Carpe Diem" by Robert Frost
Personification of Age
Chiming church bells symbolize time
Children passing symbolize time passing
"Drinking Song" by John Fletcher
Merry, boisterous tone
Caution to the wind
Quick, punchy rhyme scheme
Entertaining but less sincere than Frost
The term "carpe diem," meaning "seize the day" in Italian, encourages a person to make the most of his time while he has it. A carpe diem poem typically emphasizes the elusive or fleeting nature of time, with a particular focus on the passing of youth. In Robert Frost's "Carpe Diem," he personifies Age and places him on a road watching two children pass. Age knows not where the children are headed, but wishes them happiness regardless as those "With happiness should have it. / And yet not know that they have it" (lines 17-18). The passing of time and the innocence of youth is further emphasized by the chiming...
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