In Robert Frost's poem, “Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening,” from his book New Hampshire, the poet descriptively discusses a bucolic New England winter ambiance (which Frost knew very intimately). ) and uses a simple narrative monologue centered on a rural traveler, who "stops in the woods on a snowy evening", a commonly understood and easily identifiable situation. These textual choices are used in an effort to subtly and intelligently articulate and arrive at large-scale existential conclusions regarding the human condition. In this poem, described by Elizabeth Sergeant as "the clearest and most perfect of [Frost's] words" (249), and which was written, as the poet himself explains, "...of "with a single stroke of the pen" (249), Frost uses language that is both: simple and grandiose, surface accessible and metaphorically rich, vague and specific, apathetic and emotionally charged, carefully articulated/in spirit and in language vernacular of the layman, and until the end, with an impeccable execution of what he describes as "...performances, prowess and feats of association." Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Frost uses very ambiguous language while simultaneously being very metaphorically or analogically complex. Lawrence Thompson describes these lyrical characteristics as New England's "reluctance and penchant for understatement" (123), and takes pains to come up with certain key words (i.e. "promises", " kilometers” and “sleep”) of the dualistic and distinct “inner planes” (123). 123) of interpretation and connotation. Furthermore, this structural methodology, while often making it difficult for the reader to arrive with certainty at the author's original intent, allows each reader to "unlock the metaphor" (123), so that they can establish his own personal connection with the text. It is this lyrical mastery that brings readers back to the works of the great poets of previous generations, despite the time gap. These bestselling lyrics and ideas remain fresh through countless readings, serving as existential master narratives, and never seem anachronistic when it comes to emotional intensity and verbal richness. The first three stanzas of "Stopping by Woods" alone give credence to the poet's masterful descriptive lyrical sophistication and do justice to the poet's famous remark about poetry that "Like a piece of ice on a stove hot, the poem must roll on its own cast iron. However, the fourth stanza of the poem most brilliantly personifies the fundamental essence of Frost, as the lines: The woods are beautiful, dark and deep, But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before sleeping. (13-16). Masterfully articulate the poet's subtle and complex emotional state and careful use of his mind that "...will forever keep [the poem] fresh as a metal keeps its scent", infusing "Stopping by Woods" with the essential ingredients to allow it to “function through [its] own associative fusion”. “Stopping by Woods,” a poem written as if addressed to an unacknowledged friend, appears, at first glance, to be a simple dramatic monologue. The speaker is traveling on horseback through an unidentified rural area on a dark, snowy winter evening and decides to pause to reflect on his surroundings. In doing so, the speaker becomes captivated by the allure of the natural world of "woods [that] are beautiful, dark, and deep" (13), and is immediatelyoverwhelmed by feelings of complacency and satisfaction after being momentarily removed from civilization. . However, the speaker triumphs over this fascination with nature (for better or worse) and wishes to continue traveling, despite his propensity and desire to prolong his stay, as well as his probable physical and psychological fatigue. Frost's speaker's location in the middle of a snowy rural forest, a microcosm of the natural world from the poet's New England perspective, serves as a symbolic representation of a place of quiet respite and escape from the modern world complex and fast-paced. Ironically, while the speaker seems to gain a moderate refuge from the daily concerns/responsibilities of the civilized world by "stopping in [the] woods", his very presence effectively acts to impose mundane or temporal concerns on the otherwise natural world carefree and unhindered. This idea is highlighted by the speaker's recognition that the woods he is currently looking into are someone's private property, as he explains: "Who owns these woods, I think I know . / His house is in the village; However ; ” (1-2), and thus, like the speaker, the personified woods become subject to the whims and actions of humans. Structurally, "Stopping by Woods" comprises four stanzas of coherent iambic quatrain length of nearly identical construction. The rhyme scheme, AABA, BBCB, CCDC, DDDD, is a scheme in which the first, second, and fourth lines of each of the first three stanzas are rhymed at the end, and the last word of the third line determines the rhyme scheme for the next stanza. . The final stanza follows the established format in that its end rhymes are based on those of the last word of the previous stanza. However, the third line of the final stanza does not begin a new end rhyme, but rather concludes the poem with an unhindered continuation of the end rhymes of the fourth stanza. This somewhat