Name: Drashti V. Dave
Submitted to: Smt. S. B. Gardi Department of English
Maharaja Krisnkumarsinhji Bhavnagar
University
Assignment Sub.: Role of Nature in
Frost’s poems
Roll no: 06 Year: 2014
Paper no: 10 – The American Literature
Sem: 3 MA. Part- 2
Role of Nature in Frost’s
poems
Introduction:
Robert Frost was the leading modern
American poet of nature and rural life. Most of his poems are upon natural
element. He was very much interested in natural things; he found beauty in
common place.
Many
of his poems have a New England setting and deal with the theme of man’s
relationship with nature. (htt)
(Robert
Frost)
Frost’s
verse was lyrical; he was often considered a dramatic poet. One of his most
admired poems “The Mending Wall” describes the conflict that arises between the
poem’s narrator and his neighbor over rebuilding a wall that separates their
farms.
The
neighbor holds the traditional opinion that; “Good fences
make good neighbors” but the narrator believes that walls are
unnecessary and unnatural between people who should trust each other. So nature
was the dominant subject of his poetry.
How
he uses nature:
His poetry and subject of poetry talk about man’s existence in the Natural
world. His attitude towards Nature is one of armed and amicable true and mutual
respect.
There
is almost nothing of the mystic in Frost. He does not seek in Nature either a
sense of oneness with all created things or union with God. There is nothing
platonic in his view of life.
Frost
believes that man should live in harmony with nature and not go against nature
or natural process. He uses simple things and worlds in his poems. In our day
to day life we shown so many natural things which cannot avoid by us and this
things frost use in his poetry with have very deep and symbolic meaning.
Importance
of Nature in Man’s life: So many literary writers’
uses Nature is their work. William words worth is one of them. He uses so many
natural elements in his poetry. Nature is very important figure in human’s
life. It helps us many ways. For examples:-Trees, water, seasons… that all are
natural things and because of them we easily survive.
Nature
is everything that was not made by man.
(contradictory nature)
(Contradiction
of nature)
Nature
is permanent, human being cannot change nature. Ward nature has very broad
meaning. It changes automatically and it changes every day. In the works of
art, nature generally functions as background of place and time, obviously
literature has considered as important things in environment. So Nature is
important in human’s life and interesting subject of literary writer’s also.
Major Theme of Frost’s poetry: 1)Nature:
Nature is first and most important characteristic of Frost’s poem. Frost places a great deal of importance on Nature in all of his collections. Because of the time he spent in New England, the majority of pastoral scenes that he describes are inspired by specific locations in New England. However, Frost does not limit himself to stereotypical pastoral themes such as sheep and shepherds. Instead, he focuses on the dramatic struggles that occur within the natural world, such as the conflict of the changing of seasons (as in "After Apple-Picking") and the destructive side of nature (as in "Once by the Pacific"). Frost also presents the natural world as one that inspires deep metaphysical thought in the individuals who are exposed to it (as in "Birches" and "The Sound of Trees"). For Frost, Nature is not simply a background for poetry, but rather a central character in his works.
2)
Everyday Life
Frost
is very interested in the activities of everyday life, because it is this side
of humanity that is the most "real" to him. Even the most basic act
in a normal day can have numerous hidden meanings that need only to be explored
by a poetic mind. For example, in the poem "Mowing," the simple act
of mowing hay with a scythe is transformed into a discussion of the value of
hard work and the traditions of the New England courtyard.
3)
Communication
Communication
or the lack thereof, appears as a significant theme is several of Frost's
poems, as Frost presents it as the only possible escape from isolation and
despair. Unfortunately, Frost also makes it clear that communication is
extremely difficult to achieve. For example, in "Home Burial,"
Frost describes two terrible events: the death of a child and the destruction
of a marriage. The death of the child is tragic, but inability of the husband
and wife to communicate with each other and express their grief about the loss
is what ultimately destroys the marriage. Frost highlights this inability to
communicate by writing the poem in free verse dialogue; each character speaks
clearly to the reader, but neither is able to understand the other.
4)
Isolation of the Individual
This
theme is closely related to the theme of communication. The majority of the
characters in Frost's poems are isolated in one way or another. Even the
characters that show no sign of depression or loneliness, such as the narrators
in "The Sound of Trees" or "Fire and Ice," are still
presented as detached from the rest of society, isolated because of their
unique perspective.
5)
Rural Life versus Urban Life
This
theme relates to Frost's interest in Nature and everyday life. Frost's
experience growing up in New England exposed him to a particular way of life
that seemed less complicated and yet more meaningful than the life of a city
dweller. Frost
has more opportunities to find metaphysical meaning in everyday tasks and
explore the relationship between mankind and nature through the glimpses of
rural life and farming communities that he expresses in his poetry.
