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After Apple Picking by Robert Frost

The speaker then describes that his exhaustion has overwhelmed him and he is unclear as to whether he will simply fall asleep like any normal person or if he will perish. He then states his confusion to what he believes "long sleep, as I describe its coming on, or just some human sleep" (Frost 41-42).
             Robert Frost is able to use the narrator's accounting of apple-picking to symbolize the sin with which humanity is cursed. Within the poem, Frost introduces heaven in the first two lines which gives the reader information behind the use of apples as the premise of this work. Within the book of Genesis in the Old Testament, Adam and Eve are tricked into eating an apple from the tree of forbidden fruit thus falling from the grace of God. The speaker is described to live "in a fallen world where he has labored and sweated. But he gains no sure knowledge as Adam did. His ladder is pointed toward heaven only, and he has had to descend from it. Man can climb the ladder toward heaven, toward certainty, but when he returns, he discovers how little he has learned with certainty" (Conder). The narrator does not reap the benefits of Adam's knowledge and believes his job has little significance in the grand scheme of life, he does not feel important thus creating his desire for death. In the poem the narrator regards the fallen apples as "of no worth" however sympathy seems to be shown when he states that they do possess some worth in the "cider-apple heap" (Frost 35). With this idea the reader gets an idea of the narrator's background and the creativity he possesses with his comparison between his religious beliefs and the harvest.
             The harvest itself represents the liveliness of humankind and the winter represents the disappearance of this resourcefulness through either old age or death. The harvest depicts life at its fullest where it is producing fruit and the narrator feels as though he is climbing steps to heaven as he plucks the fruit from the tree.


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1. The Sadness of Robert Frost

... use of tone allows the reader to engage with each poem and establish a connection with it. Robert Frost is indeed a poet of sadness – one who expresses the horror of a young child's death; "Out, Out" and comments on the transience of life in "After Apple Picking", but also one who offers us insights into the meaning of life which captivate and ... hold a relevance to a modern day reader. "Mending Wall" offers us valuable insights into the human experience and describes how two farmers meet to repair a wall that was damaged by hunters. He says "we kept the wall between us as we go, to ...

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2. After Apple Picking - Robert Frost

Robert Frost's poem "After Apple Picking"," focused on a few normal aspects of life that Frost and even people to this day still have to struggle with. Struggle's that are common for people with heavy workloads and restrictions. Restrictions that are sometimes hard to control that if not followed, can lead to negative results. Results that derive from a choice that is made by the individual on what is truly ... be cared for by grandparents. She realized that she needed to seek help or otherwise the family would not properly be supported. Frost, later on, went to attend Harvard University. But...

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3. After Apple Picking by Robert Frost

... a summary or a critical an appreciation of "After Apple Picking", we must remember that Robert Frost is a landscape poet. His poetry is always enriched with the depiction of agrarian and natural scenes. In "After Apple Picking", he presents a simple theme that how peacefully an overtired villager is lulled to sleep by "the essence of winter sleep", Nature. An apple picker has a plentiful crop. He is picking apples while standing on a two pointed ... ladder. The winter evening falls soon. The apple picker ... ...

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  • Approx Pages: 3
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4. After Apple Picking - Poetry Analysis

In the poem, "After Apple-Picking," by Robert Frost, a man has been picking apples all day on a ladder. Night is going to fall soon and he is tired, so he must leave the field for the day. That morning, ... is clearly intended to describe his feelings about poetry, after writing it over a long period of years. Frost's life was full of achievement which is symbolized by the hard work of apple picking. He also had a hard life in which many tragedies previously occurred. In the poem the speaker represents Robert Frost who is contemplating his life and what it will be ... like when he dies. The s...

  • Word Count: 865
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5. Robert Frost

Robert Frost uses the literary writing techniques of syntax, repetition of lines, simile, metaphor, onomatopoeia, rhyme scheme and especially personification in his poems. The themes I have found in these select six poems support those methods and techniques. I would not be surprised if I read other examples of Frost's poems I would find ... technique onomatopoeia, in which the word sounds like the noise it describes, using the word swish. In one part of the poem, Frost uses syntax again by putting words in the wrong order, "Broken across it, and one eye is weeping/ From a twig's having lash...

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6. After Apple Picking by Robert Frost

As part of the life cycle, human beings pass throughout different situations and moments of introspection. "After Apple-Picking" by Robert Frost, is an example of insight observation and life examination. The narrator directs the reader to be interested and sympathized with his ... human introspection and thinking about life, which is something people do most of the time. At the end of the day, we are all by ourselves with our feelings. "After Apple-Picking" is an amazing poem that makes me think about the narrator feelings. In this case, apples come to be a main tool to describe ... the tho...

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7. Robert Frost Bio

... , and the Nobel Prize for literature. (Robert, 2) Despite the uplifting essence of Frost's work, his life wasn't all sunshine and candy. Frost's father died when he was 11, and his family then moved to Massachusetts. There he graduated high school and tied valedictorian with a women by the name of Elinor White, the two ended up marrying only a year after graduation. But, in 1938, Elinor died ... in 1963. Even though his poems were mostly considered to be up lifting and positive, the actual writing style of them varied. In the poem "After Apple Picking", Frost used free verse. While in "T...

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8. Robert Frost

... being a master in rhythm and meter, his writings seemed to be traditional and experimental, regional and universal. Many would say Robert Lee Frost was a fighter and hero that never gave up in writing. He gave many ideals and clues in his poems that are very strong and ... The poem has hints of acceptance of diversity, which Frost contributes to as well. Robert Frost contribution of life's choices in literature brings the value of different choices in the human mind. Frost also contributes the meaning of death and desire in "After Apple Picking" by combing death and the need for rest in ...

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9. Good Poetry Explores Iteresting Ideas in Interesting Ways

... the opportunity for the responder to question the issue and human beings. Thus, the poem has involved the responder with thought provoking ideas by using these poetic techniques. "After Apple Picking" is yet another thought provoking poem in which Frost uses metaphorical symbols and imagery to question humanity. The major theme which emerges in the poem is the futility of human endeavours and the ... as being "good" or worthy of reading. Good poetry explore interesting ideas in interesting ways as they captivate the responder by stimulating them with thoughts, triggered by thought provo...

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