IB English
November 10th, 2012
November 10th, 2012
Commentary on
Robert Frost’s “Our singing strength”
The
poem “Our singing strength” by Robert Frost presents a snow in spring; its
flakes do not show until a layer builds up. It then covers everything except for
one road on which migrating birds gather because there is no other place to go.
Although the late snow confuses and limits the birds, the narrator of the poem
realizes the good side of the snowstorm, namely that the singing of the great
number of birds that assembled finally heralds the beginning of spring. Frost
appreciates the nature for its strength and creates the overall effect that
despite hard and unpredictable circumstances, there is always the chance of new
beginning.
The poem consists of three stanzas and 53 lines in total. Using iambic pentameter and primarily couplets, Frost crafted a traditional structure of a poem, however the rhythm and flow within his poem is outstanding. For example, there are some forced rhymes such as “warm” and “form” in lines 1 and 2 or “snowed” and “road” in lines 9 and 10. Moreover, lines 19 - 21 and 22 – 24 rhyme with each other respectively, which disrupts the rhyming couplet pattern until then. This break in pattern happens in lines 41-43 again. It adds to an impression given by the melting snowflakes of the first stanza; they “could find no landing place” (line 2) and “failed of any lasting hold” (line 4) and thereby suggest that nothing is permanent. The disruption in rhyming pattern goes hand in hand with this interpretation since Frost surprises the reader by breaking the traditional pattern one expected; the rhythm changes. Another time this phenomenon of non-permanence is brought up is in the second stanza, when it is declared that the majority of the birds that rest on the road are migrating birds, and only “a very few” came “to build and stay” (line 24).
Despite this clear depiction of the non-permanence of matters, the living organisms in the place of the poem have to deal with the snow. Its intensity becomes greater throughout the poem, starting with non-impactful snowflakes that melt directly, then an overnight snowfall that causes heavier consequences such as that “the grass lay flattened under one great tread” (line 12), and finally a “snowstorm” (line 49) that covers everything but one road. While plants such as a “rangey bough (that) anticipated fruit with snowball cupped in every opening bud” (line 14) can not defend themselves against snow, the birds – representing animals - try to resist the nature force and derive a safe haven from the warm, snow-free road. Finally, the narrator – the human figure – forces the birds to disperse because he walks the road, seemingly as a recreational act.
This presentation of plants as immobile and handicapped, animals as limited in their possibilities, and humans as all-mighty, shows the hierarchy in nature, which could be interpreted as being an indirect hint on human arrogance. It is to say that in the end one can not resist nature’s unpredictable demands; the poem thus suggests a moment of contemplation about everything affected by the powerful nature in either good or catastrophic ways. Frost uses many personfications in order to show the force of nature, such as “the earth sen(ding) back (the snowflakes)” (line 6). He also uses auditory and visual imagery throughout the poem in order to illustrate the nature’s impact closely. For example he uses onomatapoeia when describing the birds with “a talking twitter all they had to sing” (line 38). To realize the power of the nature further, the reader is asked to consider the exemplary, almost tender cooperation between the birds and the plants. The birds “sing the wildflowers up from root and seed” (line 53) and thereby free them or make them strong and alive; with the birds announcing spring, the plants seem to be able to resist the snow finally. It can also be assumed that the narrator himself feels better, as the previous “thought repressed and moody with the weather (is) nonetheless there ready to be freed” (line 51 - 52). Therefore, the birds are able to bring about a positive effect on their environment.
With this poem, it becomes clear that Robert Frost appreciates our nature’s ability to overcome obstacles through interaction and solidarity. Seemingly, he wants the reader to see the wisdom that one may gain from birds. He even gives them the appellation of “the country’s singing strength” (line 50), indicating his respect for them. Moreover, he makes the whole poem a metaphor for optimism, showing the birds make the best out of the situation because they can not change the conditions anyway.
