The Snowy Desert
“Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” and “Desert Places” both by Robert Frost have many comparisons, along with many differences. As I read each poem over and over again, I felt many different emotions with both of them. Although Frost was born in California, his ancestors were originally New England natives. These two poems reflect the scenery that is most commonly present in New England. These two poems have very different tones even though they are both set in winter. In “Desert Places,” there is a feeling of loneliness and depression while in “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” shows feelings of peace and appreciation of nature. If you analyze and break down the poems into deeper meaning, you will notice that the same wintery setting can have two different impacts on an individual purely based on their mood and mindset at the time.
In the poem “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” you get the sense of happiness and peacefulness. This poem talks about taking a break from your everyday life and enjoying the scenery. The poem consists of four almost identical constructed stanzas. Each line is iambic, with four stressed syllables. Within the four lines of each stanza, the first, second, and fourth lines rhyme. The third line does not, but it sets the rhyme scheme for the next stanza. For example, in the first stanza know, though and snow all rhyme but here rhymes with queer, near and year in the second stanza.
“Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” starts as a question. In the very first line he say’s “Whose woods these are I think I know.” He thinks he knows who owns the woods and he is making this statement to reassure himself as he comes to a stop. In lines 2-4, Frost suggests that the owner of the woods lives elsewhere. I know this because he say’s “His house is in the village though; He will not see me stopping here.” The second stanza shows the horses reaction to the rider stopping, “My little horse must think it queer / To stop without a farmhouse near” (lines 5-6). He also states “The darkest evening of the year” so I implied that it is December 21st, the winter solstice. In the third stanza, the horse starts to act concerned. “He gives his harness bells a shake / To ask if there is some mistake” (lines 9-11). I believe the horse symbolizes intuition and sacrifice. The horse knows this is not something they normally do but he stops anyway to inhale the beauty. In the final stanza he reiterates the beauty of nature but says he has a reality to return to instead of this snowy dream world. “But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep” (lines 14-15).
Although “Desert Places” has the same setting, you get a tota...
