Literary Techniques In Robert Frost's Poem

The poem tells a sad story about a boy who works at a saw mill. His sister calls him for supper, out of excitement, he jumps up and partially slices his hand off. The writer uses various literary techniques and structure to describe the way in which the boy died and the aftermath of the death. The poet mentions a saw which is portrayed to almost be alive.
Firstly, the writer uses 1st person narrative voice to convey his views towards the boy’s death. His perspective shows that he knows what is going to happen. This builds up tension through the use of the verb “wish”. The poet also talks about how he wishes they “Call it a day”. This manifests the writer’s sympathy for the protagonist who eventually chops his arm off. The quote makes the reader interested …show more content…
The following quote shows this by the means of a simple sentence: “Doing a man’s work, though a child at heart”. The narrator feels sympathy for the boy, however he wants the reader to do too. He does this by stressing the youth of the boy. Mr Frost’s emphasis on the boy’s age makes the death more serious, hence a larger climax of the poem. Robert Frost uses direct speech for a better view on the narrator’s thoughts from the reader’s perspective. The writer’s point of view towards the boy’s death are clearly expressed through the use of pathetic fallacy as shown in the following quote: “day was all but done”. The pathetic fallacy in this verse shows how there is still something to happen. The quote tells the reader something bad is going to happen. The pathetic fallacy in the quote describe the thoughts of the poet by adding a sympathetic tone to the text. This invites curiosity into the reader’s mind, making the reader read on. The writer adds on to this sympathetic tone by explaining how people nowadays don’t really care for a young boy who’s passed away, unless they are family. This quote supports my take on what the elegist was trying to say: “And they, since…to their affairs”. The narrator