Analysis Of Modernist Ideology In Robert Frost’s Poetry

Robert Frost’s role in modern literature

Demonstrate how the text World War I is an example of Modernist ideology. What qualities does it have that categorize it as such?

In the 19^th century, a literary movement initiated when people were exhausted from the destructive consequences of World War I. The war dismantled the socio-economic culture and reaped apart the soul of the citizens. Robert Frost and other pioneers of modern literature mitigated the disturbed mind of the people with their literary composition that profoundly depicted the artistic side of the life. Modern poetry and literature were the demulcents that gave them respite from blemishes of anguish and distress that they got from the war (Donald Sheehy, Mark Richardson, and Robert Faggen). The modernistic poetries accentuated the theme of frustration anguish and loneliness that the war inflicted on the society. Many critics have recommended that Robert Frost is more of a pastoral poet as the subject of his poetry concentrated more on nature. According to Steven Gould, The fact that escaped the perspective of the critics is that how amazingly he acclimatizes the events with the state of nature in his poetry. Robert Frost is incomparable as a poet, and not all his poetry is about nature.

Like in the poem Mending Wall, the poet establishes two speakers- the narrator and his neighbor who are diverse from each other. This poem is about fencing oneself in and forming relationship through banishment. As said by Gioia, the poem commences with the speaker mourning that his “apple tree” cannot cross the border and devours the cones that are lying under his neighborhood’s pine tree. In return, the speaker assures that “good fences” is necessary to make “good neighbor.” Mending Wall is modern in the deeper sense as it defines the complexity of human relationship. Here the traditional belief and modernity come into conflict as it gauge on both the necessity of communication and about the essentiality of limitation in a relationship (George). The poem explores the sense of contradiction that the present day men are encountering. On one hand they rebel against the barriers like nation and religion that are separating them from their loved ones and on the contrary they are not ready to bring down the fences that are setting them apart with their neighbor. “All pine” may signify the traditional way of thinking and “apple” here may denote the modernity that lies in spreading out like orchard and embracing everyone. Frost does not take sides and elucidates the problem in an objective manner. Reflection of Frost’s modernistic notion is in the fact where he projects that contradiction is a problem that is quite difficult to overcome. According to Vandana, The title of the poem illustrates that if one cannot mend the world, destroying it will be reasonable. Modernistic perspective is demolition of all ideas and establishing of new.

The impact of World War I on modern poetry

After Apple picking is a poem that explores the visionary possibilities of the true glory of life.  .  Labor here is the symbolization of the spirit. After apple, picking is a radiant recapitulation of experience. The sweet fragrance of the apple reflects the richness and sensuality that swiftly makes it way to the recurrent idea of death. The word ‘sleep’ occurs six times in the poem and on one occasion twice in a sentence.  Frost dexterously designs the ambiguity that darkens the environment of the poem. He traps the readers in a domain with the simplicity of his writing style and the readers hardly ever see any field of complaining (Leonard). The poet climbs the tree with his “ladder” which is pointed towards the “heaven”. Here the poet symbolically relates the journey of human being towards death. The last five lines of the poem the poet anguishes about the abundant harvest he had desired. The poet is “overtired” of the “great harvest” as the there were “ten thousand fruit” that he wanted to enjoy. Through this, he wants to explain how uncertain human life is. He draws a mystical adventure out of the day-to-day events that take place in one’s life. Modernism lies in procuring profound insight out of simple happenings of human life. His postmodernist ways of thinking make him more paradoxical by nature. The poem displays depression and the futility that engulfed the life of the people after World War I. He cuts out the picture of discrepancies in human being in the modern days. Frost poems exhibit the structure of the symbolist and metaphysical poetry (Owens). Deriving the symbols from simple day-to-day mundane subjects makes the poem visceral.

Lucy Larcom the American poet was highly motivated by the Robert Frost’s Birches. The poet writes this poem based on his own childhood memory about the Birch tree where he used to play. The speaker here sees the branch of the birch tree swinging from “left to right” in comparison to the trees that are standing straight. However, his fantasy was broken when he realized “ice storm” was rocking the tree. In the poem, the swinging of the birch trees represents the desire to escape the hard realities of adulthood. In morning of winter days, the ice storm freezes the branches and the sun reflects on them that make them shine brilliantly. Here the poet depicts the pain of growing up. As a boy, he used to climb the birch tree to touch the sky but now in his adulthood the speaker is climbing to reach the “heaven” so that he can get away from the muddle of adulthood. Here he also explains that life is like “pathless wood” that is why he wants to get away from it for a while. As said by David, The freedom in imagination is an alluring thought that indicates the modernity in the process of reflection of the poet. Abundant thinking through a simple incident is what makes Robert Frost a modern poet. The poet used blank verse and has emphasized on sound sensing. The music that nature creates through cracking of the icy branches and clicking of the ice-covered branches are delightful. The poem comprises of youth, natural world and most importantly spirituality. In the poem, the realization of truth is the main part of the theme. Internal tension of what actually has happened and what the poet wants to happen brings the sublimity in this poem. The frustration of adulthood is unbearable for the poet and that is why he intends to climb the birch tree to escape to the heaven. The poem emphasizes pathos of adulthood and complexity of human life. This kind of modernistic approach of theme is only possible by Robert Frost. The philosophical and didactic tone establishes the modernistic view of the poem (George).  The poet wants triumph of unreality over reality. He has portrayed the modern picture where imagination is better than the reality. The thought of “young boy” jumping on the birch tree causing it to sway is more appealing than the assault of the ice storm on the branches.

