Wikipedia. 15 March 2008. 27 March 2008.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Road_Not_Taken

“Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening.” Wikipedia. 22 March 2008. 27 March 2008.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stopping_by_Woods_on_a_Snowy_Evening

“Acquainted with the Night.” Wikipedia. 22 March 2008. 27 March 2008.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acquainted_with_the_night

“Fire and Ice.” Wikipedia. 11 March 2008. 27 March 2008.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acquainted_with_the_night

“Mending Walls.” Wikipedia. 5 March 2008. 27 March 2008-03-28
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mending_Wall