Birches

BY ROBERT FROST
When I see birches bend to left and right
Across the lines of straighter darker trees,
I like to think some boy’s been swinging them.
But swinging doesn’t bend them down to stay
As ice-storms do. Often you must have seen them
Loaded with ice a sunny winter morning
After a rain. They click upon themselves
As the breeze rises, and turn many-colored
As the stir cracks and crazes their enamel.
Soon the sun’s warmth makes them shed crystal shells
Shattering and avalanching on the snow-crust—
Such heaps of broken glass to sweep away
You'd think the inner dome of heaven had fallen.
They are dragged to the withered bracken by the load,
And they seem not to break; though once they are bowed
So low for long, they never right themselves:
You may see their trunks arching in the woods
Years afterwards, trailing their leaves on the ground
Like girls on hands and knees that throw their hair
Before them over their heads to dry in the sun.
But I was going to say when Truth broke in
With all her matter-of-fact about the ice-storm
I should prefer to have some boy bend them
As he went out and in to fetch the cows—
Some boy too far from town to learn baseball,
Whose only play was what he found himself,
Summer or winter, and could play alone.
One by one he subdued his father's trees
By riding them down over and over again
Until he took the stiffness out of them,
And not one but hung limp, not one was left
For him to conquer. He learned all there was
To learn about not launching out too soon
And so not carrying the tree away
Clear to the ground. He always kept his poise
To the top branches, climbing carefully
With the same pains you use to fill a cup
Up to the brim, and even above the brim.
Then he flung outward, feet first, with a swish,
Kicking his way down through the air to the ground.
So was I once myself a swinger of birches.
And so I dream of going back to be.
It’s when I’m weary of considerations,
And life is too much like a pathless wood
Where your face burns and tickles with the cobwebs
Broken across it, and one eye is weeping
From a twig’s having lashed across it open.
I'd like to get away from earth awhile
And then come back to it and begin over.
May no fate willfully misunderstand me
And half grant what I wish and snatch me away
Not to return. Earth’s the right place for love:
I don’t know where it's likely to go better.
I'd like to go by climbing a birch tree,
And climb black branches up a snow-white trunk
Toward heaven, till the tree could bear no more,
But dipped its top and set me down again.
That would be good both going and coming back.
One could do worse than be a swinger of birches.
 In the poem "Birches" by Robert Frost, the speaker is reminiscing about the birch trees.

Based on the speaker's language, it is clear how a common pastime for children was to swing on

the branches of the birches. However, this playing seemingly seems restricted to boys based on

the fact that the speaker only references boys playing in the trees. For example, the speaker only

mentions that "some boy's been swinging them" (line 3) and that he would "prefer to have some

boy bend them" (line 23). Not only does this imply that the speaker himself is a male, as the

poem is too detailed for the speaker to not have swung on tree branches, but it also implies that

this type of pastime is improper and not meant for girls. This would make sense because, when

the poem was published in 1915, there was still a distinction between the things that males and

females could do. Males were supposed to be the "sporty" types and get an education while

females were prized more when they had the skills to become a proper wife. Although the focus

of the analysis won't be on this, it is still a good observation to make as it helps put the poem in

context.

Based on the words he used and the tone he uses when recounting certain experiences,

swinging on the birch trees is obviously a memory that he remembers fondly. Through the use of

words such as "many-colored" (line 8) and "sun's warmth" (line 10), the speaker is able to

convey a positive tone. Even with the use of some harsher words, such as "shattering and

avalanching" (line 11), the way these words are used and the offset of these more negative words

with positive connotations still portrays a memory that is pristine and beautiful. It makes the

activity of birch swinging that much more attractive.

More than just trying to paint the activity of birch swinging as attractive, the speaker is

reminiscing about his childhood experiences, and he seemingly wants to return to those good

times instead of staying in a negative reality and face complex problems. Especially evident in
the lines 42-49, the speaker wants to go back to the old days as reality and adulthood isn't as

positive as it seems to be. For instance, the speaker references how he “dreams of going back to

be” (line 43) when he is “weary of considerations” and when “life is too much like a pathless

wood” (lines 44-45). As a child, we always want to grow up as fast as possible as we want

freedom, or we desire to do something that we can only do as adults. However, when we grow

up, we, including the author, realize how innocent and naïve we actually were. We don't realize

the problems that adults face, some of which can make us feel that we are going down a road

with no hope. While we can be shielded from the harshness of reality as a child, we can't avoid it

as adults as we are the ones now responsible to shoulder the burden. Even then, though,

sometimes we just want to escape back to our childhood, when we could play without worries

and remain innocent of the problems happening around the world.

Based on the content in the poem, I believe that the message in the poem is targeted for

teenagers and adults. The speaker wants to demonstrate how it is okay to sometimes indulge in

fantasies or actions considered "childish". We shouldn't be guilty for wanting a break from the

modern world and reverting back to some of our positive, past memories. This is especially

important for teenagers and adults as many feel that they have to grow up quickly in order to

fulfill their responsibilities. Then, when faced with obstacles, we feel as though we have to

shoulder those burdens ourselves, which can negatively affect our mental health. This makes the

speaker’s message all the more important: we need to realize how we don't have to try to do

everything at once, and nothing is wrong with needing and taking a break once in a while,

whether it is through just resting or engaging in activities we used to enjoy as children.