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.
Four Ways to Read Frost
Throughout this website, I will be analyzing Robert Frost's "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening through four different theoretical lenses. Although Frost is known for his heavy use of layered metaphors throughout his poetry, I will be analyzing this poem in a more literal standpoint from the evidence presented in the text of the poem for the first three theoretical lenses. For the last analysis of this poem, I will be focusing specifically on Frost's use of metaphors. The four theories I will be utilizing for this analysis are in order as follows: Jill Stauffer's "Ethical Loneliness", how the ethics of personal autonomy, isolation, and dehumanization can effect one; Patricia Hill Collins and Sirma Bilge's "Intersectionality", how human connections are made on an individual and global level; Gloria Anzaldúa's "Borderlands =: La Frontera", how one's identity becomes an important factor in one's personal life; and Ferdinand de Saussure's "A Course in General Lingustics" how metaphors created in literature are established and recognized as universal signs.
"Ethical Loneliness" by Jill Stauffer
“Ethical Loneliness” is described by Jill Stauffer as being isolated and shunned from human society to the point that one becomes dehumanized. Ethical loneliness often happens after a trauma in which the majority of society cannot relate to, and thus outcasts the person who experienced the trauma. And though this is the main idea of Stauffer’s theory, she also discusses the autonomy that we have as human beings, and how this autonomy makes us responsible for the actions we take. She also discusses the human need to temporarily separate ourselves from the stressors of society and indulge in personal pleasures. Stauffer’s ideas about autonomy and personal pleasure will be the basis for applying this theory to Robert Frost’s poem.
Stauffer discusses personal ethical codes and autonomy. She describes how it is not only our own influences that make us as a person, but also outside influence that helps to shape us. She says:
“[Our stories] come from our experience of the world, of course, and who we are. But they also come from what other people say to us, from the values and truths produced by whatever cultures surround us, and from unspoken affective interactions between persons living alongside one another… We are autonomous selves, capable of consenting—or refusing to consent—to the conditions in which we live” (Stauffer 10).
This means that we are in charge of our own actions towards our surroundings, and we make our own choices in life. We may choose to consent what we wish to, and we are capable of withdrawing consent as well. In Frost’s poem, the narrator is autonomous. He states towards the end of the poem, “But I have promises to keep” (Frost, line 14). In this case, the narrator in the poem is choosing to consent. He is consenting to previous arrangements that he has made, though it is unclear what those arrangements are. Frost’s narrator could choose not to keep any of the promises that he has made; however, his own ethical code is holding himself to the standards of following through with his promises. Reading this line through ethical loneliness is an example of how one might use their own ethical codes to consent or not consent to their surroundings. It shows the importance of having an ethical code that is adhered to, whether or not that means one gives or withdraws consent.
Within this autonomy, we also sometimes look to separate ourselves from the world and distract ourselves from life’s stressors. It is important to indulge ourselves in factors outside our daily lives that bring us peace and help to clear our minds from stress. Frost’s narrator does this when he stops to “watch [the villager’s] woods fill up with snow” (Frost, line 4) and mentions that the “woods are lovely, dark, and deep” (Frost, line 13). By stopping simply to watch the snow fall and admire the intensity of the woods surrounding him, the narrator is taking a step back from any responsibilities he has and taking a moment to enjoy himself. At this moment, he is neither here, nor there, and that sense of non-belonging he is experiencing is relieving him temporarily of his responsibilities. Stauffer says that we “look for escapes from being—and sometimes we find them for a moment in intoxication, aesthetic contemplation, sex, or other distractions” (Stauffer 18). The narrator is indeed completely intoxicated by these woods to the point where he briefly breaks a possible ethical code by trespassing into the woods (“He will not see me stopping here” (Frost, line 3)). However, at this moment, the need for separation from life’s responsibilities is more important and transcends the ethical code. This transcendence of our own ethical code for pleasure purposes can be extremely important to our mental health.
