Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
by Robert Frost
The Poem:
"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.
The Summary of the Poem:
In this poem, a traveller pauses on his solitary journey on a cold winter night to look on with wonder at the beauty of nature. He guesses that he knows the owner of the forest. He lives in the village. The owner can not know that the traveller has stopped to watch the snowy beauty of his forest.
It is the darkest evening of the year. The traveller has stopped in between the forest and frozen lake. His horse is confused about why his master has paused there without a reason.
The horse shakes its harness bell to ask his master if there was any mistake or not. There is the only other sound of wind and tiny ice flakes.
The woods are lovely in that dark and deep evening. The traveller is mesmerised by its beauty. He longs to observe it more but he has tasks to complete and promises to keep. He has many more way to go before he falls asleep.
Making connections
1. Answer the following questions.
a. Put a tick (✓) against the statement that are true.
i. The owner of the woods is a close acquaintance of the persona. [ ]
ii. The poem is set in early winter. [ ]
iii. The persona would like to stay longer at the woods. [ ]
iv. The persona is a person who does what he is supposed to do rather than what he wants to do. [✓]
b. At a deeper level of meaning, what do you think each of the following stands for in the poem?
i. the woods.
= The woods refers to those things which we wish to do.
ii. the bell.
= The bell refers to the remainder of those things which we supposed to do.
iii. miles to go.
= Miles to go refers to the remaining responsibilities or tasks to complete in the due course of our life cycle.
2. Read the lines given below and answer the questions that follow.
a. "He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fills up with snow."
i. Who will not see the persona stopping here?
= The owner of the woods will not see the persona stopping here.
ii. Why is this person unable to see the persona?
= This person is unable to see the persona as he is not present in the spot in that dark frosty night.
iii. Why has the persona stopped here?
= The persona has stopped here mesmerised by the beauty of the snow filled woods.
b. "He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake."
i. Why would the horse think it a mistake to stop there?
= The horse would think it a mistake to stop there as there were no farmhouse near between the woods and frozen lake.
ii. How does the horse express his confusion?
= The horse expresses his confusion by shaking his harness bell.
iii. What other sounds does the person hear?
= The person hears the sound of wind and the falling of the ice flakes.
3. Why does the persona stop in the woods?
= In this poem, a traveller pauses on his solitary journey on a cold winter night to look on with wonder at the beauty of nature.
4. Who, according to you, is the owner of the woods?
= According to me, the owner of the woods is someone who stays in a village, far away from the place. As a result of it, he can not see the traveller stopping there in the woods.
5. The persona calls the woods 'lovely, dark and deep'. Why do you think he uses these terms?
= The persona calls the woods 'lovely, dark and deep'. It is a dark winter night. The woods are filled with snow. The lake beside is also frozen. There is only the sound of the wind and the falling ice flakes. He was in the middle of the deep forest. The ambience of nature makes the whole surrounding lovely to observe.
6. In the last stanza of the poem, the persona refers to 'promises to keep'. What promises could he be referring to?
= In the last stanza of the poem, the persona refers to 'promises to keep'. He could be referring to reach somewhere within some certain time. And completer some given task to complete.
7. Why do you think the last line of the poem has been repeated?
= I think the last line of the poem has been repeated to emphasise the priority of the work that he is supposed to do.
8. What does the persona decide at the end of the poem? Would you do the same if you were in his place? Give a reason for your answer.
= The persona decided to leave the place at the end of the poem. As he has some certain promises to keep.
I would have done the same if I were in his place. We should observe the beauty of nature but we should be responsible towards our duties and tasks.
About the Poet:
Robert Frost (1874-1963) was born in California, USA. His work was first published in England where he lived for some time before returning to America. He went on to become one of the most popular poets in America and was frequently called the country's unofficial poet laureate. Frost uses vivid figurative language to depict rural life in his poetry.