Griffith

=Robert Frost = Robert was an American poet who identified himself with New England even though he was born in California. His father died when he was only eleven and him and the rest of his family moved to New England where his mom supported them the best way she could by being a school teacher. Frost graduated from high school in 1891 and married his wife, Elinor White, three years later. He had many different jobs, including one attempting to run a farm in New Hampshire, but finally found a job writing poetry in New England. When his first book became published, he received much praise from critics in America which is one of the reasons that he moved back to New Hampshire. The success he enjoyed from his writing didn’t last very long and unfortunately was too late to cancel out all of the bitterness that he struggled with from the earlier parts of his life. Robert Frost endured much personal tragedy in his life. As mentioned earlier, his father died when he was only eleven from tuberculosis which left him and his family with very little money. His mom also died of cancer. He had to admit his younger sister to a mental hospital where she ended up dying. Mental illnesses seemed to run through Robert’s family because he himself and his mother both suffered from depression. His daughter was also submitted to a mental hospital, and his wife suffered bouts of depression as well. Robert had six children. One of them died of cholera, one died of puerperal fever after childbirth, one died 3 days after birth, and one of his sons committed suicide. Only two of his children outlived him. His wife also developed breast cancer and died of heart failure in 1938.

by: Robert Frost ** || In a field I looked into going past, And the ground almost covered smooth in snow, But a few weeds and stubble showing last.
 * **Desert Places
 * Snow falling and night falling fast, oh, fast
 * Snow falling and night falling fast, oh, fast

The woods around it have it--it is theirs. All animals are smothered in their lairs. I am too absent-spirited to count; The loneliness includes me unawares.

And lonely as it is that loneliness Will be more lonely ere it will be less-- A blanker whiteness of benighted snow With no expression, nothing to express.

They cannot scare me with their empty spaces Between stars--on stars where no human race is. I have it in me so much nearer home To scare myself with my own desert places. ||

“Desert Places” by Robert Frost is a poem in which Frost uses an image of a wintry landscape as a metaphor for his internal state of mind. The poem starts off by Frost gazing into an empty field. He mentions how it is snowing and how the ground is almost covered in snow “but a few weeds and last stubble showing last”. It is apparent from the last line in the first stanza that he takes notice of the fact that the landscape is just another piece of ground farmed by man. This perhaps could be a sign of the mood Frost is in while he is gazing at the wintry scene. The second stanza talks about how the woods surround the ground and all of the animals which hide in the woods. It is in this stanza that Frost first shows an indication of his depressed state of mind. The third line says, “I am too absent-spirited to count; the loneliness includes me unawares”. In this line, Frost depicts himself as being less than everything else surrounding the landscape, including the animals and the trees. He identifies with the empty surroundings by saying how he shouldn’t even be counted for to be there in that time. This line truly portrays his absolute emotional emptiness by not even counting himself worthy enough to be present. The third stanza further portrays his loneliness. This is apparent from the fact that the word lonely is used three different times in different forms. “And lonely as it is, that loneliness will be more lonely…”. The last sentences of the third stanza, “A blanker whiteness of benighted snow with no expression, nothing to express” shows that he thinks his depression and loneliness will increase just as the snow continues to fall. The last stanza shows a different kind of emotion coming from Frost. Previously in the other stanzas, Frosts observes the scene with gloomy acceptance but in this stanza he rebels. He shows his rebellion when he says “they cannot scare me with their empty spaces”. This stanza shows that Frost is somewhat scared and ashamed of his state of mind and that it is definitely something that he wishes he didn’t feel. The second line of the stanza, “between stars- on stars where no human race is”, shows how the emptiness of outer space doesn’t even compare to his lonely state of mind. Frost ties up his metaphor of physical landscapes for internal landscapes in a very direct way by giving both the designation of “desert places.” Here he compares the actual desert landscape with his empty, desert mind.

