Burden Of The Ice On The Trees example essay topic

In the poem Birches by Robert Frost, Frost portrays the images of a child growing to adulthood through the symbolism of aging birch trees. Through these images readers are able to see the reality of the real world compared to there carefree childhood. The image of life through tribulation is the main focal point of the poem and the second point of the poem is if one could revert back to the simpler times of childhood. The language of the poem is entirely arranged through images, although it contains some diction it lacks sound devices, metaphors, and similes compared to other published works by Frost. The first half of the poems' images are of life, coming of age, and death. The first three lines in the poem represent the image of childhood and adulthood".

When I see birches bend to left and right Across the lines of straighter darker trees, I like to think some boy's been swinging them". Childhood is represented when the branches swing Frost thinks there is a boy swinging on them. Adulthood is represented by straighter darker trees because darker is a reference to older trees just by the nature of the color as compared to a birch tree which is white or light in color. "But swinging doesn't bend them down to stay. Ice storms do. Often you must have seen them Loaded with ice a sunny winter morning.

After a rain. They click upon themselves As the breeze rises, and turn many-colored As the stir cracks and crazes their enamel". The ice storms symbolize the difficult times in life or the coming of age through time and weathering just like a person. The word loaded describes about the burden of being old compared to youthfulness just like the burden of the ice on the trees.

Shattering and avalanching on the snow such heaps of broken glass to be swept away is a representation of the final stage in life and that is death. The shattering of the branches is like the death of a person and the sweeping away of the branches is like a funeral. You'd think the inner dome of heaven had fallen is the passing on of life into the after life. Also the shattering of the ice could represent renewed hope for the future because the burden has been lifted from the branches. "They are dragged to the withered bracken by the load, And they seem not to break; though once they are bowed is an image of someone who has aged but not passed on yet.

So low for long, they never right themselves represents how they will never be able to relive their childhood. While the first half of the poem deals with the coming of age the second half of the poem deals with childhood and wanting to stay young for as long as possible. The first image of childhood by Frost is when Truth broke in With all her matter-of-fact about the ice storm, I should prefer to have some boy bend them. A boy bending the trees in stead of ice storm allows the tree to never age because they will always return to their original shape and never break by the burden of a load. This is further expressed By riding them down over and over again Until he took the stiffness out of them.

Once the trees lose their stiffness the boy can play on them repeatedly without having to worry about them breaking therefore if they never shatter or falling then youthfulness will always be his. Finally Frost talks about how he would like to go back to being a boy swinging and climbing on trees just as he did when he was younger by saying "So was I once myself a swinger of birches. And so I dream of going back to be. I'd like to get away from earth awhile And then come back to it and begin over."And life is too much like a pathless wood", he describe life as a pathless wood because of the uncertainty where you " ll end up but as a child you live in the moment carefree of life's problems. If you don't have to face the burden of reality by growing up then you can live forever as a child. The poem Birches by Robert Frost is an perfect example of how everyone wants to stay a kid forever without have to bear the burdened load of reality that everyone ages and dies.

The truth is everyone has to grow up and face our own ice storms of reality because that the part of life that is grand. After a hardship the burden is lifted and people can go on with their lives in rejoice to face the next reality ice storm that faces them.