Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening

Frost wrote “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” while compiling his poetry collection New Hampshire, which would go on to win him his first Pulitzer Prize. This poem bridges the more formal, structured poetry of the 19th century and the more colloquial, free verse poetry that would take the 20th century by storm. While Frost uses a tight, sustained meter with a consistent rhyme scheme in a classical interlocking form, he also uses simple, approachable language. This gives the poem a timeless quality that allows it to fit neatly into a range of seemingly contradictory literary movements.

In addition, scholars have noticed similarities between lines from Frost’s poem and lines from other literary works. The line “He gives his harness bells a shake” (Line 9) is similar to “He gave the bridle-reins a shake” from “The Rover's Adieu” by Sir Walter Scott; “The woods are lovely, dark and deep” (Line 13) is reminiscent of “Our bed is lovely, dark, and sweet” from “The Phantom-Wooer” by Thomas Lovell Beddoes; and “And miles to go before I sleep” (Lines 15, 16) brings to mind “And I have many miles on foot to fare” from “Keen, Fitful Gusts” by John Keats.