-Mysara Juairia Chowdhury
1.Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening – Robert Frost
“Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.
He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound’s the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.”
This poem embodies simplicity and takes its essence to another degree. This poem starts when the poet stops at a snowy wood and is marveled by its sheer beauty. But alas he cannot stay as he has obligations and promises to fulfill. This scenario is very similar to a person’s life. We are always bounded by our duties to the society and because of these duties sometimes we miss out what the nature has to offer. Through this poem, the poet brings out themes like youth, loss of innocence, nature’s beauty, societal duties and isolation. Robert Frost binds these scenes of life with a string of simplicity, clarity and truth which made this poem a extraordinary piece of art.
2. Invictus - William Ernest Henley
Out of the night that covers me Black as the pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance, I have not winced nor cried aloud. Under the bludgeonings of chance My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.
The word ‘Invictus ‘ is Latin for ‘Unconquerable’. Like the name suggests, this poem is about the unconquerable spirit, will and hope of humans.
Henley wrote this in hospital when he was suffering from tuberculosis. He wrote this poem to give himself and others like him hope and courage during difficult times. He urges everyone to fight and overcome all the obstacles that life poses. This poem is exceptionally touching in this time of global pandemic. The writer experienced similar isolation and loneliness while being treated for tuberculosis. So, we can find a reflection of ourselves in this magnificent work.
3. The Raven - Edgar Allan Poe
Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary, Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore— While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door. “’Tis some visitor,” I muttered, “tapping at my chamber door— Only this and nothing more.”
Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December;
And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor.
Eagerly I wished the morrow;—vainly I had sought to borrow
From my books surcease of sorrow—sorrow for the lost Lenore—
For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore— Nameless here for evermore.
…………………… (Abridged)
‘The Raven’ by Edgar Allan Poe is the epitome of classics Gothic elegy. The poem explores ideas like supernatural beings, afterlife, spirituality and the loss of a loved one.
The narrator in the poem is drowned with grief and sorrow from losing his beloved Lenore. The melancholy that he keeps burrowed deep in his heart is so haunting that he starts to hallucinate the presence of Lenore. The poem is filled with chilling details and vivid images which is perfect for a foggy winter day.
→Note: The reason that the whole summary of ‘the Raven’ is not given is because the poem is so much like a story that a summary will spoil it.
Honorable Mentions:
1. The Darkling Thrush-Thomas Hardy
2.Waking in Winter-Sylvia Plath
3.Desert Places – Robert Frost
4.Journey of the Magi- T. S Eliot
5. Sonnet 97 -William Shakespeare
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