Finally, I will briefly analyze the possibility that this narrator has been cast out from society and is experiencing ethical loneliness. For ethical loneliness to occur, a person must experience a trauma, and “what befell [that person] is made up of equal parts loss of sovereignty and despair of all help” (Stauffer 15). Although we are not directly told that the narrator in Frost’s poem has experienced a trauma, it can be assumed through a closer look at the two relationships the narrator mentions. The narrator says, “Whose woods these are I think I know/His house is in the village though” (Frost, lines 1 and 2). It is clear in these lines that the narrator has an indirect relationship with the owner of the woods. However, it is unclear what exactly this relationship is. It can be derived from this small amount of information that the narrator possibly once belonged to the same village as the woods owner, but no longer has any affiliations with it. The narrator also seems to have a close relationship with his horse, “My little horse must think it queer/To stop without a farmhouse near” (lines 5 and 6). It is assumed this relationship with his horse is close because he personifies his horse, and he alludes that knows his horse so well that he understands the horse’s thought process. This puts the narrator on the same societal level as his horse, and it also elevates the woods owner’s status above himself. This closer look at these lines assumes ethical loneliness is occurring at this point because the narrator has been dehumanized to the same status of his horse.
In conclusion, the narrator’s assumed removal from society produces ethical loneliness. This is also highlighted by his relationship with his horse, his autonomy in his decision making, and in the time he takes to experience a brief moment of pleasure in the forest.
"Intersectionality" by Patricia Hill Collins & Sirma Bilge
Intersectionality is described by Patricia Hill Collins and Sirma Bilge as “a way of understanding and analyzing the complexity in the world, in people, and in human experiences” (Collins, Bilge 2). It is a tool that we can use to obtain a better understanding of ourselves and the world we live in. Although Intersectionality is multifaceted, for the purpose of this argument, the power relations in which Collins and Bilge discuss within intersectionality will be examined more closely here. This can be applied to Frost’s poem by analyzing the narrator’s relations to the villager who owns the woods the narrator stops in.
There is a power dynamic in Robert Frost’s poem between the narrator and the villager who the narrator claims owns the woods he is stopping in. Collins and Bilge say that power relations “are about people’s lives, how people relate to one another, and who is advantaged or disadvantaged within social interactions” (Collins and Bilge 7). The narrator is in the disadvantaged position because he is a trespasser in the woods, and he can be assumed to be a nomad because he has no apparent ties to the village. He seems to be an outcast from the nearby village, yet he still knows who the owner of the woods is because he says, “Whose woods are these, I think I know” (Frost, line 1). This line shows that there is a power relation because the narrator does not appear to have any actual relationship with the wood’s owner; however, the wood’s owner is a notable enough person in the society for the narrator to know who he is. The owner of the woods is in an advantaged position because not only does he have a massive expanse of land, but his “house is in the village though” (Frost, line 2). The villager is well off enough to both own the woods that the narrator is passing through and also to have a completely separate house in the village. This power relationship is important because it emphasizes the differences between a person who appears to have social status (the villager) and a person who does not (the narrator), and this emphasis demonstrates two completely different possible ways of life. These differences tie into intersectionality because they show how two people of completely different statuses can still be intertwined within the world.
