Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evenin
Robert Frost
Literal
On the literal level, this poem is fairly simple. The speaker is stopping by some woods on a snowy evening. He observes the beautiful scenery of the woods and assumes his horse is confused because there were no farmhouses nearby. He is tempted to stay longer, but commitments and the great distance he has yet to travel pull him away.
Situation
The poem is a narrative that tells the story of a man who takes a break in his journey to observe nature. Frost uses nature as an admirable wonder that tempts the man from his path, developing the theme that sometimes one seeks nature when isolating himself from the fastmoving world. The last two lines are the most significant lines of the poem. The repetition of "And miles to go before I sleep" intensifies the power and meaning of this phrase. The first "And miles to go before I sleep" appeals to readers on the literal level, and seems to mean that the speaker has a great distance to travel before he can finally rest. However, in this final couplet, "miles to go" symbolizes life and "sleep" symbolizes death.