Stopping by Woods on Summer's Essay

Just two lines later, however, Frost satisfies the reader's need to hear by using onomatopoeia to suggest "the only other sound's the sweep of easy wind and downy flake" (Frost 11-12). By continuing to describe the woods as "lovely, dark and deep," followed by the repeated lines, "and miles to go before I sleep," Frost closes the poem with a mysteriously beautiful picture of the woods before lulling the reader to sleep through repetition (Frost 16, 19-20). Thus, Frost's literal description of a simple event qualifies this poem as a piece of good literature as readers, carried by the end rhyme, experience the silence of the woods on a winter night.

This pleasant scene has a function other than provoking beautiful imagines, however. The repeated last line, "and miles to go before I sleep" paired with preceding, "but I have promises to keep" suggests that the poem was a pause outside the parameters of normal day-to-day activities.Combining these lines with the fact that the poem describes a beautiful moment or pause, one can suggest that the poem has a deeper psychological meaning (Frost 15-16, 14). Just as Frost's "The Road Not Taken" has a literal and metaphysical meaning -- Frost suggests it is often best to make the minority decision -- "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening also suggests that a brief recess from the day-to-day for imagination and reflection can be beautiful.

Thus, Robert Frost's "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Day" is an excellent piece of literature because it uses imagery and other poetic techniques to present both literal and metaphysical meaning.

Works Cited

Frost, Robert. "Stopping by Woods on Summer Day." 1923. Old Poetry.Com. 9

September 2008. Old Poetry.com. http://oldpoetry.com/opoem/show/4164-Robert-Frost-Stopping-by-Woods-on-a-Snowy-Evening

Frost, Robert. "The Road Not Taken." 1920. Bartleby.com. 9 September 2008.….....