Acquainted With The Night
by Robert Frost
I have been one acquainted with the
night.
I have walked out in rain -- and back in
rain.
I have outwalked the furthest city
light.
I have looked down the saddest city
lane.
I have passed by the watchman on his
beat
And dropped my eyes, unwilling to
explain.
I have stood still and stopped the
sound of feet
When far away an interrupted cry
Came over houses from another
street,
But not to call me back or say goodbye;
And further still at an unearthly height,
One luminary clock against the sky
Proclaimed the time was neither
wrong nor right.
I have been one acquainted with the
night.
Acquainted With The Night by Robert Frost
• I have been one acquainted with the night.
I have walked out in rain -- and back in rain.
I have outwalked the furthest city light.
•
I have looked down the saddest city lane.
I have passed by the watchman on his beat
And dropped my eyes, unwilling to explain.
Looks
like
Sounds like
Feels like
I have stood still and stopped the sound of feet
When far away an interrupted cry
Came over houses from another street,
But not to call me back or say good-bye;
And further still at an unearthly height,
One luminary clock against the sky
Proclaimed the time was neither wrong nor right.
I have been one acquainted with the night.
Complete
this Y
chart to do
a 30
Second
analysis of
the poem.
I have been one acquainted with the
night.
What could this word symbolise?
Death?
Depression?
Love?
I have outwalked the furthest city
light.
What could this word symbolise?
hope?
safety?
guilt?
I have walked out in rain -- and back in
rain.
What mood or tone is suggested by the symbolic use of
“rain”?
Light-hearted
Sullen
mournful
Acquainted With The Night by Robert Frost
• I have been one acquainted with the night.
I have walked out in rain -- and back in rain.
I have outwalked the furthest city light.
•
I have looked down the saddest city lane.
I have passed by the watchman on his beat
And dropped my eyes, unwilling to explain.
I have stood still and stopped the sound of feet
When far away an interrupted cry
Came over houses from another street,
But not to call me back or say good-bye;
And further still at an unearthly height,
One luminary clock against the sky
Proclaimed the time was neither wrong nor right.
I have been one acquainted with the night.
Fill in the missing
words. This
poem has – lines.
That makes it a
-------, a form
traditionally used
for love poetry.
The lyric, of
which a ------- is a
special form,
deals with
personal feelings
and beliefs.
Terza rima uses a chain rhyme in the pattern a-b-a, b-c-b, c-d-c, d-e-d or d-ed, e-e.. Plot the rhyme scheme of the poem.
What links all of
• I have been one acquainted with the night. a
I have walked out in rain -- and back in rain. b
I have outwalked the furthest city light. a
•
I have looked down the saddest city lane. b
I have passed by the watchman on his beat c
And dropped my eyes, unwilling to explain. b
I have stood still and stopped the sound of feet c
When far away an interrupted cry d
Came over houses from another street, c
But not to call me back or say good-bye; d
And further still at an unearthly height, a
One luminary clock against the sky
d
Proclaimed the time was neither wrong nor right. a
I have been one acquainted with the night. a
these words?
The first sestet
relies on the
speaker’s motion
and actions . The
thematic break
occurs at the end of
the sestet.
What change is
introduced with
these words?
In the last octave, the
speaker stops and
ponders. The
beginning rhyme is
repeated in the
couplet: suggests
natural cycles and
reinforces repetition.
What has Frost done with the sonnet?
What else is noticeable?
•
•
“I have stood still and stopped the sound of feet." Name the sound technique and explain it.
It is alliteration used for poetic effect, a repetition of the same sound in several words. This
line from Robert Frost's poem "Acquainted with the Night,“ uses the repetition of the ‘s’
sound to create a sense of quiet, reinforcing the meaning of the line.
•
Frost traditionally sets his poetry in a pastoral context i.e. The countryside and nature. Why
is it appropriate to the theme of this poem to set it in a city?
The theme is one of being lonely, isolated, detached from people and nature. The city is
less friendly than the countryside – people avoid eye contact “ dropped my eyes”, there is
little concern for fellow man – “saddest city lane”, even if one wants to help it’s hard to
locate people who might need help “from far away, an interrupted cry ... From another
street”. Even though Frost presents the city in a negative way, he uses the lights
symbolically because is it well recognized that light represents hope, safety and life. When
the narrator “outwalks the furthest city lights” this removes him from all those things and
makes the night more threatening.
•
•
Complete a 3:2:1 on this poem. List 3 things you recall about this poem
2 things you found interesting
1 reflective question.
You have one minute.