By: Robert Frost ** ||
 * ** The Wood-Pile
 * Out walking in the frozen swamp one gray day || ||
 * I paused and said, “I will turn back from here. || ||
 * No, I will go on farther—and we shall see.” || ||
 * The hard snow held me, save where now and then || ||
 * One foot went down. The view was all in lines || ||
 * Straight up and down of tall slim trees || ||
 * Too much alike to mark or name a place by || ||
 * So as to say for certain I was here || ||
 * Or somewhere else: I was just far from home. || ||
 * A small bird flew before me. He was careful || ||
 * To put a tree between us when he lighted, || ||
 * And say no word to tell me who he was || ||
 * Who was so foolish as to think what //he// thought. || ||
 * He thought that I was after him for a feather— || ||
 * The white one in his tail; like one who takes || ||
 * Everything said as personal to himself. || ||
 * One flight out sideways would have undeceived him. || ||
 * And then there was a pile of wood for which || ||
 * I forgot him and let his little fear || ||
 * Carry him off the way I might have gone, || ||
 * Without so much as wishing him good-night. || ||
 * He went behind it to make his last stand. || ||
 * It was a cord of maple, cut and split || ||
 * And piled—and measured, four by four by eight. || ||
 * And not another like it could I see. || ||
 * No runner tracks in this year’s snow looped near it. || ||
 * And it was older sure than this year’s cutting, || ||
 * Or even last year’s or the year’s before. || ||
 * The wood was grey and the bark warping off it || ||
 * And the pile somewhat sunken. Clematis || ||
 * Had wound strings round and round it like a bundle. || ||
 * What held it though on one side was a tree || ||
 * Still growing, and on one a stake and prop, || ||
 * These latter about to fall. I thought that only || ||
 * Someone who lived in turning to fresh tasks || ||
 * Could so forget his handiwork on which || ||
 * He spent himself, the labor of his axe, || ||
 * And leave it there far from a useful fireplace || ||
 * To warm the frozen swamp as best it could || ||
 * With the slow smokeless burning of decay. || ||

“The Wood-Pile” by Robert Frost is a poem about a man walking through a frozen swamp who gets distracted by many things along the way. The first line of the poem sets the dreary mood of the poem by using words such as “frozen” and “gray”. He describes the swamp as being frozen and describes the day with the color gray, already setting the dreary atmosphere. The next two lines, the speaker contemplates whether he should keep walking through the frozen swamp or whether he should just turn around and go back. It is obvious that the speaker is having to talk himself through the journey when he says, “’I will turn back from here. No, I will go on farther-and we shall see”. These lines prove that the speaker is a very contemplative person who probably often has to talk himself through situations. It makes the speaker seem uneasy, as if the journey through the swamp could be a negative thing. Perhaps the journey and the swamp are symbols for Frost’s internal battle with death and suicide. Perhaps he is thinking about suicide but doesn’t know if he really wants to go through with it or not. The next lines describe the danger and uncertainty that the journey seems to have for the speaker. He describes the snow as being hard enough to hold his weight but how every now and then “one foot went through”. To me, these lines prove that the journey is not a solid journey, but it a journey where there might be cracks along the way. It doesn’t necessarily mean that the journey is dangerous but it does depict the speaker’s sense of insecurity. In the next line the speaker describes the view as being “too much alike to mark or name a place by so as to say for certain I was here or somewhere else”. This proves that the speaker is not exactly sure where he is because everything looks the same. Perhaps this describes the depression that the speaker is feeling in his internal state of mind. Maybe he feels lonely and thinks about death so much that he can no longer distinguish between the reality of his thoughts. In the next line he says, “I was just far from home”. This line is important because it portrays where he is as not being a place that he is comfortable with. It is a place that is not friendly enough for him to feel at home and it depicts the cautious tone of the speaker. Perhaps “home” is where the speaker is in a happier state of mind; a mind that is not contemplating death and suicide. The next few lines describe the bird that the speaker comes across along the way. He describes the bird as being foolish for distrusting him and mocks him for not even coming close enough to let him hear his song. This could describe the emotional feelings that the speaker is going through. To me, this line portrays the trust issues that the speaker is feeling about himself. Perhaps it is not the bird that doesn’t trust him, but it is he himself that doesn’t trust him. He could be struggling mentally with his battle over suicide. The bird can also portray a distraction in the speaker’s life. Perhaps the bird is a distraction from his journey towards suicide. The speaker also mocks the bird for being self centered and thinking that he was “after him for a feather” when in actuality the speaker is the one who is being vain and making all of these assumptions about what the bird thinks about him. Finally the bird leaves and the speaker says that he “forgot him and let his little fear carry him off the way I might have gone”. To me this line could definitely symbolize death and the fact that he could have continued on with suicide if it hadn’t of been for the bird distracting him. The speaker then goes on to notice a wood pile and this distracts his attention away from the bird. This proves that the speaker’s attention span is easily interrupted and he has much curiosity to follow whatever draws his attention. This could reveal the speaker’s unstable emotional state. He describes the uselessness and decay of the wood pile by giving evidence that no one has come out for the wood in a really long time. He describes the wood as “gray” with “bark warping off it”. The fact that he is describing the wood as decaying and useless could also symbolize the speaker’s battle with death. He says that the only thing that held the wood pile up was the side of a tree that was “still growing” and “a stake and prop” that was “latter about to fall”. Perhaps the tree that is still growing can symbolize the speaker’s family and all of the things that distract him from his thoughts of suicide. His family could be the only thin saving him from his death. His family could be in a bad emotional state as well (which we know is true from his biography) which is what he meant by the stake and prop were "latter about to fall". The last lines of the poem seem to show the speaker’s uncertainty with life. He says that the stranger who left the wood just sitting there to decay must have had a full and busy life if he was so distracted. He also states that the wood is far from a useful fireplace where there would be “slow smokeless burning of decay”. These last lines were tricky for me to understand. I think that the speaker knows that he should be at home away from this “journey” near the swamp but he still is contemplating with his internal emotional struggles. I think the poem proves that no matter how much he knows he should not be in this state of mind, he cannot help but be. He may get distracted, but his depression and thoughts of death still consume him just as he was consumed by the frozen swamp and all of its distractions of decay.

