explain the poem dust of snow
Answers
summary
The poet is upset and sitting under the hemlock tree. Suddenly a crow sitting on the tree shakes the tree and the fine particles of snow from tree falls on the poet. The soft and cold touch of snow changes the poet’s mood from sad to happy. He starts feeling soothed and refresh. In this way a simple moment proves to be very significant and saves rest of the day of poet from being wasted and held in regret.
The black crow is commonly a symbol of death and fear.
Since the crow is not associated with goodness, it is ironic that in this poem, it is doing a good deed by shaking off the snow.
Robert Frost didn’t choose to use an oak, maple or pine tree. No, instead he chose the hemlock tree which is usually associated with poison and toxicity. Anyway, the beautiful snow that adorns the poisonous hemlock tree’s branches is shaken off by a scary crow.
Robert Frost uses the elements of the fearsome crow and poisonous Hemlock tree to do something good – shake the white, pure snow off the branches. This good act lifts the suicidal person’s spirits causing him to change his mind about killing himself. The small act causes the man to have an enlightened insight.
We have a poisonous Hemlock tree covered in pure, white snow and a man who is depressed, planning to kill himself and walking under the tree. At that precise moment, the black crow of death shakes the pure, good snow onto the man. All that goodness helps the man to change his mind about killing himself. Instead, he decides to live, forget the regret and sorrow to enable healing.
The poem, Dust of Snow by Robert Frost, reiterates that the little things in life can make huge changes in our future. It also shows that if we can take the hard times of life in stride, eventually something will happen to change our situation into happier times. The simple things we do for others can make all the difference. Just think about those random acts of kindness we do and how much they brighten a person’s day and sometimes change their future.
Noticing and appreciating all the small things in life will make our life happier. It will also cause us to have a spirit that is willing to change and therefore succeed.
Answer:
The short poem by Robert Frost throws light upon the unimaginable healing power of nature and tiny things. From a bad mood to ill-health, there is nothing that can’t be cured by nature. The author was experiencing one such bad day when a crow’s movement near a hemlock tree dusted snow upon him. His day gets a lot better. Thus, the supremacy of nature as a whole made him realise how petty his problem was. The fact that hemlock tree is poisonous combined with crow being the indicator of doom and fear are used in the poem as the carriers of happiness in the life of narrator is ironical. The poet, through these objects has tried to highlight that sometimes creatures linked with negative aspects of life can be the bringer of change and happiness. Being outdoors in nature, with all it’s unpredictability can benefit anyone, anywhere at any time.