Isolation In Robert Frost's Acquainted With The Night

Robert Frost's “Acquainted with the Night” describes a life that is filled with depression caused by isolation. Many believe this could have been written from Frost's own personal experiences, since it is well known that he experienced a very sad life with the losses of many of his close relatives. This would have left him feeling alone and detached, therefore giving him the inspiration for this poem. When examining the title's literal meaning, one can see Frost’s illustration of how he is very familiar with these dark and lonely feelings that seem to come with the night. The night, and these feelings, are nothing new to him. He uses an exceptionally descriptive setting, diverse symbols, and a unique style to develop his poem. In this poem Frost uses many symbols like the rain, the watchman, and the moon to illustrate the speaker’s depression, as
The poem states: I have walked out in rain—and back in rain. / I have outwalked the furthest city light (Frost 2-3). The speaker explains how he has felt ‘rain’ steadily fall on him over and over again. This demonstrates how the speaker feels a raincloud is always over his head, and it will not go away. The rain appears to be a metaphor of his depression and how it continuously causes him suffering. The everlasting presence of the raincloud represents how this feeling is something he cannot escape. When the speaker says he has “outwalked the furthest city light”, he expresses that he is now in complete darkness (Frost 3). His depression cannot become any worse at this point. The speaker also uses other actions to emphasize his isolation. “I have looked down the saddest city lane. / I have passed by the watchman on his beat / And dropped my eyes, unwilling to explain” (Frost 4-6). The ‘saddest city lane’ symbolizes that he is at the peak of his sorrow. The speaker feels he is the saddest he will ever be and that it may not get any