Birches

Hello friend! 

I have brought you a new blog post today. Happy reading!

Birches is a marvellous poem by Robert Frost [I’m on a roll! I’ve been writing a lot about Frost’s poems, right? That’s because I simply love his poems!] Like “After Apple-Picking”, Birches is not very well-known; however, I love this poem because it revolves around duty, responsibility and the connection between heaven and earth. This poem is set in a tiny New England village—Frost really liked setting his poems in small, seemingly nondescript places. The poem is written in blank verse [meaning there are no rhyming words]; Frost often wrote in this style. Also, the title was initially “Swinging Birches”, which is perhaps more appropriate, as kids in New England villages are fond of swinging on branches of birches—and that, my friend, is exactly what the poet is trying to convey to the readers. The speaker vehemently believes that birches make better companions and playmates than humans, and describes himself as an “avid swinger of birches”.  [Frost’s daughter was fond of birches, too. The little miss inspired him to write this exquisitely worded and quietly expressive poem].

The speaker often sees a row of bent birches in contrast to straight trees. At such times, he likes to imagine that some feisty little boy has been swinging them; however, he quickly [and sadly] states that he knows what the truth is: ice storms have bent the birches. [Truth is harsh… boo hoo!] On a winter morning, freezing rain covers the branches with ice, which then cracks and falls to the ground. The sunlight refracts on the ice crystals, making an indescribably dazzling display [the beginning is really beautiful, right?! I love Winter!] The speaker is unable to accept this harsh reality, and continues dreaming of a boy swinging on and bending the birches; he wistfully insinuates that he wishes he could swing on the birches as he used to when he was a little brat [haha, I often imagine Frost as a whiny kid]. He has grown weary of his earthly responsibilities, and wishes to escape into a realm where he can fulfil his desires [i.e. heaven]. He wants to leave the rough and tumble of rationality or “Truth” behind him, and desperately wants to experience the guileless bliss and seemingly insignificant [but actually meaningful] joys of childhood. I mentioned a connection between heaven and earth before, right? Let me explain in detail: when the boy climbs up the tree, he is journeying towards “heaven”, a place where scary things like duties can’t catch up to him; however, dear reader, Frost doesn’t really intend to let him get away. The speaker explains that the birch tree connects earth and heaven, which are depicted as polar opposite realms; climbing a birch is an opportunity to cool one’s head while climbing higher and higher, before coming back to earth and starting over. A swinger can let his imagination fly, but he is still bound to the earth through the roots of the tree. It is vital to note that the speaker’s desire to escape from his mundane life is inconclusive; he deeply regrets the fact that he cannot find pleasure in swinging on birches anymore, but acknowledges the fact that he has loads of stuff to do here, and he’d really rather fulfil his obligations than indulge in fantasies. However, the poem highlights the fact that it’s not wrong to dream about escaping… right? The poem is not easy to analyse, as it’s full of ambiguity; I’m glad! This is why I love Birches!

Conclusively, the speaker is depicted as a rather vague, indecisive person who doesn’t really know what he wants [when you have to make choices, I only ask that you not be this indecisive. Seriously.] I really like how the poem unravels slowly but steadily [it’s a pretty long poem—59 lines] and holds the readers until the end; I was completely enthralled when I read it. I can’t say that Birches is my favourite—Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening bags that spot—but I can definitely say that it’s an incredible poem.

I had soooo much fun writing this post! I hope you have fun reading it!

That’s all for now. See you next time!

Thank you!