Another way that the power dynamics of intersectionality come into play in this poem is by looking at the narrator’s relationship with his horse. The narrator is not only less advantaged than the woods owner, but he also seems to have a closer connection with his horse than he does to other people. In some ways, it is as if he is more socially equal to his horse than to other humans. Collins and Bilge state that “When it comes to the organization of power, ideas matter in providing explanations for social inequality and fair play… This is where the idea of a level or flat playing field becomes crucial” (Collins and Bilge 10). What this means is that in order for there to be social equality, there must be equal opportunities and advantages for each party involved. Because the villager seems to be in a much more advantaged position, the playing field is not flat, and there is a social power tier occurring in this poem. The narrator’s relationship with his horse is so strong that the narrator can predict the horse’s feelings. After stopping in the woods, he thinks his horse “must think it queer/To stop without a farmhouse near” (Frost, line 5 & 6). This relationship between the narrator and his horse shows an important dynamic that highlights the difference in position that the narrator is in than the woods owner. Because the narrator is linked so much more closely to an animal than a human, this shows that his position in the world itself is more than likely much different than many other humans. He is a presumed wanderer who does not belong to any particular place, which does not seem to be the case for others who live in the village nearby. Intersectionality is at work here because “Rather than seeing people as a homogenous, undifferentiated mass, intersectionality provides a framework for explaining how social divisions of race, gender, age, and citizenship status, among others, positions people differently in the world, especially in relation to global social equality” (Collins and Bilge 15). If it is assumed that this poem takes place at the same time in which it was written (1923), then the relations of global social equality can also be examined within this poem. In 1923 most people were not wandering around the woods with only a horse. Most people were driving cars and lived in established cities. Therefore, the narrator’s social position can also be determined to be less advantaged on a global scale.
In conclusion, the analysis of the social position and the power structure in this poem framed with intersectionality can provide a means of better understanding others in the world around us. By looking at the relationship between the narrator and the woods owner, we gain a better outlook of those who are in positions below our own. We can use this outlook to reserve our judgements about those less fortunate and create a kinder world around us.
"Borderlands =: La Frontera" by Gloria Anzaldúa
An identity is one of the most important things a person can have. Identities shape how we see the world around us, others, and most importantly, ourselves. For some people, identities come easily. For others, it takes years of self-discovery to find out one’s true self. However, there are also those who feel stuck between two (or possibly more) worlds with their identities. This feeling of “in-between-ness” is the basis for Gloria Anzaldua’s borderlands theory discussed in her book Borderlands =: La Frontera. Robert Frost’s “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” is all about being in-between and reading through Anzaldua’s borderlands theory teaches us that its okay to be in-between and assume more than one identity.
The first important thing to identify is what is meant by “borders”. Gloria Anzaldua describes borders as being “set up to define the places that are safe and unsafe, to distinguish us from them. A border is a dividing line, a narrow strip along a steep edge” (Anzaldua 25). Borders are a visible line that separates one group from another. When Frost and his horse stop in the woods, they stop “Between the woods and frozen lake” (Frost, line 7). A border is created between the woods and lake that separates the narrator and his horse from anyone else around him. The establishment of this border is important because it cuts the narrator off from the rest of whatever lies beyond the woods and lake, and it emphasizes this separation metaphorically. Although a border can be visible, borders are also a “vague an undetermined place created by the emotional residue of an unnatural boundary” (Anzaldua 25). In Frost’s poems, the border of the woods also falls into the category of vagueness and unnaturalness. The narrator says that the “woods are lovely, dark, and deep” (Frost, line 13). That the woods are lovely, dark, and deep creates a vagueness and unnaturalness because those terms in general do not point to a clear image about what those terms mean. Vagueness and unnaturalness are important because both of these things demand interpretation. Thenceforth, this makes them unvague and natural and comes together to shapes one’s identity.
However, sometimes finding one’s identity in this vagueness and unnaturalness can be especially challenging, and one can sometimes feel as if they are “stuck in-between” different identities. Having used both the identities of “chicana” and “American”, Anzaldua sometimes did not know which identity she felt closer to. Anzaldua says that the “only ‘legitimate’ inhabitants [of America were] those in power, the whites and those who [aligned] themselves with whites” (Anzaldua 25 & 26). The power dynamic Anzaldua speaks of is also present in the narrator’s life between himself and the owner of the woods. The narrator is a trespasser in the same way that Anzaldua felt as if she was trespassing between two identities. The narrator knows who the woods belong to, but says that the owner, “will not see [him] stopping [there]” (Frost, line 3). Because the narrator does not belong to these woods or the village that borders the woods, he is also stuck in-between in the same ways that Anzaldua felt in-between two worlds. However, Frost still takes in the beauty of the woods and appreciates them while passing through. The narrator shows us that it is okay to still be in the process of discovering our identities when he says he has “promises to keep/And miles to go before [he sleeps]” (Frost, line 14 & 15). The narrator has a long way to go before discovering where he belongs. However, instead of being upset by this journey, he enjoys it. This shows that it is okay to not have found one’s self yet and to enjoy the discovery process.
