Robert Frost: A Reckoned Author of Literature
One of the most reckoned authors of literature in the poetry genre is Robert Frost who was born in San Francisco in 1874. He is a four-time receiver of the Pulitzer Prize and he has been a key player in the development of American poetry and literary work which makes him an ideal icon for poetic assessment. President John F. Kennedy described Frost as “He has bequeathed his nation a body of imperishable verse from which Americans will forever gain joy and understanding” (Frost 34). He earned the chance to study at Dartmouth University and later proceeded to Harvard. Despite studying in these institutions, he was never awarded a degree even though he managed to earn several honorary degrees while he was at Yale, Oxford, Harvard, Dartmouth, and Cambridge. A unique aspect of his life is, however, the fact that he drew so much inspiration from his farm. It is apparent that at the time of his career, Frost and many other contemporary authors happened to develop their inspiration from nature and the simplicity of the landscape and it was manifested in his poetry. The interaction with other authors and a life of tragedy and misfortune enabled Frost to focus his poems in issues that he related with from his past.
The Background of Farming: A Key Influence
One of the key factors that influenced Frost's poems was the background of farming. Frost spent a long time in Derry with reports indicating that he stayed there for at least ten years. Frost states that “there was something about the experience at Derry which stayed in my mind and was tapped for poetry in the years that came after” (Gioia 188). When he was at Derry in New England, Frost lived on a piece of land he had inherited from his grandparents. It is the same place where he lived with his family and his wife Elinor. However, the reality is that the family was much successful as poultry farmers. Thus, the inspiration in his poetry was developed from the fact that the landscape of Derry and New England as a whole was beautiful. A majority of his poems were not only written at the time that he lived in New Hampshire but the experience living there played a significant role. The rural background is thus a key feature that one would identify with Frost's poems with notable poems being “The Pasture,” “After Apple-Picking,” and the “Death of a Hired Man.” Each of the mentioned works depict a setting of rural background and characters tend to interact directly with nature in its original habitat. Further focus on nature and expression of his feelings towards the natural world are manifested in his poem “A Passing Glimpse” when he states that “I name all the flowers I am sure they weren’t: Not Fireweed loving where woods have burnt” (Chen 371). The lines underscore the fact that the speaker had become accustomed to what he had seen and that the flowers tended to possess special qualities related to vision.
Interaction with Other Artists and Writers
The interaction with other artists and writers also played a crucial role in defining the direction that Frost took regarding the writing of his poetic works. Frost relocated to Beaconsfield together with his family in 1911 and the shift enabled him to meet other influential authors. The most notable were fellow poets Edward Thomas and Ezra Pound who enabled him to gain the motivation he needed to get his career moving. He developed positively from the encouragement he received from and the results were manifested from the recognition and fame that he received later. The celebrity status that he earned was as a result of the relocation to England where he met other inspiring leaders. Other key motivations for the development of his career were the literary influences that he developed when. Frost was introduced to the field of poetry at a young age because he was exposed very early in his life to a field he would come to develop a career. The reality was that both of Frost's parents worked as teachers which meant that Frost would be accustomed to what his parents desired. Among the greatest influences that he received were Shakespeare and Wordsworth. The relocation to England also implied that a majority of the time he would spend learning from his peers Ezra Pound and Edward Thomas. Furthermore, literary influences on his poetry could be perceived to have developed when he got acquainted with Robert Graves and Rupert Brooke when he was in England.
Tragedy and Depression: A Driving Force
Most importantly, tragedy and depression that surrounded his life acted as a key factor in the development that Frost had in his poetic career. Frost's father died when he was a young boy as he was just 11 years following his family's move to Massachusetts. Further misfortune befell his family when two of his sisters died with one succumbing to mental health challenges. Further challenges were manifested in his poetry because three of his children also developed mental illness problems with one of them becoming a suicide victim. His daughter further added to the misfortune that befell his family because she was born with complications while his son had cholera. His wife also struggled with multiple failed endeavors in her life as she tried establishing a poetry farm without much success. The challenges have been critical in Frost focusing on the themes of death and the loss of life in many of his poems because he has experienced first-hand pain associated with grief. The poem “Choose Something Like a Star” is an example of a literary composition he developed from the trauma in his personal life. The justification is from the statement “To carry praise or blame too far, We may choose something like a star” that is featured in the poem “Choose Something Like a Star” (Gioia 185). It affirms that Frost had undergone so much trauma in his life that he has resorted to making the right choices to avoid further misery.
An Emotional Connection
Robert Frost is also known to have lived an emotional life because he had much contact with his family and he was with them throughout. He thus developed a connection with his family that is expressed in many of his works of poetry. The emotional aspect arises from the fact that he led a depressed life that was confounded by misery and many challenges. The personal traits in his life are manifested clearly in the assessment of the writing of “Home Burial” where he discusses two major themes involving the death of a child and the failure of marriage. The author develops an emotionally engaging scene when it is apparent that the child was buried in the yard when the father was in New England as the mother watched from a window. It is a suitable way that Frost used to describe the misfortune that had occurred in his life, and just as the child’s parents, he was also unable to act to save his family members from perishing. The explanation builds on one of Frost's most cited quotes on emotion where it is asserted that “Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought, and the thought has found words” (Frost 34). It thus follows that Frost's perspective was that he would use poems to express his thoughts on grief because he would use words in a poetic line to enable the world to understand his pain.
A Defining Factor in Frost's Approach to Poetry
In summary, it is worth affirming that Robert Frost’s challenges in his early life were a great source of inspiration in his ability to develop a career out of poetry. The assessment of various of his works shows that the poet had much interest in nature as it is noted that he placed an emphasis on the rural and natural lifestyle he led in New England. Furthermore, Frost was inspired by other authors in his work from the interaction he had with other poets who had already developed their career. Lastly, it is important to consider that the tragedies and misfortunes that befell his family early played a key role in influencing the poet to discuss the subject of misery in challenges in life in his poems. Overall, it is affirmed that the experience in Frost’s life acted as a critical factor in defining his approach to poetry.
Works Cited
Chen, Qian. “On Frost’s Colorful Imagery with Profound Implication.” Theory and Practice in Language Studies 2.2 (2012): 371–376. Web.
Frost, Robert. The Poetry of Robert Frost: The Collected Poems. 1.a. N.p., 1979. Print.
Gioia, Dana. “Robert Frost and the Modern Narrative.” Virginia Quarterly Review 2013: 185–193. Web.
