Robert Frost was a prolific American poet born on March 26, 1874, in San Francisco. Although he holds the absolute record for the number of Pulitzer Prizes for Poetry awarded to a single person, Frost struggled to find any recognition in his early years. In fact, he had to work at a farm for some time just to support his family. In 1912, Frost moved to England, where he published two books and pivoted his career, making the shift from living as a penniless artist to being a literature icon. After his return to the United States, the publishers that used to dismiss him were now fighting to work with Frost.
I have chosen the poem The Sound of the Trees for this essay, and here is its literal meaning. The author talks about the sounds that trees make and how we always listen to that noise. The trees keep talking about leaving, but they never do, because their roots keep them anchored firmly to the ground. However, their noise does have an effect on the people that come close. In the end, the author himself decides to depart, saying, “I shall have less to say, but I shall be gone,” he declares his intention to carry out the plan without unnecessary noise (Frost 115). It seems that this poem is close to Frost, as he had to move many times throughout the course of his life.
My personal attachment to this poem comes from the variety of interpretations it can have, and the way all of them relate to a real experience from my life. The literal, narrowest interpretation is already very descriptive of many people I have met. These people are unhappy with their position in life and want to leave it for good, but are unable to do so for certain reasons. Instead of solving their problems or accepting the present situation, they complain and spread negativity.
Then their words make other people feel tempted to change their life in a radical way, and some of them might be able to do it. What these people do not realize, however, is that it is not their own dissatisfaction with life that drives their decisions, but the discomfort of those who surround them. Like in the poem, fleeing from such people without engaging in unproductive verbal interpretation is the best solution.
The other interpretation is broader but follows the same theme. Almost every person has made some sort of public resolution like abandoning a bad habit or starting to play a sport. Most people who make such a significant decision would tell as many people as they can about it, getting a substantial amount of instant gratification from their approval. The problem is that many of them find themselves satisfied enough after just talking, so they gradually abandon their grandiose plans. Once again, the two final lines of the poem show that acting without speaking is the best way out of this situation.
In conclusion, The Sound of the Trees by Robert Frost is a remarkable illustration of the potentially dangerous tendencies inherent to so many people. Realizing these weaknesses is the first step in eliminating them, and this poem can certainly help achieve that. Finally, once the issues become apparent, it is vital to act to solve them, instead of plunging into lengthy discussions about how terrible they are.
Work Cited
Frost, Robert. The Road Not Taken and Other Poems. Edited by David Orr, Penguin Books, 2015.