In his poem "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening," Frost conveys a sense of isolation and silence with the imagery of the snowy setting in a country field, the softness of the word sounds, and a tone of rueful, private reflection.
In literature, the seasonal setting of winter is often associated with isolation and stillness. This is because, in northern winters, there are few, if any, people moving about; certainly, there are no birds...
In his poem "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening," Frost conveys a sense of isolation and silence with the imagery of the snowy setting in a country field, the softness of the word sounds, and a tone of rueful, private reflection.
In literature, the seasonal setting of winter is often associated with isolation and stillness. This is because, in northern winters, there are few, if any, people moving about; certainly, there are no birds singing nor many small animals scampering around trees or across fields. When the speaker stops in the woods with no farmhouse in sight, he is met with silence and darkness, both of which convey a sense of isolation.
The horse, an animal of much intuition, senses this isolation and is puzzled by it, "thinking it queer" to stop without a shelter nearby:
He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake
Then, the two lines that follow those mentioned above describe the singleness of the speaker's presence and the "sounds of silence" that accompany the drifting snow in the expansive fields:
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
The quietness of this poem is enhanced by Frost's avoidance of glottal sounds (sounds made in the back of the throat such as /k/), and his dominant use of gliding sounds such as /w/. In the first stanza, for instance, the use of the soft and gentle /w/ is repeated numerous times. The final stanza has an soft lull to it, especially in the smooth alliteration of "dark and deep," along with the last two lines that are repeated as in the refrain of a musical piece.
Furthermore, images of black and white--there is absolutely no color in this poem--create a stark contrast that generates a feeling of darkness and the state of being alone. The one sound in the poem is also isolated in the snowy field with no building near:
He [the horse] gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
With the softest of sounds, a tone of rueful reflection, a lack of color, imagery suggesting coldness, and no sign of human life, Frost's verses each convey a sense of quiet and isolation in his skillfully written "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening."
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