Williams Carlos Williams William Carlos Williams was a modernist poet who thought of himself as one of the most underrated poets of his time. He was part of the Imagism movement which was a poetry movement that favored clear and direct imagery which left the readers to figure out the meaning and interpretation. Williams seemed to bring his poetry into natural relation with simple, everyday life. During his childhood, his father was often away from home and he was taken care of by his mother and grandmother. Much of William’s poems depict women as an earth mother who men require for completion. He depicts that women’s reason for living is to supply that completeness to men. Williams married Florence Herman in 1912. He had a continuing interest in other women during their marriage but the marriage did end up lasting and became the subject for some beautiful poetry that he wrote. Williams opposed the use of poetry for general statements and to simply tell a story. All of his poetry rises from accumulation of detail. code The Young Housewife By: William Carlos Williams

At ten AM the young housewife moves about in negligee behind the wooden walls of her husband's house. I pass solitary in my car.

Then again she comes to the curb to call the ice-man, fish-man, and stands shy, uncorseted, tucking in stray ends of hair, and I compare her to a fallen leaf.

The noiseless wheels of my car rush with a crackling sound over dried leaves as I bow and pass smiling. code media type="custom" key="4721307" “The Young Housewife” by William Carlos Williams, to me, is a poem about his lust for a woman. The first stanza says “the young housewife moves about in negligee behind the wooden walls of her husband’s house”. These lines show that he cannot see the woman because she is behind walls but he is fantasizing about her. The fact that she is in her husband’s house portrays that she is married and is not with him. This further carries on the idea that he is fantasizing and lusting for her rather than talking of a woman that he actually has a relationship with considering the fact that she is already taken. The second stanza portrays the woman almost calling for attention by standing on the curb and calling to the “ice-man” and the “fish-man”. Williams also describes her as standing “shy, uncorseted, tucking in stray ends of hair”. This line can be taken two different ways to me. He may look at her and find her almost desperate for calling so much attention to herself. But he may also see these things as childlike, flirtatious gestures that make him day dream about her even more. The last line of the second stanza says, “I compare her to a fallen leaf”. By comparing her to a fallen leaf, I think he is complementing her and emphasizing her beauty. To me nature is beautiful, and the sight of seeing leaves fall off of trees in the autumn is definitely a sight to see. So by comparing her to a fallen leaf, he is only describing her beauty and elegance. The last stanza was a little bit confusing for me. After reading it several times I came to a conclusion of what I thought it meant. Perhaps Williams uses the last stanza as a metaphor for his actual lust for this woman. He may want to actually “be” with this woman just as the “wheels of the car rush with a crackling sound over [her] dried leaves”. The last few words say, “I bow and pass smiling”. I think this part of the stanza puts the fantasy to an end because he finally realizes that it is merely a fantasy, and being with the woman will never really happens. He smiles because he has to. Everyone has things that they fantasize over but sometimes at the end of the day you just have to smile and let them go because they aren’t real. The fact that the woman has a husband and lives with him is a barrier to the lust he has for her. His fantasy is but a day dream ; something that will never be reality.

Langston Hughes

Langston Hughes was one of the most popular writers connected with the Harlem Renaissance, which was an era of written and artistic creativity for African Americans. He wanted to capture the traditions of black culture in his writings. Hughes was born in Joplin, Missouri and lived mainly with his maternal grandmother because his parents were separated. He had a mother who was very sympathetic to his ambitions of being a poet, but unfortunately he was always in conflict with his father about it. Hughes chose to focus his work on modern, urban black life and many of his poem’s “demanded that African Americans be acknowledged as owners of the culture they gave to the United States and as fully enfranchised American citizens”(1089).

