Brown’s Descent. Collection – Mountain Interval. 1920.BROWN lived at such a lofty farm And many must have seen him make Between the house and barn the gale Walls were all buried, trees were few: And stamped and said things to himself, Sometimes he came with arms outspread Faster or slower as he chanced, He never let the lantern drop. Brown makes at such an hour of night! He reeled, he lurched, he bobbed, he checked; Incredulous of his own bad luck. “Well—I—be—” that was all he said, Sometimes as an authority Yankees are what they always were. Or even thought of standing there And then went round it on his feet, It must have looked as if the course No more so than became a man— But now he snapped his eyes three times; Simple, straightforward and on the surface, Brown’s Descent, appears to be a funny and amusing poem. The description of Brown falling down a hill is comical. Sometimes he came with arms outspread The onlookers’ comments, as they watch the lantern he’s holding as he ‘reeled’, lurched’, ‘bobbed’, ‘checked and ‘fell’ down the slope, add to the humor. “I wonder what those signals are A tribute to Yankee characteristicsBeneath the surface of humor, the poem goes to highlight the difficult life of the New Englanders and their determination to ‘make do’ with what life has given them. Frost pays tribute to true Yankee characteristics of his fellow New Englanders. The peculiar personality traits and the reaction to life situations that the people of this region inherit and display seem to endear them to him. Frost is sometimes amused; sometimes shocked; sometimes in awe of, but overall very fond of these Yankees – a heritage of which he is proud to be a part. “There is something casually stoic about the way in which they (the Yankees) took their hardships as a matter of course, without complaining and without seeming to find any reason for the expectation that circumstances should change”. Brown’s Descent confirms Frost’s belief that the true Yankee virtues have not ‘petered out’. He proudly claims that: Yankees are what they always were. Moreover, in this poem, Frost speaks as one of them, the Yankees, when he says: And then went round it on his feet, Harsh physical conditionsThe physical conditions are severe, obvious from the descriptions – its winter and the lantern is on at half-past three, ‘slippery slope’, ‘Walls were all buried, trees were few ‘ and ‘the icy crust … cased the world’. Reconciled with fateWe see true Yankee characteristics in Brown’s portrayal. Brown tries his best to find a foothold but unsuccessful he just reconciles himself with the situation. Incredulous of his own bad luck. Practical attitudeThe practical and sensible man that he is, Brown does not let go of the lantern he is holding. The lantern rattled but he ‘saved the light from going out‘. Brown started to climb back home taking the much longer road. Frost pays tribute to Yankee virtues of acceptance of fate, of standing steadfast in face of adversity. He knows for sure that: Don’t think Brown ever gave up hope Or even thought of standing there |
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