Comparing Emily Dickinson And Robert Frost's Poems

Emily Dickinson and Robert Frost compare writing styles that are in stark contrast with one another; Dickinson with her dash-filled short stanzas, and Frost with his rhythmic and melodic flow, are each easily distinguishable at first glance. They do, however, seem to share common interests in much of their subject matter. Both poets write a great amount about nature and death; darkness and night are the common theme for Dickinson’s “We Grow Accustomed to the Dark” and Frost’s “Acquainted with the Night.” The unique perspective that each writer has on the matter lends itself to an interesting comparison of the two pieces.
While both poems are written in the first person point of view, Frost inserts himself into his poetry, using “I” to suggest a narrative of individual experience while Dickinson employs a collective “We,” giving the idea that darkness and night are a natural entity in everyone’s life. This creates subtle contrasting points of view while, at the same time, giving the reader the sense that they are speaking from personal experience.
The imagery incorporated into the two poems commonly gives the thought of night a dreadful and lonesome quality. In “Acquainted with the Night” Frost writes “I have walked out in rain—and back in rain. I have outwalked the farthest city light. I have looked down the saddest city lane” giving …show more content…
Frost describes being “acquainted with the night” in both the first and last lines of the poem, personifying it and reminding the reader that the night itself is an entity with its own personality. On the other hand, Dickinson speaks of night as merely a hindrance for us to prevail over, in one stanza comparing it to the emptiness within our own lives when she writes: “…And so of larger – Darknesses – Those Evenings of the Brain – When not a moon disclose a sign – Or Star – come out –