Social Responsibility and Call of the Wild in Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening - Essay Example

A Critical of Analysis of the Conflict between Social Responsibility and Call of the Wild in “Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening” Robert Frost’s poem, “Stopping by the Wood”, deals with a man’s choice to comply with social responsibility rather than to revel in wilderness. Though all the events of the poem take place a setting of a forest’s wilderness, human society as well as civilization, with the use of various symbols and metaphors, has been depicted as an unavoidable offstage reality from the very beginning of this poem. The offstage presence of human society in the poem is an unavoidable reality because the speaker himself belongs to it. The speaker belongs to a society which necessarily requires him to be dutiful and responsible. In fact he has duties and responsibilities to himself and to others. But at the same time, he is also a freewill agent who can choose to shun these duties. Since he is a human being, he can easily be tempted to walk along the evil as well as unconventional path. While walking through the woods, he temporarily becomes tempted by its wildness. This wildness of the woods symbolizes something which is wild, unconventional and evil, and which is not accredited by the society. But though he is temporarily distracted by the wilderness, he finally chooses to perform his social duties and responsibilities. Indeed, the poem is endowed with two levels of meanings: literal meaning and metaphorical meaning. Though literally the poem captures some moments of a horse-ride of the speaker, metaphorically it refers to a man’s prioritization on social responsibilities over the call of the wild. On the surface level, the speaker of the poem says that in a darkest evening of the year he stopped by woods, while travelling to his destiny. He stopped by it because he is attracted by the lovely and mysterious scene of the woods. He watches the “woods filled up with snow” (Frost Stanza 1). Also the woods are filled up with near-silence. There are only the sounds of harness bell and wind-blow. In this regard, he says, “The only other sounds the sweep/ Of easy wind and downy flake” (Frost Stanza 3). He further interprets the on-going thoughts of his horse, his only companion and tells that stopping “between the woods and frozen lake” is unusual to his horse because there was not any farmhouse. In his own words, 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” (Frost Stanza 2). In the very beginning of the poem, the speaker provides a sense of remoteness from human society and civilization through the lines, “Whose woods these are I think I know/His house is in the village, though” (Frost Stanza 1). Here, the imagery of ‘village’ refers to the speaker’s attachment to human society. Though he is amid the wilderness of the woods, he is the representative of the society which he belongs to. The remoteness of the speaker from social bindings is further reinforced when he tells that the owner of the woods “will not see [him] stopping [there]” (Frost Stanza 1). It means, he is far from the society up to his own will. He is a human being; therefore, he is a freewill agent unlike his little horse who must think his master’s stopping queer without a ‘farmhouse’. Here, the imagery of ‘farmhouse’ also symbolizes the comfort which social life can provide to a man. But since the speaker is a freewill agent, he is easily tempted to revel in the mysterious and lovely wilderness of the woods. While his horse thinks it queer to stop by the woods, he thinks that “The woods are lovely, dark, and deep” (Frost Stanza 4). The contrast between his reaction and his horse’s reaction to the scenery of the forest rather highlights his existence as a freewill agent. If he wants, he can elongate his stay in the woods. Even he can respond to the call of the wild. He can revel in the joy of exploring the mysterious, unknown and the wild. But he prioritizes his social duties and responsibilities over to respond to his impulse. For him, reaching his destiny is far more important than to revel in the mysterious, as he says, “The woods are lovely, dark, and deep,/But I have promises to keep” (Frost Stanza 4). Here, the imagery of promise symbolizes a man’s social bindings. His eagerness to keep promises reminds the readers that he is not only a freewill agent but also a social being. His greatness lies in his ability to fulfill a promise in spite of having the capability to break it. He can break his promise because he is endowed with freewill. His choice to “keep promises” takes him to a higher level of human existence. So, he feels that he cannot stop because he greater responsibilities to fulfill before his death. In the final two lines of the poem, he emphasizes the importance of fulfilling his social duties and responsibilities, as he says: “And miles to go before I sleep, /And miles to go before I sleep” (Frost Stanza 4). On the surface level, Frost’s poem provides a short detail of a rider’s reaction to the lovely scene of a forest on a snowy evening. But allegorically, it refers to the conflict between a man’s social responsibility and his urges to revel in the joy of mystery and wilderness. While travelling to his destiny, the speaker of the poem is tempted by the wilderness of the woods. But ultimately he chooses to respond to the call of his social being. Thus he proves his greatness as a freewill agent and also a social being. He feels that he has to fulfill more promises which his social life imposes upon him before his death. He further feels that it is more important to perform according to the social bindings than to explore the mysteries of life. In this way, his choice to comply with the rules of the society turns him into a greater being who, in spite of possessing the freewill, can play within the social boundary. Works Cited Frost, Robert. “Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening”, Collection of Robert Frost’s Poetry. New York: Bentham Publishers, 2008. Read More