Hollis' new S2 Class!

[hollis]

It could foreshadow that. I think it's more for picturesque qualities, in that it presents an idyllic, beautiful contryside, and it's contrasted with the men not looking up. It could also relate to the idea of America as a land of promise / opportunity, and each of those ranges is a new place to live, to grow, but the men are not taking advantage.

However, as you've pointed out, it's quite interesting that there's 5 of them, and he loses a hand...

[annahazelwood]

did you say that we are meant to use
'and they, since they were not the one dead, turned to their affairs'
in the conlcusion?

[hollis]

You can. It would allow you to have a nice rounded conclusion - thinking what that suggests about the events of the poem, what it suggests to you about the themes, and maybe allows you to examine why they turn back - is it because they don't care or because they must (OR BOTH?!)

Good luck!

[Emma Russell]

I dont get if we're suposed to only be talking about the themes, beacause thats what you've said to include in our introduction, or if we pick out certain lines and analyze them aswell. Or do we use the lines to back up the themes ?

[hollis]

The latter. You analyse the quote, then you explain how the techniques in the quote convey the themes.

[hollis]

Frost also uses imagery to emphasise the hardship of the poem. When the boy loses his hand, Frost remarks that,

“Neither refused the meeting.”

The metaphor of a ‘meeting’ is effective here, as it downplays the incident, making it seem almost innocent and friendly. There is an irony here in that the ‘shaking of hands’ that is occurring is actually serious, and for the boy, deadly. This emphasises the hardship in the poem, as by making the serious event seem less so, Frost is effectively making the boy’s death less moving, as the men will ultimately forget about him.

[iainmackay]

Here's my essay. It's not very good, but I'm struggling with ways to improve it.

Out, Out by Robert Frost
Out, Out is a thought-provoking and insightful poem written by the late Robert Frost. It is set during early 20th Century in a rural American ranch. It tells the tale of a boy cutting wood on his parents’ ranch. He is distracted by his sister, and the buzz-saw he is using cuts his hand clean off. A doctor tries to save the boy but he is too late. The main theme of this poem is the hardships of life in America in the turn of the 20th Century. The writer uses Imagery, Rhythm, Sound and Narrative to paint a picture of the hardships of living in America.
The title of the poem is
“Out, Out”
This refers directly to a line from Macbeth. - “Out, out, brief candle! Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more.” – Frost uses this title to compare the boy to the quote from Macbeth. The candle is put out quickly, much like the boy’s life. He is not given a chance to thrive, to ‘burn.’ This shows how hard and dangerous life is on the ranch
In Line 4 of the poem the writer states
“And from those that lifted eyes could count”
This suggests that the workers are too focused on their work to appreciate the scenery. It also suggests that they are too tired to even look up, after working so hard for so long. The workers may also be unable to move from their position in life or unwilling to. They are creating their own hardships by not giving the children an opportunity to live their childhood.

On lines 10 -12 of the poem the poet gives a personal opinion.
“I wish they might have said you please the boy by giving him the half hour that a boy counts so much”
This is the only time in the poem when the narrator refers to himself, suggesting that the hardships could have been avoided, and that the narrator could have been spared writing this poem. ’half hour’ is such a small amount of time but for the boy it would have been cherished. The poem also hints that if the boy had been given just half an hour rest, his life would have been spared.

Near the end of the poem the Frost writes
“Doing a man’s work though a child at hard.”
Frost uses contrast to compare the small boy having to do a man’s job, although they should be allowed to be a child. The boy knows he should not be doing this job, and he still has childish feelings. This the demonstrates the main theme well, as the boy is having hardships, and is losing his innocence.
The last quote which demonstrates the hardships of living in America is the very last line.
“Were the not dead, turned to their affairs.”
The poet uses enjambment to emphasise what the men see as the only contrast – dead, and alive. There is a cold tone of ‘turned to their affairs.’ This is because the boy is not important, and the workers have to get back to their jobs.

To conclude the main theme of the poem – the hardships of living in America at the turn of the 20th century – have been examined and how Robert Frost used imagery, sound, rhythm, and word choice to emphasise that theme.

[hollis]

Iain - the main areas you'd need to work on are your Points. You need to mention what technique you are going to look at, and then give CONTEXT - explain what is occuring at this point in the poem in terms of the story / narrative.

Your analysis is good, and you have certainly constantly related back to the question (this is good!)
Just openings to work on!

[annahazelwood]

i was wondering how the word 'believe' has a double meaning in "No one believed." ?

[Andrew Porter]

Would it be right to say that in the last line frost sums up the overall effect of the hardships in america as in everything being cold and impersonal and workers not having time to show emotion or grieve even for the loss of a life.

[hollis]

Anna - Believe has a double meaning because no one believed firstly that he was dead - they didn't want to accept this. Then no one believed also has a double meaning because they did not also come to his side, so it is as if they did not believe he was 'seriously' injured.

Andrew - I would agree entirely!

[hollis]

But of course, is it that they DON'T grieve, or that they CAN'T grieve, or is it both?

[demibaker]

what is the essay question? write back asap!

[demibaker]

Mr Hollis a cant have my essay in for tommorrow because i dont know what the essay question is so the only thing i could write was the theme section. Sorry. What is the essay question? i know you said i would see it on this but i cant find it so i cant do it.

[hollis]

How does Frost effectively use techniques to show the hardships of life in early 1900s America?


There ya go!