These
are major themes of his poetry we are shown this type of characteristic in many
of his poems. (htt3)
Frost
uses nature
to express
his views as well as to make his poetry interesting.
First
in the poem ‘Stopping by woods on the snowy evening’ in this poem there
is a lot of nature expressed. Title of the poem is woods are natural thing
first line of the poem; whose woods these are I think I know.
Throughout the poem he continuously talk about
woods and its beauty last stanza is very symbolic, in that he uses
contradictionary nature means combination of nature with fear because nature
sometimes harmful also.
The
woods are lovely, dark and deep, But I have promises to keep,
And
miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep
(Image
of woods, it looks beautiful but has deepness and darkness)
At
the last stanza very beautifully describe woods as lovely, dark and deep. The
darkness of the woods is an idea, poet uses last line in twice in the poem,
means he emphasizing a connection between beauty and mystery.
Robert
Frost’s chief concern is with man. The focus in his poetry is a man’s position
and attitude and especially on his feelings. Frost reveals a good deal about
his conception of universe and external reality in his poetry. In several
poems, Frost indicates that man fail to understand nature and its relationship
with man.
Most
of his poems use nature imagery and devices. Taking nature as a background, he
usually begins a poem with an observation of something in nature and then moves
toward a connection to some human situation or concern. His treatment of nature
is different from other nature poets: he is neither a transcendentalist nor a pantheist.
Therefore, his use of nature is the single most misunderstood element of his
poetry. Frost himself said over and over,
"I am not a nature poet. There is
almost always a person in my poems."
(frostfriends.org)
The
elements and settings of Frost’s poetry are natural.
In many of his poems, Frost uses nature as metaphor. He observes something in nature and
says this is like that. He leads you to make a connection, but never forces it
on the reader. Frost (1946) himself writes about his use of metaphor,
“There
are many other things I have found myself saying about poetry, but the chiefs
of these is that it is metaphor, saying one thing and meaning another, saying
one thing in terms of another, the pleasure of ulteriority.”
Frost
shows that the indifferent nature could be both generous and malicious to the
human world. Nature
exists outside the Self, is formed there and has existence beyond the
idealistic notion that thought determines reality.”
Actually
Frost’s nature is different from Wordsworth who sees nature as
“The anchor of my purest thoughts, the
nurse,
The guide, the guardian of my heart, and
soul
Of all my moral being.” (TINTERN ABBEY, 109-111) (htt1)
Frost
uses a realistic technique in his poems: art mirrors reality. As such,
Frost synthesizes the human and the natural through language, imagination, and
metaphor.
In
"On Frost's Realistic Technique,"
Amy Lowell says that Frost's poetry is photographic, that it captures
characters and landscapes, freezes them, burns them into memory--again bound by
what he has seen. Amy Lowell uses natural imagery herself to describe
Frost:
[Frost's]
imagination is bounded by what he has seems, he is confined within the limits
of experience (or at least what might have been his experience) and bent all
one way like the windblown trees of New England hillsides. (enotes)
His
poems like; ‘Nothing Gold can stay’ and ‘Design’ themes are man
finds himself isolated and alienated and cut off from other man of the
universe, in that poems he talked about man’s position is permanently difficult
in the universe.
Frost
seems to be grappling with the question of how we balance such symbols of death
with a loving and ultimately caring deity. In the second part of the poem Frost
ask series of questions.
First
line of the poem is; I found a dimpled spider, fat and white,
In the second stanza Frost beautifully describe that:
What had that flower to do with being white....
It shows beauty with danger or mystery. Beauty of whiteness.
(Here
we are shown that how Frost uses natural elements like; white spider and cobweb
in this poem)
It
is very symbolic line throughout the poem Frost uses lots of symbols. The
flower, the spider and the moth forces us to confront the central issues of the
poem.
In
Robert Frost’s poem “After apple-picking”, the reader come to know that
old man who has worked harvesting apples his entire life. In the smell of the
apple blossoms and the beauty of the russet color of the apple, the reader realizes
the old man’s of his apple orchard.
In
his poem “Fire and Ice”,
(Binary
opposition: both are equally important for human being)
Here
he uses contradictory word. Fire-with the emotion of desire and ice with hate.
The poem decribes a fictional debate between people who say that the world will
end in fire and people who say it will end in ice. The debate is highly
symbolic.
Some
of his poems are about human relation. “Mending Wall”, “Home-Burial”… is
in this category.
