Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening: Themes

The Opposition between Nature and Society

A central theme of “Stopping by Woods” relates to the opposition between nature and society. Frost reflects this opposition most clearly in the speaker’s hesitation about whether to stop or to continue on their journey. On the one hand, the downy snow blanketing the woods conjures feelings of comfort and calm, which lure the speaker into a fantasy of rest. On the other hand, the speaker remains acutely aware of the “promises” (line 14) they’ve made to someone in some other place, which lures them away from their restful fantasy. Thus, the allure of the natural world, symbolized by the woods, stands in opposition to the pull of the social world, symbolized by the promises yet to be fulfilled. Intriguingly, however, even as he introduces this opposition between nature and society, Frost also troubles it. For instance, even as the speaker feels drawn to the woods as a natural landscape, they also recognize that the woods aren’t purely “natural,” since they technically belong to a private individual. The woods are therefore also property. This explains why the speaker opens the poem by invoking the possibility of the owner’s surveillance. Hence, a social obligation not to trespass infringes on the speaker’s enjoyment of a natural landscape.

The Difficulty of Choice

The speaker of “Stopping by Woods” is struggling to make a simple choice: to stay or to go. Yet much of the poem consists of the speaker evading the burden of making this choice for themself. They begin by thinking about the owner of the woods, and what he might think if he saw the speaker on his property. Then they consider the perspective of their horse, who seems confused as to why they have stopped. Only in the final stanza does the speaker fully engage with the difficulty of the choice before them (lines 13–16):

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

The allure of the woods implies a personal desire to stay, but the “promises to keep” indicate a social obligation to go. The final two lines then conclude the poem ambiguously. When the speaker says “And miles to go before I sleep” for the first time, they are recognizing their obligation and seem resigned to keep going. But when the speaker says the same line a second time, it’s as if they feel daunted by all those “miles,” and their desire to stay starts to reassert itself. We never find out what decision they will make. Instead, we leave them in the midst of their difficult choice.

The Value of Purpose

Most critics of Frost’s poem tend to read the speaker’s social obligations in a negative light. When contrasted with their desire to remain in the tranquility of evening snowfall, it’s easy to reject all social responsibility as an unwanted burden that restrains the speaker’s personal freedom. From a different perspective, however, it’s possible to interpret “Stopping by Woods” as highlighting the value of purpose. Having a sense of purpose helps make our lives meaningful, and it provides us with the drive to carry on, even when we might otherwise want to stop and give up. The speaker of Frost’s poem clearly enjoys the tranquility of the winter landscape. However, they also feel lured by the symbolic resonance of the woods, whose “dark and deep” (line 13) nature marks them as a symbolic space associated with getting lost, disappearing, and even dying. Against this lure, the “promises” the speaker feels they must keep (line 14) exert a force that reminds them they have a reason to carry on. The speaker may feel their social obligation as a burden or as something that gets in the way of their desire for total autonomy and personal freedom. However, it also gives them a purpose.

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