Robert Frost as a poet of nature- Discuss

Answer

Evaluate Robert Frost as a poet of nature.

From a study of the characteristics of his poetry, we can form an idea about Robert Frost (1874-1963) as a poet of nature. Though he differs in his attitude towards nature from most of the nature poets like Wordsworth, Coleridge, or Keats, he shows an abundance of evidence for us to regard him as a poet of nature.

Various moods of nature: Robert Frost is a poet of nature, not in a single mood of nature but in various moods of nature. There is hardly any poem of Frost that does not declare several moods of nature. His poems of “North of Boston” are replete with sundry moods of nature.

Through the moods of nature, Frost especially represents different kinds of dramatic incidents of human life. John F. Lynen says, “Even in Frost’s most cheerful sketches, there is always a bitter-sweet quality”. From this remark, we get that Frost’s natural depiction is universal.

When I see birches bend to left and right
Across the lines of straighter darker trees,
I like to think some boy’s been swinging them.
But swinging doesn’t bend them down to stay
As ice-storms do

By the above lines, the poet means to say that when nature is tame, the tree is normal; nature is stormy, and the tree has to tolerate much. Here, we get two moods of nature at least.

Local and a regional poet of nature: Frost is found to be a poet of nature of the local and regional. The local and regional natural feature of his poetry is from the north of Boston. His descriptive power is the most wonderful thing in his poetry.

The snowfall, bending trees and valley mist of a brook from his locality are depicted simply but bring a huge universal experience for the readers. He never describes nature as a spectacle only. In the poem “Birches”, Frost depicts the birch trees to uphold vividly their habit and how they meet a storm.

Nature as a symbol of man’s revelation: