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Robert Frost's 'Acquainted With The Night'

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Isolation is often a symptom of depression. In the poem “Acquainted with the night”, by Robert Frost, the speaker is flashing back to a difficult time within his life. By the use of contrasting symbolism and imagery, the poet presents the theme of darkness and sadness while also being left with a sense of sadness and hope. The speaker relies on the use of a powerful pair of contrasting symbols to set the tone and mood. The words “night” and “light” within the first stanza helps the reader to interpret two distinctively different moods and tones present in the poem. Symbolically the word night can represent a deeply depressing period in the speakers’ life. Likewise, the word can also be used as a source of imagery so that the reader can visually depict his depression. Even though this poem is about a bitter time in life, he uses “light” as a symbol to inform the reader that there is a bit of hope even when darkness seems to dim all hope. Thus, the use of these two symbolic …show more content…

For example, in stanza two, the speaker said that he “looked down the saddest city lane” and he “passed by the watchman” but he dropped his eyes because he felt alone even though the watchman was there. The speaker could have spoken to the watchmen, but he felt too isolated and depressed. This imagery suggests that he likely felt like the watchman did not have time to listen to his problems and help see that there was still plenty of hope. In addition, the speaker also uses the image of a luminary clock to depict how slowly time moves. The luminary clock represents the moon, in which the speakers keeps in sight to see how much longer he has to deal with his personal anguish. Instead of seeing the light in the moon he saw the darkness where there was no hope. The poets’ use of imagery further supports the development of the mood and

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In “Acquainted with the Night”, it embodies the abyss of despair that the narrator finds themselves in. The poem centers on the qualities of the night, and the night’s defining characteristic is its never-ending darkness. The poem’s very title shows how deeply bogged down in darkness the narrator is; the speaker has, ironically, become friends with it. The motif of darkness manifests itself in other examples as well. The speaker writes, “I have outwalked the furthest city light,” showing that he or she has transcended the limits of a normal person’s misfortune and instead exposed himself to complete and utter desperation (3).

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