In conclusion, even though finding one’s identity is a process. However, it is better to see this process in a positive light instead of thinking of it as a grueling task. It is important to enjoy the things around us and to use the things we have learned on our journey of self-discovery in a positive way.
"A General Course in Linguistics" by Ferdinand de Saussure
Robert Frost is extremely well-known for his use of metaphor in his poetry. Quoted in an essay about Frost’s dualism by Peter T. Stanlis, Frost says that “metaphor in poetry is the attempt to say one thing and mean another, to say something in terms of its opposite…” (Stanlin 176). The reasoning behind why the use of metaphor is effective within poetry can be analyzed by reading Robert Frost’s “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” through Ferdinand Saussure’s “Course in General Linguistics”; in which Saussure says that “The linguistic sign unites, not a thing and a name, but a concept and a sound-image” (Saussure 138).
Metaphors work very similar to universally accepted signs. Universal signs are an object and a concept that are not linked together in a literal sense, but in a sense that the object has become a common symbol to represent an idea. Examples of this would be a dove or an olive branch representing “peace” in many cultures, a heart-shape to represent love, or a cross to represent Christianity. Saussure calls the combination of the concept (i.e. the heart-shape) that is related to these words, and the sound-image, or word (i.e. love) a sign (Saussure 139). He sought to “retain the word sign [signe] to designate the whole and to replace concept and sound-image respectively by signified [signifie] and signifier [significant]; the last two terms have the advantage of indicating the opposition that separates them from each other and from the whole of which they are parts” (Saussure 139). We can apply these terms and this outlook on signs to Frost’s poem by translating the metaphors within it.
One way to read Frost’s “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” is by viewing it as a metaphor for needing to step back from life’s stressors and take a break from responsibilities when necessary. This conclusion can be drawn on by assessing some of the signifiers in Frost’s poem and associating them with what is being signified in a metaphorical sense. For example, Frost’s narrator stops in the woods to “watch [the villager’s] woods fill up with snow” (Frost, line 4). Although snow is the sound-image, or signifier, in this line, snow can be indirectly signified as one’s responsibilities. The narrator is not actually stopping and watching the woods fill up with snow, instead he is stopping as his tasks (the metaphor for snow) begin to stack up, yet he temporarily steps back from these responsibilities. As he stops, he enjoys the nature around him, but his horse “gives his harness bells a shake/To ask if there is some mistake” (Frost, line 9 & 10). This time the signified and signifier work in a metaphorical form as the horse’s bells. The bells represent the narrator’s tasks reminding him that they are still there and need to be attended to, despite him ignoring them. Finally, the narrator ends his pause of responsibility and resumes his tasks. But, again, this is stated in a metaphorical sense. The narrator says he has “promises to keep/And miles to go before [he sleeps]” (Frost, line 14 & 15). The miles of travelling that the narrator has to do are only metaphorical and not literal. This time the signified is the long list of tasks the narrator has to complete with the signifiers being “miles” (the list of tasks) and “sleep” (completion). Metaphors used with Saussure’s version of signs can be extremely useful in poetry because they can combine vivid linguistic images while also subconsciously providing important life lessons.
Acknowledgements
A special thanks to Aaron Asaad and Dyllon Chongtoua for peer reviewing these analyses; Dr. Ashley Foster for her insight on my thoughts and her help; and a thank you to Dr. Ashley Foster's English 105 class for deepening my understanding about these theories. Our discussions this semester have helped me think critically about these texts in ways I would not have been able to on my own.
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