The poem consists of three stanzas and 53 lines in total. Using iambic pentameter and primarily couplets, Frost crafted a traditional structure of a poem, however the rhythm and flow within his poem is outstanding. For example, there are some forced rhymes such as “warm” and “form” in lines 1 and 2 or “snowed” and “road” in lines 9 and 10. Moreover, lines 19 - 21 and 22 – 24 rhyme with each other respectively, which disrupts the rhyming couplet pattern until then. This break in pattern happens in lines 41-43 again. It adds to an impression given by the melting snowflakes of the first stanza; they “could find no landing place” (line 2) and “failed of any lasting hold” (line 4) and thereby suggest that nothing is permanent. The disruption in rhyming pattern goes hand in hand with this interpretation since Frost surprises the reader by breaking the traditional pattern one expected; the rhythm changes. Another time this phenomenon of non-permanence is brought up is in the second stanza, when it is declared that the majority of the birds that rest on the road are migrating birds, and only “a very few” came “to build and stay” (line 24).
Despite this clear depiction of the non-permanence of matters, the living organisms in the place of the poem have to deal with the snow. Its intensity becomes greater throughout the poem, starting with non-impactful snowflakes that melt directly, then an overnight snowfall that causes heavier consequences such as that “the grass lay flattened under one great tread” (line 12), and finally a “snowstorm” (line 49) that covers everything but one road. While plants such as a “rangey bough (that) anticipated fruit with snowball cupped in every opening bud” (line 14) can not defend themselves against snow, the birds – representing animals - try to resist the nature force and derive a safe haven from the warm, snow-free road. Finally, the narrator – the human figure – forces the birds to disperse because he walks the road, seemingly as a recreational act.
This presentation of plants as immobile and handicapped, animals as limited in their possibilities, and humans as all-mighty, shows the hierarchy in nature, which could be interpreted as being an indirect hint on human arrogance. It is to say that in the end one can not resist nature’s unpredictable demands; the poem thus suggests a moment of contemplation about everything affected by the powerful nature in either good or catastrophic ways. Frost uses many personfications in order to show the force of nature, such as “the earth sen(ding) back (the snowflakes)” (line 6). He also uses auditory and visual imagery throughout the poem in order to illustrate the nature’s impact closely. For example he uses onomatapoeia when describing the birds with “a talking twitter all they had to sing” (line 38). To realize the power of the nature further, the reader is asked to consider the exemplary, almost tender cooperation between the birds and the plants. The birds “sing the wildflowers up from root and seed” (line 53) and thereby free them or make them strong and alive; with the birds announcing spring, the plants seem to be able to resist the snow finally. It can also be assumed that the narrator himself feels better, as the previous “thought repressed and moody with the weather (is) nonetheless there ready to be freed” (line 51 - 52). Therefore, the birds are able to bring about a positive effect on their environment.
With this poem, it becomes clear that Robert Frost appreciates our nature’s ability to overcome obstacles through interaction and solidarity. Seemingly, he wants the reader to see the wisdom that one may gain from birds. He even gives them the appellation of “the country’s singing strength” (line 50), indicating his respect for them. Moreover, he makes the whole poem a metaphor for optimism, showing the birds make the best out of the situation because they can not change the conditions anyway.
Some other rhetorical devices in the poem:
- Anaphora: Lines 5 + 6 (“They (...) They”), Lines 22 + 23 (“Some (...)
Some”), Lines 38 + 39 (“A (...) A”), Lines 50 + 51 (“The (...) the”)- Simile: Line 34 (“like ripples over rocks”)
- Personification: Line 2 (“The flakes could find no landing place to form), line 4-5 (“and still they failed of any lasting hold. They made no impression on the black.”), line 9 (“did grass and garden ground confess it snowed”), line 28 (“the trees they’d had enough of with once trying”)
- auditory imagery: Line 38 (“a talking twitter all they had to sing”), Line 41 (“a whir among white branches great and small”)
- visual imagery: for example line 11 ff. (“next day the scene was piled and puffed and dead. The grass lay flattened under one great tread. Borne down until the end almost took root, the rangey bough anticipated fruit with snowball cupped in every opening bud. The road alone maintained itself in mud”), line 33 (“the road became a channel running flocks of glossy birds like ripples over
No comments:
Post a Comment