The main tension that exists in Robert Frost's "Stopping
by Woods on a Snowy Evening" exists with the speaker who finds himself in almost a
trance as he contemplates the beauty and spirtuality of nature while being reminded of
his mundane obligations by the horse's shake of the
harness.
It is interesting that Robert Frost wrote this
poem quickly after having completed the long poem "New Hampshire," which took him the
entire night. Rising from his work, Frost went outside to view the sunrise and then
composed this poem. He later remarked about it, "It was as if I'd had a hallucination."
Much like the experiences of Emerson and Thoreau who attained spiritual knowledge as a
result of their contemplation of nature, the speaker of Frost's poem senses the lure of
the "deep."
- Should he engage the metaphysical
experience promised by his contemplation of the beauty of the deep woods, or should he
return to "the petty pace" of the
quotidian?
The woods are dark are lovely, dark and
deep,
But I have promises to
keep...
- Is there a
meaning to the contemplation of nature that transcends life and
death?
He will not see me stopping
here
To watch his woods fill up with
snow...
The darkest evening of the
year
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