Out, Out By Robert Frost Essay

For countless years and through innumerable works, writers have attempted to overcome one of humanity’s greatest fears: mortality. One of the earliest examples is William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, in which Macbeth claims that life is little more than a shadow of impending doom, and that each person merely plays his part until he is no more. Centuries later, Robert Frost incorporates a similar theme on the subject of death in his poem “‘Out, Out -’”. Unlike many of the other writers who have preceded him, however, Frost does not use aged characters of wisdom to portray this theme. Rather, Frost chooses to address this topic through the story of a young boy of modest upbringings who is sheltered in innocence until his encounter with death. Through this misfortune, Frost proves that while mortality is an inevitable yet somewhat startling reality to the individual, it is ultimately ineffectual upon the greater scheme of life and society. In his poem, …show more content…
Prior to the boy’s accident, the saw seemed to build up its anger as it once again “snarled and rattled,” while “it ran light or had to bear a load” (Frost 7-8). Just as with the first description of the saw, the repetition of “snarled and rattled” accentuates the danger of the saw and serves as a reminder of its presence. However, in these lines, the addition of the consistency of the saw, whether it “ran light” or worked to “bear a load,” reflects the nature of society as well. In this extension of the saw’s activity, Frost implies that society never pauses, and in a general sense is indifferent to the burdens it may encounter. Ultimately, these examples highlight the inevitability of death as well as society’s seemingly emotionless response to mortality, as people carry on with their lives. The unimportance of death is also portrayed through the different point of views presented throughout the