Mother to Son
by Langston Hughes Well, son, I'll tell you: Life for me ain't been no crystal stair. It's had tacks in it, And splinters, And boards torn up, And places with no carpet on the floor— Bare. But all the time I'se been a-climbin' on, And reachin' landin's, And turnin' corners, And sometimes goin' in the dark Where there ain't been no light. So, boy, don't you turn back. Don't you set down on the steps. 'Cause you finds it's kinder hard. Don't you fall now— For I'se still goin', honey, I'se still climbin', And life for me ain't been no crystal stair.media type="youtube" key="VkCFeNeqyHk" height="344" width="425"

“Mother to Son” by Langston Hughes is a poem about a mother wanting to see their child succeed in life. In most cases, every mother wants their child to succeed in life, to take risks, and to not be afraid. This poem demonstrates that kind of love that mother’s have for their children. Throughout the poem, the mother gives her son wisdom by giving him examples through her life. In the poem, the climb up the crystal stair case is used as a metaphor for the actual life journey of the mother. The poem starts out by saying, “well son, I’ll tell you: life for me ain’t been no crystal stair”. This line is the first line of the poem that actually depicts that the mother’s life was probably difficult. She is basically saying to her son that life is just not something you can walk through with ease and that there are always going to be difficult times throughout. The difficult times in life are portrayed with the use of the words “tacks”, “splinters”, and “boards torn up”. This puts emphasis on how difficult the mother’s life has actually been. They are all are used to relate the hardships of the mother's life to the hardships of climbing up battered stairs. The use of imagery and metaphors definitely serve as a way to help the son understand the difficulties that life has to offer. The mother further explains to her son that you can’t give up in life even though it may be hard when she says “but all the time, I’se been a-climbin’ on, and reachin’ landin’s, and turnin’ corners, and sometimes goin’ in the dark”. This helps explain to the son that no matter what, you have to keep going in life. You will reach times that are hard, times that are easy, and times that are in between but no matter what you just have to keep living. The mother emphasizes that you might not always know what’s ahead in life when she says she has stumbled upon places “where there ain’t been no light”. The mother doesn't want her son to avoid this staircase of life. She wants him to forge onward and upward just as she did;"So boy, don't you turn back. Don't you set down on the steps 'Cause you finds it's kinder hard. Don't you fall now-". The ending lines are true words of wisdom. The mother reveals how tough life is. She uses herself as a prime example of how it hasn’t killed her or her spirits and how she is still going.

**Emily Dickinson ** Emily Dickinson is a very famous American poet who was born in Amherst, Massachusetts to a very successful family. Although her family was very socially tied to the community, she lived a very reclusive, isolated life. She was an introvert who never even left her parents’ home except for a year. She spent time studying at a school away from home but was so homesick that she had to come back. She is known for her white clothing that she always wore (for the bride she would never be) and her reluctance to greet guests and later in life to even come out of her room. Later on in her live she went to live in DC with her father because she had fallen in love with a married lawyer who soon died of tuberculosis. She then fell in love with another married man who was a minister and moved to San Francisco, somewhere farther away from her. Within a few years after that, she broke away from all aspects of Amherst. Only seven of her nearly 1800 poems were published in her lifetime and they were altered significantly by the publishers to fit the poetic rules of the time. Dickinson is known to use poetry as a private observation and much her poetry reflects her loneliness. Most of it also focuses on what matters most to her and her own feelings.

 **I'm Nobody! Who Are You? 260 [288] By: Emily Dickinson ** code I'm Nobody! Who are you? Are you – Nobody – too? Then there's a pair of us? Don't tell! they'd advertise – you know!

How dreary – to be – Somebody! How public – like a Frog – To tell one's name – the livelong June – To an admiring Bog! code media type="custom" key="4721717" In one of Dickinson’s most famous poems, “I’m Nobody! Who Are You?”, her loneliness and her willingness to hide away from the world is clearly depicted. The poem starts out with the same lines as the title, “I’m nobody! Who are you?”. The whole poem has a playful, sarcastic tone to it which depicts her defense for the kind of privacy she favored. She makes use of much sarcasm when she says “Don’t tell! They’d advertise- you know!”. In the first stanza of the poem, she is definitely mocking anyone who has ever said anything about her privacy and her hiding away from society. By saying that people will advertise her privacy shows to readers her frustration with everyone talking about how she is different and weird for being the way she is. She also makes use of the fact that she thinks it is normal to be the way she is and that there must be other people out there who are just as reclusive as she is when she asks the question, “are you- Nobody-too?”. In the second stanza she implies that to be a Nobody is a luxury, not a burden by stating how “dreary” it must be to be “somebody”. She keeps going with the idea that it is dreary to be a “somebody” by further explaining how. She describes people who aren’t private individuals as people whose names are always circulating in public and how these people are always talking and gossiping. She compares the constant chatting of people to frogs who are always croaking in the summertime when she says “how public-like a frog- to tell one’s name- the livelong June”. This poem truly does depict Dickinson’s reclusiveness from society that she had throughout most of her life.

Works Cited

Baym, Nina. //The Norton Anthology of American Literature, Shorter Seventh Edition, Volume 2 1865 to the Present//. Vol. 2. New York: W. W. Norton, 2007. Print.

Baym, Nina. //Young Goodman Brown//. //The Norton Anthology of American Literature, Shorter Seventh Edition, Volume 1 Beginnings to 1865 (Norton Anthology of American Literature)//. 7th ed. Vol. 1. New York: W. W. Norton, 2007. 605-14. Print.