I particularly like the poem "stopping by woods on a snowy evening". One thing that stood out to me in the poem is that he says that his horse must think it queer to stop without a farmhouse near. Since the poem seems to equate the forest with death and eternal rest it is interesting that a horse would think it is strange to desire an exploration of the forest, which is what the narrator is doing. I think it means that since a horse has no higher thought capabilities it has only its instincts to rely on, and something tells the horse that this is not a good place to linger. Essentially Frost is saying that at the heart of nature there is an adversity to death. Also I think the repetition in the last two lines is very interesting. Im not sure what kind of aesthetic Frost was going for but I always tend to read the last line much slower than the second to last line
I thought it was interesting how Frost's writing is actually much more dark and morbid than I saw in high school. In "After Apple Picking", it seems like Frost is talking almost entirely about death and dying, and the vanity of the pleasures of this world. Such descriptions as, "For I have had too much/Of apple-picking: I am overtired/Of the great harvest I myself desired." communicate a sense of regret concerning the possible pursuits that Frost engaged in during his life, but now views as worthless. I feel like he shows a sense of regret towards his life all together when he says, "And there's a barrel that I didn't fill"...as if there are things he wishes he had dedicated time to but didn't. This poem appears to be asking questions such as, "What things in life are actually worth our energy and our affection and what things are empty?"
The poem that we read together on Wednesday seemed to be a fitting starting poem after the icy/snowy weekend. I am probably the worst person in the class at interpreting poems--at this point I've pretty much given up any hope at being able to understand or like poetry--but I did feel a distinct sense of alone-ness. Not necessarily loneliness or longing, but the distinct feeling of being alone. It seems as though Frost attempts to use the idea of the "groud almost covered smooth in snow" to represent this idea. A smooth tract of snow is certainly a lonely place--a tract of nothingness. This emptiness can certainly beget a sort of depression state, which is only heightened after seeing three year olds sledding across the street.
I particularly like the poem "stopping by woods on a snowy evening". One thing that stood out to me in the poem is that he says that his horse must think it queer to stop without a farmhouse near. Since the poem seems to equate the forest with death and eternal rest it is interesting that a horse would think it is strange to desire an exploration of the forest, which is what the narrator is doing. I think it means that since a horse has no higher thought capabilities it has only its instincts to rely on, and something tells the horse that this is not a good place to linger. Essentially Frost is saying that at the heart of nature there is an adversity to death.
ReplyDeleteAlso I think the repetition in the last two lines is very interesting. Im not sure what kind of aesthetic Frost was going for but I always tend to read the last line much slower than the second to last line
I thought it was interesting how Frost's writing is actually much more dark and morbid than I saw in high school. In "After Apple Picking", it seems like Frost is talking almost entirely about death and dying, and the vanity of the pleasures of this world. Such descriptions as, "For I have had too much/Of apple-picking: I am overtired/Of the great harvest I myself desired." communicate a sense of regret concerning the possible pursuits that Frost engaged in during his life, but now views as worthless. I feel like he shows a sense of regret towards his life all together when he says, "And there's a barrel that I didn't fill"...as if there are things he wishes he had dedicated time to but didn't. This poem appears to be asking questions such as, "What things in life are actually worth our energy and our affection and what things are empty?"
ReplyDeleteThe poem that we read together on Wednesday seemed to be a fitting starting poem after the icy/snowy weekend. I am probably the worst person in the class at interpreting poems--at this point I've pretty much given up any hope at being able to understand or like poetry--but I did feel a distinct sense of alone-ness. Not necessarily loneliness or longing, but the distinct feeling of being alone. It seems as though Frost attempts to use the idea of the "groud almost covered smooth in snow" to represent this idea. A smooth tract of snow is certainly a lonely place--a tract of nothingness. This emptiness can certainly beget a sort of depression state, which is only heightened after seeing three year olds sledding across the street.
ReplyDelete