July 2020: – Invictus by William Ernest Henley
June 2020: – Casey at the Bat by Ernest Lawrence Thayer
May 2020: – My Papa’sWaltz by Theodore Roethke
This month, my poetic interests focus on three poems by Robert Frost. I have these poems committed to memory. Before I delve into these poems, though, I will share a bit about Frost’s life
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| Unknown author at the source., Robert Frost, 1910s, marked as public domain, more details on Wikimedia Commons |
Robert Frost was…
- Born in San Francisco March 26, 1874
- Moved to Lawrence, Massachusetts following father’s death in 1885
- Won four Pulitzer prizes for Poetry – only poet to achieve this
- Received Congressional Gold Medal in 1960 for his poetic works
- Recited a poem at John F. Kennedy’s inauguration on January 20, 1961. He was 86. The bright sunlight interfered with his ability to read the poem he’d written just for the inauguration (Dedication), so he recited his poem "The Gift Outright" from memory.
What I find fascinating, tragic, heartbreaking…choose your descriptor…and what undoubtedly influenced his writings, are the personal challenges and difficulties that colored his life and his world perspective. You can read this information on the websites listed below in the Resources section, but this is the most detailed explanation I’ve found. (Wikipedia)
“Robert Frost's personal life was plagued by grief and loss. In 1885 when he was 11, his father died of tuberculosis, leaving the family with just eight dollars. Frost's mother died of cancer in 1900. In 1920, he had to commit his younger sister Jeanie to a mental hospital, where she died nine years later. Mental illness apparently ran in Frost's family, as both he and his mother suffered from depression, and his daughter Irma was committed to a mental hospital in 1947. Frost's wife, Elinor, also experienced bouts of depression.
Elinor and Robert Frost had six children: son Elliot (1896–1900, died of cholera); daughter Lesley Frost Ballantine (1899–1983); son Carol (1902–1940, committed suicide); daughter Irma (1903–1967); daughter Marjorie (1905–1934, died as a result of puerperal fever after childbirth); and daughter Elinor Bettina (died just one day after her birth in 1907). Only Lesley and Irma outlived their father. Frost's wife, who had heart problems throughout her life, developed breast cancer in 1937, and died of heart failure in 1938.”
One doesn’t endure heartache and loss such as this and not have it influence your creative expression.
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| Commemorative Stamp US Gov, RobertFrost, marked as public domain, more details on Wikimedia Commons |
On to the three poems…
Acquainted with the Night – 1927
A favorite interpretation of this poem is ‘night’ equals ‘depression’, and the narrator walking alone in the city is an indication of his depressed mental state that isolates him from everything and everyone. This certainly fits with the sorrow and grief Frost experienced.
For me, this is a poem of loneliness. The person walks the night alone, because staying home is difficult to unbearable. The person finds solace in the solitude and freedom out being outside instead of remaining inside when the walls of the house close in. It is a poem of looking for something to replace whatever the person has lost, and that loss has left a hole of loneliness inside that can’t be filled. This poem as a metaphor for loneliness resonates with me, because loneliness is an overriding and recurring theme in the stories I write.
– Acquainted with the Night read by Ron Perlman as Vincent from Beauty and the Beast - television program 1987 - 1990.
Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening – 1922
I’ve read an interpretation that the woods represent irrational thought, irresponsible behavior , and the dark side of the personality, which is in direct contrast to the village, which represents civilization, society, responsibility, sensibility, and duty. The woods are where you lose your way, because the snow covers your tracks, and you can’t find your way back. The woods are a siren call or a death wish.
Well… I fall back on what I told my students when I taught literature. “Sometimes the dog is just a dog.” This means that not every part of a story of poem has to be analyzed or given symbolic meaning.
I see this poem as a moment in time when the narrator is so taken with the beauty of the snow falling in the woods, that time stands still. The narrator is drawn to enter the woods to experience the awe of nature. With the narrator remembering it is the darkest evening of the year, the first day of winter, which is close to Christmas, gives me a feeling of a young man returning home after being away from family for a long time, perhaps having been off to war.
He grew up in this village, and he is so taken by the sight of the woods that he remembers from years before, that he is caught up in moment of inner peace that he hasn’t felt since he left home. The horse shaking his harness bells breaks the spell, which reminds him he promised to be home before Christmas and he has miles to go before he sleeps…
It’s a happy, satisfying poem for me.
– Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening read by Peter DicksonThe Road Not Taken – c. 1915
Interpretations of this poem are all over the place from ‘following your own path’ to ‘no matter what choice you make, you’ll always regret not making a different choice’ to the sigh at the end being satisfaction or disappointment. There is a sense of crying over what might have been in many of the critical essays about this poem. Frost apparently wrote this poem with his friend, Edward Thomas, in mind, as a way to tease him about his (Thomas’) tendency to agonize over choices.
I read this poem as the narrator contemplating two choices before him (using masculine because Frost, a man, wrote the poem). The choices are ‘roads’. Roads are man-made, so his choices are not necessarily adventure related, but career/job related. It’s a poem about equal opportunities and having to choose one, and once chosen, there is no going back and no regretting.
Probably my personal experience with this colors my interpretation. I was working as a school psychologist while simultaneously taking the last few classes in the program. I had reached ‘all but internship’ stage, when I was offered the job of Director of Exceptional Student Services for 13 school districts. I was at the two roads diverging in a yellow wood. The poem fits my situation perfectly from then through the rest of my career in education and retirement and to my life right now.
I left the school psych program and accepted the director position. And that made all the difference…
– The Road Not Taken read by Tom Bates
Until next time,
Kaye Spencer
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Growing up, my sister and I read huge amounts of poetry. I liked Frost's quiet poetry about nature and I imagine he sought solace from his troubled life by visiting nature. I never knew he originally lived in California; I guess I always assumed he was born and raised in New England. I also did not realize he was still living in my youth. I thought he was born and died in the 18th century. I am definitely a fan of Frost and I am glad he received recognition for his work while he was still living. He deserved it.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if there is a poet who has lived an uncomplicated life filled with happiness and no misery in sight. I know of none. It seems that poetry only comes from those who have suffered.
I hope you get around to posting something about Stephen Crane, Lord Tennyson, and Emily Saint Vincent Millay. They are my favorites.
Back in the 50's, poetry was celebrated and admired by the "Beatniks" and often read in coffee houses. Kind of an interesting time.
I always look forward to your interesting posts, Kaye. Keep 'em comin'...All the best to you.
Sarah,
DeleteI appreciate your comments, and you always give me something new to contemplate, such as right now. ;-) While I appreciate the poetic contributions by Stephen Crane, Lord Tennyson, and Edna St. Vincent Millay, they don't have poems that 'speak' to me. That isn't meant to denigrate their works at all. It's a reflection on me and my tastes. Since I'm not blogging about particular poets, but rather specific poems that are important to me, I propose you write articles about the poets and poems that you like, that way I'll learn (everyone who stops in to read will, too) about them and perhaps go away more deeply aware of their poetry. *hint hint*
You had me at Frost. What can I say other than I enjoy reading his work. Doris
ReplyDeleteDoris,
DeleteYes. I chose the three of his poems that I've memorized. It isn't to say the others are any less emotionally moving.
I never knew Robert Frost has so much sorrow and tragedy in his life. In high schoool English-Lit we studied his poems, but sadly, the teacher never told us about the poet. And I hear you about a poem "resonating" within you. I have several favorites, but the one that affected me the most is The Highwayman. My imagination still takes off when I think about that poem and the rythmn....the Highwayman came riding riding up to the inn door.... Now I have to go hunt for it. Thanks for an enjoyable post, Kaye. I look forward to more.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth,
DeleteThe Highwayman is a great story-poem. Another one that I like (sort of not the right word because it's so tragic), is "Erlkönig" by Goethe (Elf King). Back in my literature-teaching days, two of my students recited this poem as a class assignment on memorizing a poem of their choice and reciting it to the class. The foreign exchange student from Germany recited it in German, and another student (Colorado native English speaker) recited it in English. They bounced back and forth stanza by stanza. It was great.
Kaye I just left a long message and it wouldn't publish it. GRRR. I memorized Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening in 4th grade and I still can remember most of it--probably all of it if I should "LINE" and someone gives me the beginning of the first line of each stanza. Great post. I really enjoy this series!
ReplyDeleteCheryl,
DeleteI think everyone should have a few memorized poems or Shakespearean soliloquies at their mental disposal to recite to keep your mind active and your emotional-self soothed.