The poem” Dust Of Snow” by Robert Frost is a simple and short poem, but yes with a great meaning that has some significance. The poet explains how dust or snow falls on somebody to brighten up their day.
About The Poet: The Dust Of Snow
Robert Lee Frost was an American poet who was known for his poems and literary pieces set in rural in real life and background.
He wrote many times about rural life in New England he published his first poems during his high school days.
Through this poem, the dust of snow he tries to express that many times one moment is necessary to brighten up your mood and the whole day.
Central Theme: Dust Of Snow Summary
This is a short poem by Robert Frost that throws light upon the healing attitude of nature and how little things can change your way of thinking and brighten up your whole day.
One day the poet was also experiencing a bad day and was sitting under a hemlock tree.
Suddenly, a crow came and shook the dust of snow upon the poet and instantly made him happier.
He realized that he was sad about petty issues in life. The tree is poisonously combined with a crow that is an indicator of doom and fear but for him and in the poem these are carriers of happiness.
Poem’s Analysis: Dust Of Snow Summary
Stanza 1.
The way a crow Shook down on me The dust of snow From a hemlock tree Word meanings
- Shook- shake
- Hemlock– a poisonous tree with small white flowers
The poem is all set when the poet is in a bad mood and is walking by a tree, a hemlock tree; which is considered a poisonous tree. As soon as he passed by, a crow shook some dust of snow on him.
It is actually cannot be specifically judged whether the crow was landing or shivering, or was re-adjusting itself. Here, these two agents of nature are portrayed as the carriers of sadness.
Stanza 2.
Has given my heart A change of mood And saved some part Of a day I had rued.
Word meanings
- Rued– held in regret
The author was for an unknown reason having a terrible day. But as soon as the dust of snow falls on his head, his mood changes very quickly.
He had spent half of the day in a bad mood but the rest of the day was saved by the two elements of nature; the crow and the hemlock tree. Though these two were taken for portraying negative meanings.
Robert Frost used them to extract the positive sense from it. According to him, one must not take things for granted and accept nature as it is given to you and feel blessed.
Literary Devices
- Rhyme Scheme– ababcdcd
- Alliteration– The instances of alliteration are as follows-Has given my heart; And saved some part
- Inversion – In stanza 1, inversion can be seen.
- Assonance – In stanza 1, line 2 – “Shook down on me” – ‘o’ sound is prominent.
- Enjambment – It has been used throughout the poem.
Conclusion
The poet in the poem Dust Of Snow explains that we should not take nature for granted and little things can also sometimes leave a lasting impact on us.
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