Hello and welcome to the Discourse. Mowing was one of the earliest poems by Robert Frost he wrote in 1913. It was the first poem in which Frost experimented with the “sound of sense” technique. The ‘sound of sense’ technique implies the usage of such words in the verse that offers specific sounds and syllables to construct an aural feeling of the subject and narrative intention. The poem is about the importance of hard work and how enjoyable it can be. What sound does the scythe make? Frost concludes that it is ‘the sweetest dream that labor knows’ – the scythe ‘whispers’ as it performs its work.
Structure of the poem Mowing:
Frost wrote this poem in form of a sonnet as it contains 14 lines. However, it does not conform to any traditional rhyme scheme of a sonnet. Frost rather wrote it as an amalgamation of the Petrarchan sonnet (ABBAABBA CDECDE) and Shakespearean sonnet (ABAB CDCD EFEF GG) and created his own rhyming scheme ABC ABD ECD FEG FG for Mowing. The poem contains 3 quatrains and a couplet. Robert Frost repeatedly used the word ‘whispers’ and employed swaying motion of meter in certain lines (like “Perhaps it was something…/ Something perhaps) to offer a visceral sense of the to-and-fro movement of the scythe as it cuts the hay in a field. The personification of the scythe is apparent in the term ‘whisper.’ Contrast has also been used. The poem offers the philosophical viewpoint of the scythe about labor that the farmer using it may or may not agree with. Metaphor is used as the poet equates ‘Pale orchises’ and the “bright green snake” with the highs and lows, beauty and horror, and troubles in general life.
Summary of Mowing :
Lines 1-4
There was never a sound beside the wood but one,
And that was my long scythe whispering to the ground.
What was it it whispered? I knew not well myself;
Perhaps it was something about the heat of the sun,
In the first line, the poet describes himself as the lone farmer working in his field beside the wood. He says that it is complete silence with no sound but just one. The poet then personifies his tool, the scythe that he is using to cut hay on his field, and says that the only discernible sound is that of his scythe ‘whispering’ to the ground. This conversation in whispers between the scythe and the ground attracts the poet and he tries to understand it. As they are whispering in low voice, the talks of scythe aren’t clear to him. He surmises that perhaps, the scythe is complaining about the heat of the sun as he is disturbed by it. He thinks that the scythe is feeling delusional as the sun is beating down on him.
Lines 5-8
Something, perhaps, about the lack of sound—
And that was why it whispered and did not speak.
It was no dream of the gift of idle hours,
Or easy gold at the hand of fay or elf:
The poet again guesses what the scythe is whispering and says that maybe the scythe is whispering about the silence that engulfs the field. Maybe, the scythe is astounded by this much silence and as he doesn’t want to disturb or break the silence, he whispers in low voice. The other reason for the scythe to make a low sound whisper and not a loud voice is that the scythe is busy doing his work, he isn’t sharing some dream of his idle hours. Nor the scythe is talking about the easy gold or money that one gets through magic. Here, the poet uses metaphor and suggests that sometimes, the things that seem so simple, like thinking about and writing a poem, are not so simple, rather they are products of hard labor and the poet is continuously working, like the scythe to produce and get results. The poet says that his poems don’t come through magic.
Lines 9-12
Anything more than the truth would have seemed too weak
To the earnest love that laid the swale in rows,
Not without feeble-pointed spikes of flowers
(Pale orchises), and scared a bright green snake.
The poet continues to express the hard labor in poetry and says that anything fanciful and delusional about the world would appear weak in a poem. He says that if he dresses up his poem in fake, magical pretense, it will dissolute and diminish the worth of the real world. Instead, the poet wants his readers to focus on the highs and lows of work, as well as the beauty and horror that lay in wait in life and that is what he prefers to write about. The poet expresses beauty as ‘Pale orchises’ and horror or troubles, difficulties, and failures as ‘bright green snake’. The poet suggests that whenever a person decides to work hard, he faces difficulties and/or distractions and he is often tempted to give up the hard work. But, one should not get distracted by and/or disturbed by the many troubles that will come as one is aspiring to work hard and trying to make something of their day.
Lines 13-14
The fact is the sweetest dream that labor knows.
My long scythe whispered and left the hay to make.
In the last two lines, the poet again brings the scythe upfront as now, the scythe speaks. The poet has finally made up his mind about what the scythe was whispering. He already ascertained that it was not talking of fantasies or fancy dreams of idleness, nor it talked about the magical things and worlds. The poet says that the scythe, who is working so hard, whispered to the ground that the sweetest dream a hard worker engaged in labor can have is the fact or reality. The poet assumes that the scythe whispered that one should know what they’re working for and why they are working, and that is enough. They don’t need to think of any other thing, issue, or consequence. They shouldn’t worry about the rewards or criticism. A hard worker, like a scythe, or the farmer, or the poet, should remain focussed on his hard work and he should be aware of the truth, his true intentions, and goals regarding that work, and that is the most beautiful thing. As the narrator assumes that this is what the scythe whispered, he stops attempting to analyze the scythe’s whispering within his imagination and has resorted to simple, honest work.
The philosophical aspect of the poem can be compared with the mentality of Robert Frost as a poet. He always preferred writing poetry about everyday life on the farms of New England and often was criticized for this. Frost answers all such criticism and points out in “Mowing,” truth and fact are far more significant than imaginative fancies of gold and elves. And thus, his emphasis on reality and the real-life struggles and situations of people in his poetry are more beautiful and effective than any traditional sonnet that narrates love stories or describes lands of fairytales.
So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of American English literature. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards.
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