“Mending
Wall”:
First
line of the poem is; ‘Something there is that doesn’t love a wall… means here
poet talk about concrete thing that is
wall, may be here wall is a symbol of two neighbor and it is also connected
with two country. The ritual of wall maintenance highlights the dual and complementary
nature of human society. Poet says twice… that something there is that
doesn’t love a wall… there is some intent and value in wall reeking, and
there is some powerful tendency toward this destruction. So many questions
arises in mind while reading this poem here a discussion of the
construction-disruption.
Creation
is a positive act- a mending or –a building
words reflects creativity. We come to know so many meanings of wall. Wall-boundaries
or construction or destruction. The task of mending the wall is difficult and
because nothing in their respective properties poses a threat to the others,
speaker tries to continue to fix the wall.
“The
Gift Outright”
is different from all; it serves as history, and political statement. The title
gains complexity throughout the poem. Frost talk about nation in this poem poet
use the word ‘She’ for land. The subject of the poem is American
history. In the beginning of life in America, the land and labored to survive.
“Home
Burial”
is one of the longest poems of Frost’s it is also a poem about human relation.
Here poet talked about married couples fighting after their baby dies. Title of
the poem suggests that someone’s burial, poet mainly focus on tragic side of
human nature. Two tragedies are shown here death of a child and a death of a
marriage.
Poet mainly focus on the word
‘death’ he indicates that death plays a vital role in man’s life. In John Donne’s word “Death is
inevitable truth of life.” It is
natural process and Frost also believes in that and here he wrote on this
theme. Frost shows how such a traumatic event strains a marriage. Such a
situation in poem is very symbolic, Frost beautifully describe whole event in
beautiful words, some situations like standing on the upstairs is shows
mentality of human mind.
Relationship
between man and nature:
Robert Frost uses his poetry to establish a relationship between man and nature
by showing how nature can console, teach and impact choices made by mankind. In
‘mending wall’ the implication is for nature to teach man, when nature damages
the wall the two neighbors are brought together.
Frost had a love-hate relationship with Mother
Nature. In his personal life, he reveled in the simple joys of farming and
being in touch with the earth. As a reflective of his personal life, he saw
nature as beautiful and full of hope, yet also random and chaotic. Here are
some quotes about nature;
“In
all thing of nature there is something of the marvelous” –Aristotle
“Whenever
I have found myself stuck in the ways I relate to thing, I return to nature. It
is my principal teacher.” –Wynn Bullock.
Many
literary writers gave so much importance to nature. In above quotes nature
lessons in our life. Frost also talked about nature as a teacher, he said that
man cannot ignore nature. Nature is homogeneous. The Sanskrit word for
nature is prakriti.
If
we talk about relationship between man and nature, than nature makes man, to be
in harmony with nature means stagnation. Mankind has to depend on nature for
his food, shelter, clothing and other necessities, to be able to survive.
Most
of Robert Frost’s poetry contains images and metaphors from nature, but even
Frost once said of himself that; he is not a “nature poet”. He says in almost
all of his poems there is “a man”. It seems Frost likes to use nature as the
avenue to compare human struggles with a force that is constant.
Frost
wrote in the 20th century- “Modern Literature” – his use of
nature is his attempt to take something familiar and traditional, but to use it
as a point of comparison for complex human emotions.
Frost
synthesizes the human and the nature through language, imagination and
metaphor. Frost uses a realistic technique in poems; art mirrors reality. In
his collections we are shown reflection of nature, he focuses on the dramatic
struggles that occur within the natural world, if it is conflict of charging
seasons. (As in ‘After Apple-pacific’) or the destructive side of nature (as in
‘Once by the pacific’).
For
frost, Nature is not simply a back ground for poetry, but rather a central
character in his works.
Conclusion:- In frost’s familiarity
with his views about nature, plays a more crucial role than information about
his life, readers should appreciate the role of nature in his work.
Frost’s
nature poetry is so excellent and characteristic of his poetry it must be given
a prominent place in any account of his art. What he finds in nature is
sensuous pleasure; he is also sensitive to the earth’s fertility and man’s
relationship to the soil.
Critic
M.L. Rosenthal says that;
Frost’s pastoral quality, his ‘Lyrical and pastoral quality realistic
repossession of the rural and nature things’ is the staple of his reputation.
He is aware about the ultimate separateness, distinction of nature and man.
He
is often compared with Emily Dickenson and Ralph Waldo Emerson. His images,
woods, stars, houses, brooks are usually taken from everyday life. It shows his
down to earth nature. Frost’s poems show deep appreciation of natural world and
sensibility and because of that readers are easy to follow the poet into deeper
truths without being burned with pedantry.
Frost
was considered a kind of unofficial poet laureate of the US.
He
learns so many things from nature and life and this statement proves that what
he feels about nature;
“In
three words I can sum up everything I have learned about life; that it goes
on..” - Robert Frost
