Robert Frost’s poetry has a confortable and familiar nature at first glance, but this author is known for dealing with human tragedies and fears often in a symbolic manner. He uses poetry to express his reaction to the complexities of life and his acceptance of his burdens. Although his work is rooted in New England region, he is a far reaching poet who’s work spans metaphysical and psychological topics. One can often notice these under the surface of minute details that are characteristic of most of his work. In Love and a Question, a stranger inquires about shelter for the night in the bridal house.
The bridegroom is the one that has to make the decision whether or not he should be allowed inside. One reason why he would not want him inside is because this is somewhat of a honeymoon stay. The bride’s face was “rose-red with the glowing coal and the thought of the heart’s desire. ” At the beginning of the fourth stanza, he must make the decision whether to let this man in or continue the night of pleasure with his wife. Normally, the bridegroom is apathetic towards the rich and the poor, but as he “looked at the weary road,” he placed himself in the shoes of that stranger.
He tries to imagine how dificult it must be for this man to live without a home, especially tonight, when winter was in the wind. He stares back at himself, and how fortunate he is to have wedded such a woman. He “wished her heart in a case of gold and pinned with a silver pin. ” This means that he respects and loves her very deeply. He realizes that you don’t know what you have until you lose it. He feels sudden sympathy with this deprived stranger, and wants to help him in some manner. Another interpretation is as follows. The groom’s enigma could be that he is not certain whether he did the right thing by marrying.
The stranger would then be symbolic of his feelings towards his wife, and the weary road ahead, without a window light, in the winter wind, could represent their life as he viewed it. A very uncertain and perhaps unhappy life. The only question that he asks in the poem is in line eleven, where he tries to figure out “what of the night to be. ” He really is wondering what of his life to be. This must be significant, because he repeats the question in line sixteen, and the last line. In this scenario, the second to last line would also be explained.
The stranger would become a misfortune, because he marred the love of two. The bridegroom has been trying to supress his thoughts on their marriage, but somehow, this stranger stirred up his emotions. He is the one that pushed the groom to doubt their engagement. Whichever the case may be, it is certain that the author is dealing with a human issue that appeals to many people. He could have taken a much borader position and use the stranger as death Himself. All these are ambiguous and highly arguable. The conglomeration of symbols allow for an infinitely flexible poem that can be viewed from many standpoints.
