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    Stopping by Woods On A Snowy Evening

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    wgibbster
    Explanation of the poem

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    Stopping by Woods On A Snowy Evening

    Uploaded by

    wgibbster
    13 views8 pages
    Explanation of the poem

    Original Title

    STOPPING BY WOODS ON A SNOWY EVENING

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    Explanation of the poem

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pptx, pdf, or txt
    13 views8 pages

    Stopping by Woods On A Snowy Evening

    Uploaded by

    wgibbster
    Explanation of the poem

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pptx, pdf, or txt
    of 8

    STOPPING BY

    WOODS ON A
    SNOWY EVENING

    ROBERT FROST
    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.
    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.

    A traveller stops in the woods on his


    horse. He is entranced by the snowy
    trees and the silence of the snow
    falling. He knows who owns the land,
    but thinks that since the owner lives in
    the village, he will not mind him
    stopping to watch the snow fall.
    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 thinks his horse must be


    confused – it is unusual to stop in
    the middle of the forest, with no
    buildings in sight, in the middle of
    the winter, with nothing nearby
    except a frozen lake, and in
    complete darkness too!

    Why is it 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 horse shakes his harness,


    as if asking why they are
    stopping. Apart from the bells,
    the only other sound is the soft
    sound of a light wind and
    snowflakes falling.
    Do you consider ‘sweep’ to be
    onomatopoeia? Explain why.
    The snowflakes are compared
    to down – soft geese feathers
    (metaphor). Can you work out
    why?
    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 speaker would love to stay in


    the woods. He enjoys the
    darkness and the mystery of the
    silence. However, he has duties
    that he needs to get to, and has a
    long way to go before he can rest
    (“sleep”). The speaker repeats
    the last line to emphasise that he
    must travel far, which is the
    reason he cannot stay in this
    beautiful moment. Perhaps he is
    even trying to convince himself
    that he must leave?
    The poem finds the speaker presented with a choice – remain in this
    moment of magical solitude or move on to the obligations he must fulfil.

    The rhyme and rhythm in the poem are both regular – creating the effect
    of a nursery rhyme.

    The tone of the poem is one of awe – the speaker is in awe of the beauty
    of the woods. It is also wistful, as he wishes he could stay, but must move
    on. Which words in the poem help to create this tone?
    QUESTIONS

    1. Why does the traveller stop in these woods? Quote from stanza one to support your
    answer. (2)
    2. By referring to details from stanza 2, explain in your own words why the horse would
    be surprised at this unscheduled stop in the woods. (2)
    3. What sound device is used in line 11? Comment on the effect of this device.
    (2)
    4. Explain the metaphor in line 12. (2)
    5. Explain why the speaker repeats the last line of the poem. (2)
    6. Discuss the tone of the poem and how diction (word choice) is used to create this
    tone. (3)

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