“Deceptively simple poems about everyday rural life and activities” - look at two or three of the Frost poems you have studied and considered whether you think this statement about them is appropriate.

Authors Avatar

English                                                                                           Vicky Maberley LVI        

“DECEPTIVELY SIMPLE POEMS ABOUT EVERYDAY RURAL LIFE AND ACTIVITIES”. LOOK AT TWO OR THREE OF THE FROST POEMS YOU HAVE STUDIED AND CONSIDERED WHETHER YOU THINK THIS STATEMENT ABOUT THEM IS APPROPRIATE.

In this essay I will look at two Robert Frost poems in detail. I will study them to see if they are “deceptively simple” or not and I will then decide to what extent I agree or disagree with the statement.

Firstly, I will discuss “Mending Wall”. There are many aspects of “Mending Wall” that make it seem like a relatively simple poem. One of these aspects is the poem’s structure. The poem is written in one continuous verse. When first looking at the poem one might think that it has a continuous verse formation because it is the most simplistic verse structure that can be used. When looking closer at the reason for this form we find that it is deeply connected with the content of the poem. “Mending Wall” is about human barriers that cannot be broken. This is echoed in the structure, as it too is unbroken. The form also connects with the fact that the two farmers in the poem are rebuilding a wall. The continuous verse is like a wall as well. The barrier featured in the poem is a stone wall, which would have had an uneven top, this is also reflected in the structure as it has an even edge on the right side. “Mending Wall” does not contain rhyme. This makes the poem seem basic, as it seems, that no thought has been taken over the rhyming pattern of the poem. The opposite of this is actually true. The cause for there being no rhyme pattern is that this fits in with the poems ideas. The poem talks of breaking traditions and this is reflected in the way that, having a rhyme structure, would be traditional, whereas, not having a rhyming structure would be breaking tradition. Also, if a rhyme structure was in place there would be a sense of harmony between the lines of the poem and this poem is talking about how humans put up barriers and are not in harmony with each other. “Mending Wall” uses many poetic techniques. These techniques are used subtly, and are not stressed, as this helps to create the effect that the poem is simple. One of these techniques is word order and arrangement. Frost uses hyphens between words to create a new word that flows better in the poem. For example,

Join now!

“frozen-ground-swell”,

At first sight this phrase seems quite ordinary and simple but when you analyse it you can see that a complicated sentence is rearticulated in to one flowing idiom. Frost also uses unusual word orders to make certain lines stand out.

“Something there is that doesn’t love a wall”

This is the first line of the poem and it stands out immediately, as it is in an unusual order, and it makes the reader think about its meaning. This is a simple way to make the reader think about a specific line without using a technique ...

This is a preview of the whole essay