These two poems were influenced by events of the early 20th century. "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" by Robert Frost depicts a man appreciating nature during the Industrial Revolution, when many lived in cities. "Languages" by Carl Sandburg reflects on the influx of immigrants and suggests English may become the global language, with other languages forgotten over time, as influenced by the mass migration during that era. Both poems capture societal influences during that transformative century through themes of industrialization, urbanization, and cultural changes.
2. Two great poems influenced by the
events of the early 20th century
"STOPPING BY WOODS ON A SNOWY EVENING" BY
ROBERT FROST
"LANGUAGES" BY CARL SANDBURG
3. “STOPPING BY WOODS ON A SNOWY
EVENING”
BY ROBERT FROST
Insight about the poem
Robert Frost wrote this poem in appreciation of nature
during cold winter season.
The poem depicts a story of a man travelling through
snowy woods in the dark evening.
The man was describe as appreciative of his view of
the surroundings throughout the poem.
He is to head home, but cannot find himself leaving
the beauty of his location.
4. “STOPPING BY WOODS ON A SNOWY
EVENING”
BY ROBERT FROST
This poem is influenced by
industrialization
During 20th Century, there was an Industrial
Revolution.
Workforce demand by factories increased.
Middle class throughout U.S. migrated to
urban cities.
Most of the middle class spend their entire
life inside the concrete walls of urban
cities.
5. “STOPPING BY WOODS ON A SNOWY
EVENING”
BY ROBERT FROST
Connection of The 20th Century To The Poem
In this poem, Robert Frost depicted a lovely experience by a
man who probably spent most of his life inside the urban city.
Inside the urban city are mostly steel and concrete. Tall
buildings erected to the sky for accommodation of space. At
night, lights polluted the whole city, keeping the darkness
outside the city. The factories were at work day and night,
there was no room for silence. The man in this poem, is most
likely working from the city, and finding it hard for him to go
head home when most of his time was spent inside a city of
disturbance. This is was his time to appreciate nature.
6. “STOPPING BY WOODS ON A
SNOWY EVENING”
BY ROBERT FROST
“The woods are lovely, dark,
and deep.”
7. "LANGUAGES" BY CARL SANDBURG
Insight about the poem
The poem contains imagery and motif of nature that describes Carl
Sanburg worldly views.
Sandburg feels that all languages are uniting under one tongue.
The poem’s tone is mellow that depicts the world’s nation as
uniting under a language.
The unity in this poem however means that cultures along the way
are lost.
In this poem, all other language is being forgotten like an ancient
writing.
8. "LANGUAGES" BY CARL SANDBURG
This poem is influenced by
immigration
During the 20th century, America receive masses
of immigrants from the different parts of the
world.
Immigrants from different nation, speaks their
own native language.
Majority of this mass migration were from the
Eastern and Southern Europe.
Reasons for the influx of immigration were to
escape religious, racial, political persecutions,
and seeking economic opportunity.
9. "LANGUAGES" BY CARL SANDBURG
Connection of the 20th Century to the
poem
Sandburg have noticed the huge influx of immigrants
in America. He believes that maybe, the English
language will become the “ocean,” the final
destination of all language, English. Every nation will
learn their own native language, but soon they will
have to learn English to communicate with people
throughout the world. Because English is the
universal language, and Sandburg was well aware of
that during his life time in 20th century. Then maybe
in “Ten thousand years from now” all other language
will become unspoken language, and there will only
be one “ocean.”
10. "LANGUAGES" BY CARL SANDBURG
“There are no handles upon a language
Whereby men take hold of it
And mark it with signs for its remembrance.
It is a river, this language,
Once in a thousand years
Breaking a new course
Changing its way to the ocean.”
