The Sound Of Trees Analysis

Mountain Interval1916I wonder about the trees.

Why do we wish to bear

Forever the noise of these

More than another noise

So close to our dwelling place?

We suffer them by the day

Till we lose all measure of pace,

And fixity in our joys,

And acquire a listening air.

They are that that talks of going

But never gets away;

And that talks no less for knowing,

As it grows wiser and older,

That now it means to stay.

My feet tug at the floor

And my head sways to my shoulder

Sometimes when I watch trees sway,

From the window or the door.

I shall set forth for somewhere,

I shall make the reckless choice

Some day when they are in voice

And tossing so as to scare

The white clouds over them on.

I shall have less to say,

But I shall be gone.

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Frost is describing what I believe to be senility. Where, the older people tend to claim wisdom, but never prove it, or at which point in life, people become all talk, and decide upon adventures and freedoms they will never enjoy. He also says that the only way an elderly person would ever explore or move about, is in death, when they cannot speak of their adventures anymore.

| Posted on 2009-06-10 | by a guest

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I beleive this poem describes man's inherant need to explore. The reader experiences this desire and subsequently projects his emotions onto the trees. The way in which trees sway in the wind but are never able to get anywhere alerts the reader to his own fate and thus he announcecs that he will "set forth for somwhere". The assertive languige "i shall set forth" is immediatley undermined by the indecisiveness of "somewhere" and as readers we are left with something intermediate where by we cannot know whether the reader will set out on a journey.

| Posted on 2009-05-13 | by a guest

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Frost is commenting on how man tends to impose or project his own emotions and faults on others (a theory Carl Jung developed). In this case, the speaker is indirectly criticising his own hypocrisy. We talk of escapism but in the end our responsibilities disallow us to fulfill promises of mobility. There may be some that choose to drift carelessly like the "white clouds" mentioned but most of us seem to imitate the 'empty talk' of the trees. After all, the speaker physically becomes an image of a tree blowing in the wind as he watches them: "My feet tug at the floor | And my head sways to my shoulder". He may think it is the trees that influence him but isn't it merely human nature? Perhaps this is what Frost is cynically trying to convey.Frost is commenting on how man tends to impose or project his own emotions and faults on others (a theory Carl Jung developed). In this case, the speaker is indirectly criticising his own hypocrisy. We talk of escapism but in the end our responsibilities disallow us to fulfill promises of mobility. There may be some that choose to drift carelessly like the "white clouds" mentioned but most of us seem to imitate the 'empty talk' of the trees. After all, the speaker physically becomes an image of a tree blowing in the wind as he watches them: "My feet tug at the floor | And my head sways to my shoulder". He may think it is the trees that influence him but isn't it merely human nature? Perhaps this is what Frost is cynically trying to convey.

| Posted on 2009-04-14 | by a guest

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I think this is about the tragic life of trees. They are trapped by their roots and have no defense against fire breathing dragons or lumberjacks. The only way of crying out is the rustle of their leaves. The dragons team up with the Gorgons and attack the trees when they least expect it. The trees die and the two species share the flesh. The dragons use their fire breath to cook it, while the Gorgons use axes and swords to cut it up.

| Posted on 2009-03-04 | by a guest

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i believe that in this poem Frost is trying to explain our stages of life. There are many stages in life and we need to learn how to cherish and appreciate each and every one of them. Instead of rushing what will happen later, we should focus on what is happening now. We should focus on what we have now. Before it is too late, before we cant anymore.

| Posted on 2008-11-13 | by a guest

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i believe this poem to be Frost's expression of emotion towards the sounds of nature. He is pointing out the difference between normal sounds and ones as simple as the trees. there is nothing obviously special about them but it is something that can transport you away from the ongoing world. they are distracting from objectives of common activities.

| Posted on 2008-10-29 | by a guest