Modernist themes in Robert Frost’s poetry

In the poem “Stopping by the woods”, the speaker is engrossed with a scenario in around him. Robert Frost presents a view that captivates the narrator in such a way that he halts his carriage and keeps on gazing at the mystifying beauty of the woods. The approach of the poetry creates an illusion in the mind of the readers makes them think that the woods have mystic power that is holding back the narrator.  Frost’s symbols define and explain each other. For example, the woods the speaker enjoys looking on are opposing him to from keeping his promise. Frost is a poet neither of the mountains and nor of the woods although he writes both. The first stanza of the poem starts with an ambivalent tone that shows imaginative turmoil that composes its debate. According to Henry, the ambiguity of the narrator’s response to the woods caught in the contradiction between the relieved, conversational idiom of the first three lines and déjà vu like elucidated details and verbal music of the last. The modernity of the poem lies in the structure of the poem. Death is the significant part of the theme. The lovely woods here symbolize the bed of death where the narrator can lie down in peace. The horse in anticipation shakes his bell to alert the speaker about his duty (Rotella). Symbolism in this poetry shows the modernistic principles. The precipitance and weariness that prevails in the daily life of the modern society instigated the narrator to stop by the “dark” and “deep” woods so that he can find moments of solitude. Robert Frost illustrates here the feeling of frustration and deep regret that is tormenting the souls of the people in modern society.  However, he again warns that living beings are mere puppets that the destiny controls (Angela). The narrator jerks back to his conscience and realizes that he has “mundane” responsibilities to fulfill. He needs to wake up and keep on going as he has “promises to keep”. The poet here has described the modern day dilemma that an individual confront. The last line repeats itself twice to create resonance. After all, this could be a metaphorical reference to the brief span of human life. The narrator compels himself to continue the journey, as he knows that life is short and as long as he lives, he has to execute the duties.

Modernism was a movement of philosophy, cultural and changes that transformed the society from 19^th century onwards. World War I and industrial growth drained out the very spirit of the community. The modernist poets like Robert Frost with their modernistic view reconstructed the artistic dogma of the community.

Reference:

Axelrod, Steven Gould. Robert Lowell: Life and Art. Princeton University Press, 2015.

Diepeveen, Leonard. The difficulties of modernism. Routledge, 2013.

Frost, Robert. “The Letters of Robert Frost, Volume 1: 1886-1920.” Ed. Donald Sheehy, Mark Richardson, and Robert Faggen. Cambridge: Belknap P of Harvard UP (2014).

Gilbert, Roger. Walks in the World: Representation and Experience in Modern American Poetry. Princeton University Press, 2014.

Gioia, Dana. “robert frost and the Modern narrative.” The Virginia Quarterly Review 89.2 (2013): 185.

Goyal, Vandana. “Disillusionment in the Poetry of Philip Larkin with Special Reference to his At Grass, Vers de Societe, Wants, Going, High Windows and Lines On a Young Lady’s Photograph Album.” Labyrinth: An International Refereed Journal of Postmodern Studies 5.4 (2014).

Hart, Henry. “IS ROBERT FROST An NEW ENGLAND POET?.” The Yale Review 100.4 (2012): 42-69.

Leighton, Angela. “Something in the Works.” Essays in Criticism 63.1 (2013): 1-19.

Monteiro, George. Robert Frost and the New England Renaissance. University Press of Kentucky, 2015.

Monteiro, George. Robert Frost and the New England Renaissance. University Press of Kentucky, 2015.

Owens, Clarke W. “Robert Frost’s AFTER APPLE-PICKING.” The Explicator71.1 (2013): 35-37.

Raymond, David B. “The Philosophy of Work in Robert Frost’s TWO TRAMPS IN MUD TIME.” The Explicator 74.2 (2016): 77-79.

Rotella, Guy. “Robert Frost and the Vestiges of Elegy.” Literary Imagination14.1 (2012): 88-102.

Wyatt, David. “Robert Frost and the Work of Retelling.” The Hopkins Review8.3 (2015): 387-404.