Nguyen 1

My Nguyen

ENG 1102

Professor G.Sewell

6 August 2020

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening is a well-known Robert
Frost classic that has become a mainstay in English classes
throughout the U.S. and beyond. First published in 1923, it
quickly became a popular poem to commit to memory and recite
due to its short length and mysteriously impactful content.
Although many readers know all of the poem's words by heart,
its interpretation isn't quite as straightforward. Should
readers take Frost's words literally and see nothing beyond
the snow, the horse and the woods? Or is there something more
to ponder? With Frost, the latter is usually the case.
Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.
He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound’s the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
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.
Readers often find the poem somewhat dark, albeit beautiful,
and many assume it has something to do with death (or at least
fatigue with life). When asked if the poem had anything to do
with death or suicide, Frost denied it, preferring to keep
everyone guessing by simply saying "No." Many scholars still
think, however, that the poem could be construed as a dream-
like tale of someone passing away or saying a final goodbye.
In many ways, it's a poem that trusts the reader. The words,
sounds and images appeal to all—from those who regard it as no
more than a serene winter scene featuring snowy woods, a horse
 Nguyen 2

and a rider to those who feel a morose shudder when they read
the final two lines. It is this ambiguity that makes the poem
a classic and keeps it relevant so many years after its
publication. The narrative sets up a subtle tension between
the timeless attraction of the lovely woods and the pressing
obligations of the present moment.
Despite the poem's modest length, it gives readers plenty to
examine and ponder. Looking at it line by line and stanza by
stanza is a great way to get submerged in its meaning.
First Stanza (Lines 1–4)
Starting off a poem with a possessive pronoun is a brave and
unusual thing to do, but Frost manages to make it work. It
immediately grabs the reader's attention—it's as if the
speaker/narrator is sitting close by, thinking out loud or
perhaps whispering. Their initial thought isn't crystal clear,
as they only think they know who owns the woods. This is the
first uncertainty introduced in the poem. The narrator makes
this statement to reassure themself as they come to a stop to
break their nighttime journey.
There is a gentle, slightly mysterious atmosphere created by
the second, third and fourth lines, which suggest that the
owner of the woods lives elsewhere, is separate and won't see
the trespassing narrator observing his woods. It's as if
there's something clandestine going on. Yet, somehow, the
image presented to the reader is as innocent as a scene on a
Christmas card. The steadiness of rhythm in each line suggests
that there is nothing odd at all about what is going on.
Second Stanza (Lines 5–8)
The second stanza concentrates on the horse's reaction to
the rider stopping. Enjambment, a poetic device in which one
line runs into another without a loss of sense, is employed
throughout. In effect, this is one long sentence whose syntax
is unbroken by punctuation.
Again, the tetrameter (more on the poem's meter below)
reassures and lulls the reader into a questionable sense of
security. The language is simple, yet its meaning can be
interpreted in multiple ways. Queer is a word that means odd
or strange, and the implication is that the narrator doesn't
ordinarily stop to admire the view; he only stops at
farmhouses to feed and water the horse.
So, why stop tonight of all nights? "The darkest evening of
the year" may suggest that it's December 21st—the winter
solstice and longest night of the year. Could the word
"darkest" be misleading to the reader? We know from the snow
and cold that it is definitely winter, but "darkest" could
 Nguyen 3

also be referring to the narrator's emotional state or

perception of the undisclosed task at hand.
Here sits the rider on their horse in what appears to be a
dark, cold and inhospitable countryside. Are they staying too
long? Are they thinking too much? The long vowels in this
section seem to reinforce the doubts of the horse as to why
its rider chooses to linger at such an uncanny moment.
Third Stanza (Lines 9–12)
The horse is uncertain. It shakes the bells on its harness,
reminding the rider that this whole business—stopping by the
woods—is a tad disturbing. This isn't what they normally do.
This is unfamiliar territory.
It takes a creature like a horse, a symbol of intuition,
noble grace and sacrifice, to focus the rider's mind on
reality. They ought to be moving ahead. There's something
about the way the narrator is fixed on the woods that worries
the horse—something apart from the cold and the dark.
There is no logical, direct or rational answer given to the
horse. Instead, we're confronted with the narrator's
beautifully rendered observation in lines 11 and 12, where
alliteration and assonance (defined in poetic devices section
below) join together in a kind of gentle sound-dance.
Fourth and Final Stanza (Lines 13–16)
The final stanza features the speaker again reaffirming the
peace and haunting beauty of the snowy woods. Perhaps, on
another night, they would have dismounted and strode into the
trees, never to return.
The idyllic lure of nature and its ability to distract from
the everyday are strong themes here. How tempting is it to
simply withdraw into the deep silence of the woods and leave
the responsibilities of the day behind? The narrator; the
rider; the contemplative master of the horse is already
committed to the duties of their ongoing life. Their loyalties
forbid them from entering the dream world. As much as they
would love to melt into the snowy scene before them, they
cannot—at least not now. The final two lines reinforce the
reality of this situation. It will be a long time before the
narrator disengages with the conscious world.
Rhyming words are very important in this poem, as they
contribute to the duality of moving on vs. stopping, which is
a major theme. Note that in the first three stanzas, the third
line does not rhyme with the opening two lines and the last.
It creates an obstacle—it temporarily stops the smooth flow.
Yet, in each case, this third line is a connecting link to the
stanza that follows, so it provides momentum as well.
 Nguyen 4

Repetition is used only in the poem's final two lines. While

repetition can serve any number of purposes in poetry, it is
often assumed that repeated lines are important and deserve
special consideration. Why does the narrator repeat the line,
"And miles to go before I sleep"? Is it simply to stress the
length of the night's remaining journey?
Some readers have suggested that the first instance of the
line should be taken more literally, while the second instance
should be interpreted more figuratively. That is, the first
time the statement is made, it could be referring to the
actual distance remaining between the narrator and their
destination. When the narrator repeats the line, however, they
may be expanding its meaning by reflecting on the amount of
working, living and traveling that remain to be done before
their eternal respite can begin
In poetry, tone refers to a piece's overall mood or attitude
as interpreted by its reader. Most agree that the tone of this
poem is serene and contemplative, but some readers have
suggested the tone may in fact be uneasy or even depressed. A
poem's perceived tone can influence its interpretation—readers
who find the tone somber and uneasy may be more likely to
interpret the poem as having to do with death, whereas those
who find the tone calm and serene may be more likely to
interpret it as a simple musing about nature duty and respite.
In poetry, personification refers to applying human traits
or emotions to non-human objects or animals. In the third
stanza, in lines nine and ten, the narrator's horse is
personified when it shakes its harness bells to question why
they have stopped.