peculiar rhyme scheme, in which the last word of the third line of the first three stanzas "predicate[s] the three sounds which are to be repeated in the next stanza, thus interweaving stanza with stanza" (Thompson, 84), serves to connect the first three stanzas together to form a single transparent entity. This pattern, in conjunction with Frost's rare use of punctuation in the first three stanzas, serves to dictate the tempo of the poem, as well as to blend the stanzas into a surreal, dreamlike fabric interwoven with descriptive imagery. The speaker's rapid, fantastical tone changes abruptly, however, as the fourth stanza arrives, to a more deliberate hyperconscious characterization. This change is evidenced by the disjunction resulting from the influx of punctuation in the line "The woods are beautiful, dark and deep", by the final commas at the end of the last three lines, as well as by the repetition of the entire penultimate line of the last line. Through these subtle syntactic techniques, the speaker symbolically addresses the realities of human existence and is forced to deliberate on the consequences of his decision. As the speaker considers the implications of his choice to reintegrate into human society, he assures his audience that he will remain true to his "promises." The final stanza of the poem, as well as the tone of the poem as a whole, perhaps alludes to the first stanza of a sonnet by Keats published in 1817, which reads: Sharp and restless gusts whistle here and there Among the half-leafless and dry bushes; The stars seem very cold in the sky, And I have walked several kilometers (Sergeant, 251). In both quatrains, the speakers describe having lost thesense of reality in the middle of their respective nocturnal and bucolic environment. Only after both speakers verbally affirm the need to move away from the dark woods are they able to fight the lure of nature and continue their journey back to the civilized world. George Nitchie explains that "...the human complications of responsibility and desire become poignant in their contrast with the impersonal simplicity of nature" (22), because nature's appeal lies in its serene ambiance of nature. carelessness and lack of responsibility. So, as the speaker gets carried away by "...watching the woods fill with snow" (4), "...the frozen lake" (7), "The darkest evening of the year" (8), "...the sweep / Of the easy wind and the fluffy snowflake" (12), etc., he seems to forget or at least is diverted "...from the world of social considerations and ethical complexity, the world generated by the melancholy of fallen man” (91), also powerfully, if subtly and implicitly, summarized by the feelings provoked in the final quatrain of the poem. The woods provide an illusory place of retreat from the complexity that has plagued human existence since the biblical times of Adam and Eve. They evoke in the speaker a sense of nostalgia for a time when humanity lived in harmony in the natural world, devoid of human concerns (i.e. in the Garden of Eden or even in childhood ). The speaker soberly recognizes his responsibilities towards human society, as shown by the subtly lamentable tone of the phrase "But I have promises to keep" (14), implying that practical considerations require him to demonstrate restraint and to act against his inclinations to dwell. the woods. Furthermore, the use of a winter landscape, as evidenced by several references to climate ("the frozen lake", "the fluffy snowflake", "the darkest evening of the year", etc.) leads to the for both the speaker and the reader. pay attention to the fact that in the absence of shelter, winter in New England is not suitable for human habitation. Likewise, if the speaker falls asleep under these severe conditions, he will inevitably be subjected to the wrath of nature, lacking food, shelter/warmth, companionship, etc., and possibly suffering an untimely death . These aforementioned considerations, which are implied by the word "promises" in the final stanza, bring the speaker to the logical conclusion that he must move forward despite his strong emotional attachment to his surroundings. This decision, in light of the circumstances, highlights the speaker's free will and ability to act against his natural inclinations and demonstrates humanity's ability to exercise restraint. Nevertheless, Frost's repetition of "And miles to go before I sleep, / And miles to go before I sleep." (15-16), raises the question of whether the speaker has, in fact, "taken" the correct "path", as the last line casts doubt in the speaker's mind about his decision, thus reinforcing its trajectory now irreversible. of action. Nitchie expresses this concern very lucidly, as he draws on both "Stopping by Woods" and "Reluctance", explaining that these lyrical statements "declare...that it is a betrayal of the heart to give in to the necessity and the desire for compromise" (162). the speaker’s “ardent nostalgia” (163) and his strong tendency to dwell in the natural world. Frost's deft ability to use witty and metaphorically rich language while at the same time being vague and somewhat generalized in its definitive meaning serves to permeate his poetic texts. with a sense of novelty and personal significance over any number of readings and in any spatial or temporal context. In this test, I had, 1961.