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About the Poet
Robert Lee Frost (March 26, 1874 – January 29, 1963) was an American poet. His work
was initially published in England before it was published in the United States. Known
for his realistic depictions of rural life and his command of American colloquial
speech,Frost frequently wrote about settings from rural life in New England in the early
20th century, using them to examine complex social and philosophical themes.
Dust of Snow” by Robert Frost is a short poem that explores how a seemingly
insignificant event – a crow shaking snow off a hemlock tree – can unexpectedly uplift a
person’s mood and change their perspective.
Key Themes:
1. The Power of Nature: The poem emphasizes the healing and restorative power of
nature, even in its seemingly harsh or somber aspects.
2. Finding Joy in Small Things: It highlights the importance of appreciating the
simple moments and details of life, as even small events can bring about
significant changes in our emotional state.
3. The Unexpected: The poem underscores the idea that unexpected events or
occurrences can have a positive impact, even when we might not initially expect
them.
Symbolism:
Hemlock: The hemlock tree, often associated with poison, is used ironically as the
source of the snow that brings the speaker joy.
Crow: The crow, another symbol of negativity or death, is the agent of the snow that
brings a change in the speaker’s mood.
Poetic Devices: Figure of speech
Imagery: The poem uses vivid imagery to create a strong sense of the wintry setting and
the speaker’s emotional state.
The poem uses vivid imagery to paint a picture of the winter scene, from the “hemlock
tree” to the “crow” and the “dust of snow”.
Metaphor:
The poem uses the term “dust of snow” as a metaphor to describe the falling snow,
comparing the light and delicate snowflakes to dust.
Synecdoche:
The poet mentions his “heart” undergoing a change of mood, but this “heart” represents
his entire self, which is the synecdoche.
Alliteration:
Alliteration is used in the lines “Has given my heart” and “And saved some part” as the
same consonants are used repeatedly in those lines.
Assonance:
Assonance is used to show repetition of vowels in several lines of this poem, for the
sake of rhyme.
Summary of Fire and Ice
This article is about the Fire and Ice summary. Its poet is Robert Frost. He presents two
opposite views about the end of humanity and the world. He discusses these two
possibilities which will be the reason for the end of the world. One such possibility is the
world ending in flames of fire. It is so, because when he ponders over the burning flames
of desires of people. These will definitely hurl the world into another nuclear war, and
hence it will burn up the entire world in flames. The second possibility for the end of the
world is due to the ice.
The poet has a strong feeling that people have so much hatred in their hearts against
each other that it will be sufficient to freeze the entire planet towards death. So, the fire
due to evil desires and ice of wicked hatred are the two opposite opinions enough to
destroy the world.
Message
The poem is revolving around the theme that human emotions are destructive, and has
two possible form
The fire symbolises burning desires, while the ice, on the other hand, describes ice-cold
hatred. Describes how we humans will be the end of our own race
Figures of speech
Symbolism – Symbolism is the use of symbols to signify some ideas by giving them
symbolic meaning different from their literal meaning.
•Fire – symbolizes desire with human emotions like lust, fury, cruelty, greed etc..
•Ice – symbolizes the hatred with cold feelings of humans such as rigidity, jealousy,
indifference, intolerance etc..
Imagery —Imagery is the visualisation of the poetic description through our sensory
organs. Here, the reader would visualise the destruction through fire or ice. The imagery
formed would depend on how we perceive and imagine in the context being portrayed in
the poem. It makes a poem picturesque as images are formed in the minds of the
reader.
For example, “Some say the world will end in fire” and “To say that for destruction ice, is
also great”.
Personification —Personification is to assign human qualities to non-living things. In this
poem, ‘fire’ and ‘ice’ are capable of destroying the earth. Therefore, the poet personifies
fire and ice by giving them a mind which is capable of destroying almost anything.
Anaphora — Anaphora is the repetition of a word or expression at the start of two or
more consecutive lines.
For example:
“Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.”
‘Some say’’ is repeated at the start of the lines 1 and 2.
Alliteration —Alliteration is the repetition of the same sound used at the beginning of the
nearly placed words.
Example: The sound of ‘s’ in some say, ‘f’ in ‘‘Favour fire’’, and ‘w’ in ‘‘world will’’.
Assonance – Assonance is the repetition of the same vowel sounds in different words in
the same line e.g., ‘‘I hold with those who favour fire.’’ In this line, the long sound of ‘O’ is
used.
Enjambment—It is a line or clause that does not come to an end at a line break, rather it
moves over to the next line. This device has been used prominently in the poem.
For Example:
‘‘From what I’ve tasted of desire
I hold with those who favour fire’’
Metaphor – It is a literary device that is used to make a covert comparison without using
the words ’like ‘or ’as ‘.
Here, the poet has used the terms ‘fire’ and ‘ice’ as metaphors for the human emotions
related to desire and hatred.
Antithesis – Fire is the antithesis of ice. Two contrasting and directly opposite
destructive forces have been the hallmark of this poem; Fire and Ice’.
