“How does Frost use metaphor to explore the concept of discovery?”

According to the Oxford dictionary, a metaphor is ‘an expression, often found in literature, that describes a person or object by referring to something that is considered to have similar characteristics to that person or object’. Robert Lee Frost, one of the most talented poets of his time incorporated the use of metaphors to explore the concept of discovery. In his poems Mending Wall, Fire and Ice and After Apple Picking, metaphors are used to assist and create a thorough understanding of the underlying meanings of his poems. The four stages of discovery: departure, significant experiences, revelation/epiphany and transformation are also evident in his poems. In this essay, key concepts of discovery and how the use of metaphors explore discovery in Frost’s poems will be examined.

In Mending Wall, the entire poem is an extended metaphor to explore the concept of discovery, in particular, the first stage; departure. ‘The wall’ present throughout the entire poem is a metaphor for the division that exists between the speaker and his neighbor. In the beginning of the poem, Frost describes the speaker’s initial response of the wall to be accepting. However, half way throughout the poem the persona’s mentality changes as he starts to consider the possibility of the wall being pointless and unnecessary. “There where it is we do not need the wall” – line twenty-six. In this quote, the reader is able to understand the speaker’s point of view. This change in his original way of thinking exhibits the persona’s first stages of discovery, departure. Without the use of metaphors, ‘the wall ‘would not be effective to explore the first stage and concept of discovery.

Frost uses metaphors to show the aspects of nature and reveal the deep realities of life. In After Apple Picking, the reader is able to experience the poem’s dense metaphorical meaning. These elements of farming and apples, combined with the idea of sleep and winter help emphasize particular parts of the persona’s discovery. In numerous parts of the poem, examples of significant experiences (stage two of discovery) can be seen. An example of this is clearly shown in lines twenty-seven to twenty-nine, where the persona contemplates his life’s achievements and his hard work by using the metaphor of a hard day’s work of picking apples and a dreamy sleep afterwards. "For I have had too much / Of apple-picking; I am overtired / Of the great harvest I myself desired." This metaphor helps emphasize the significance of the hard labour, which allows the reader to grasp the understanding of the underlying meaning in the poem. Through the use of metaphors to describe the persona’s significant experiences, the concepts of discovery are efficiently explored.

In Fire and Ice, Frost uses an implied metaphor for the terms ‘fire’ and ‘ice’. Fire becomes a metaphor for human desire, which is made clear in lines three and four; ‘From what I’ve tasted of desire / I hold with those who favor fire’. On the other hand, ice works as a metaphor for hatred, which is implied in line six and seven; ‘I think I know enough of hate / To say that for destruction ice’. This allows the reader to understand the third stage of discovery, epiphany/revelation. This stage of discovery is evident when the persona realizes that if he would die twice, he would die by the iciness of human hatred. This poetic technique of metaphor helps the reader understand the poem on a deeper level. This technique creates a direct comparison of imagery so one can visualize the connection between two objects or things. In the poem it is evident how Frost uses implied metaphor to help explore the concept of the third stage of discovery.

Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening is another lovely poem written by Frost that also exhibits the use of metaphors to explore the concept of discovery. In this lyrical poem, the speaker is stopping by some woods on a snowy evening. He/she takes in the lovely scene in near-silence, and is tempted to stay longer, but acknowledges the obligations and considerable distance yet to be traveled before he or she can rest for the night. An example of the use of metaphor is in line sixteen- ‘And miles to go before I sleep’. The term ‘miles’ used in the fourth stanza of the poem is a metaphor to create an idea of how much more of life he has to live. This quote also reflects the final stage of discovery. The transformation seen in the last stanza of the poem shows the change of the persona… from considering taking his life, to realizing the responsibilities he has to keep. If it were not for metaphors, the poem would not be as effective in conveying the message of the discoveries and transformations in one’s life.

Frost uses metaphors in many ways to address and explore the concept of discovery. Frost does so by writing his poems in a way where it reflects the four stages of discovery: departure, significant experiences, epiphany/revelation and transformation. The references to the stages of discovery occur in the four poems cited Mending Wall, After Apple Picking, Fire and Ice and Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening. On a whole, Frost includes the stages of discovery to explore the concept of discovery through metaphors.