Poem

Acquainted with the night

Another classical poem written by Robert Frost is acquainted with the night. Written in 1928, acquainted with the night is a short poem that talks about the life in the city and how depressing it can be. Using imagery and other aspects of city life, Frost depicts the city as a lonely area where only night can give comfort to its many citizens.

Darkness is one of the most predominant symbols within the poem. Darkness found at night seems to comfort Frost within the city life. While it may seem more comforting to travel around the city during the day, the emptiness of the people who are caught in their everyday lives makes it more secluded than night where one has no set schedule. The night probably represents freedom to Frost in that the only other person on the road would be the watchman who doesn’t seem too concerned with what Frost is doing.

Another strong symbol found within the poem is rain. Rain is a classic literary symbol that usually represents cleansing or starting new. Frost in his poem talks of how he walked out into the rain which may have seemed odd to during the day when people could watch him. The night though offered security to Frost and let him do what he wanted without the skeptical view of society watching him. Rain offers him cleansing that makes him feel new within a city that does not breed individuality for their citizens and conformity is the accepted norm.

In conclusion, Acquainted with the Night offers a person with an outlook on city life that has not been described before. Frost talks openly about the isolation that many people felt during this time. Before industrialization, communities were small groups of people that were closely associated with one another. This time period though bred people who felt no connection with one another and no one explains this better than Robert Frost.