01. Poetry - Fire & Ice (Chapter Explanation)

 

About the Poet

Robert Lee Frost (March 26, 1874 – January 29, 1963) was an American poet. His work was initially published in England before it was published in the United States. Known for his realistic depictions of rural life and his command of American colloquial speech,Frost frequently wrote about settings from rural life in New England in the early 20th century, using them to examine complex social and philosophical themes.  

 Key Points of the Poem

• The poem consists of 2 stanzas. First stanza is made up of 4 lines and stanza is made of 5 lines. Thus,     the entire poem consists of 9 lines in total. 
• The poem has been written symbolically.
• The poet says that there are mainly two opinions about the end of this world, one by fire and another by ice.
• The symbols-‘Fire’ and ‘Ice’ have been used for human emotions like desire and hatred respectively.
• As fire can spread very fast and cause a great destruction in no time likewise our desires may also prove very destructive if they go out of control.
• Hatred causes slow destruction like ice but it is also very harmful.

Detailed Summary 

Stanza 1

Some say the world will end in fire

Some say in ice.

From what I’ve tasted of desire

I hold with those who favour fire.

In these lines, the poet analyses the views of the people and states that there can be two possible causes for the end of the world.

On one side there are people who believe that the world will end because of fire. Here, fire represents the extreme desire, anger, greed etc. present wither of human beings.

On the other side, there are people who Favour ice. Here, ice represents the human emotions of the hatred, intolerance etc. the poet from his experience believes that the world will end with fire. Thus, the poet remains with those people who favour fire. 

Stanza 2

But if it had to perish twice,

I think I know enough of hate

To say that for destruction ice

Is also great

And would suffice.  

In these lines, the poet thinks that if the world had to end twice, ice would also be able to destroy it completely. For the poet ice (hatred) is a powerful as fire (desire). In human beings, hatred is long lasting and it enters into their hearts. It remains through the life. Thus, poet thinks that ice or hatred will be sufficient to bring an end of this world.

Theme/ Message 

Theme 

• Destruction by Extremes: The poem explores the idea that both fire and ice can lead to the end of the world, symbolizing destructive human tendencies.
• Symbolism: Fire represents desire, passion, and the intensity of human emotions, while ice               symbolizes hatred, coldness, and emotional detachment.
• Human Nature: Frost reflects on the destructive nature of human emotions and how they can             lead to catastrophic consequences.
• Preference and Bias: The poem suggests that people may have different opinions on which force,     fire or ice, will

Message

• The poem is revolving around the theme that human emotions are destructive, and has two possible form
• The fire symbolises burning desires, while the ice, on the other hand, describes ice-cold hatred.         describes how we humans will be the end of our own race 

Literary Devices

• Rhyme scheme — stanza 1 is abaa while for stanza 2 it is ababa.
  Symbolism – Symbolism is the use of symbols to signify some ideas by giving them symbolic meaning different from their literal meaning.
  •Fire – symbolizes desire with human emotions like lust, fury, cruelty, greed etc..
  •Ice – symbolizes the hatred with cold feelings of humans such as rigidity, jealousy, indifference,                       intolerance etc..
• Imagery —Imagery is the visualisation of the poetic description through our sensory organs. Here, the reader would visualise the destruction through fire or ice. The imagery formed would depend on how we perceive and imagine in the context being portrayed in the poem. It makes a poem picturesque as images are formed in the minds of the reader.
• Personification —Personification is to assig human qualities to non-living things. In this poem, ‘fire’ and ‘ice’ are capable to destroy the earth.
• Anaphora — Anaphora is the repetition of a word or expression at the start of two or more consecutive lines.
  For example:
  ‘Some say’’ is repeated at the start of the lines 1 and 2.
• Alliteration —Alliteration is repetition of the same sound used at the beginning of the nearly placed words.
  Example: The sound of ‘s’ in some say, ‘f’ in ‘‘Favour fire’’, and ‘w’ in ‘‘world will’’.
• Assonance – Assonance is the repetition of same vowel sounds in different words in the same line.e.g., ‘‘I hold with those who favour fire.’’ In this line, the long sound of ‘O’ is used.
• Enjambment—It is a line or clause that does not come to an end at a line break, rather it moves over to the next line. This device has been used prominently in the poem.
  For Example:
  ‘‘From what I’ve tasted of desire
  I hold with those who favour fire’’
• Metaphor – It is a literary device that is used to make a covert comparison without using the words ’like ‘or ’as ‘.
  Here, the poet has used the terms ‘fire’ and ‘ice’ as metaphors for the human emotions related to desire and hatred.
• Antithesis – Fire is the antithesis of ice. Two contrasting and directly opposite destructive forces have been the hallmark of this poem; Fire and Ice’.

Difficult Words

• Some = a few, certain
• World = our existence, realm of human experiences  
• End = culmination, ultimate fate 
• Fire = desire, passion  
• Ice = hatred, coldness  
• Tasted = experienced, undergone  
• Hold = adhere to, side with  
• Those = specific individuals, that group  
• Perish = end tragically, annihilate  
• Twice = two times, repeating
•  Think = believe, opine  
• Know = be aware of, deeply understand
• Enough = adequately, sufficiently  
• Destruction = annihilation, complete end  
• Great = immense, overpowering
• Would = indicating a possibility, potentiality