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 ANALYSIS  OF  ‘NOTHING  GOLD  CAN  STAY’  BY  ROBERT  FROST

  (TS)  In  the  poem  ‘Nothing  Gold  Can  Stay’  poet  Robert  Frost  uses  imagery,  allusion,  and  symbolism  

to  illustrate  his  belief  that  everything  in  the  natural  world  experiences  change.  He  also  shows  that  this  

change  begins  at  the  earliest  point  in  a  thing’s  existence.  (CD)  Here  Frost  uses  both  imagery  and  

symbolism  to  show  how  youthful  vitality  experiences  change  from  the  moment  of  its  creaLon,  

Nature’s  first  green  is  gold,

Her  hardest  hue  to  hold.  (lines  1-­‐2)

(CM)  The  first  two  verses  of  the  poem  provide  the  reader  with  a  clear  example  of  imagery  being  used.  

Frost  begins  the  poem  by  alluding  to  Mother  Nature,  an  apparent  symbolic  reference  for  all  things  living.  

MODEL  
This  reference  is  meant  to  include  both  human  and  non-­‐human  enLLes,  since  both  exist  within  the  

natural  world.  Frost  uses  the  color  gold  to  symbolize  youthful  vitality.  His  verse,  ‘Nature’s  first  green  is  

gold’  is  meant  to  suggest  that  at  the  onset  of  life  there  is  also  the  start  of  a  decline  of  that  life.  This  Les  in  

with  the  theme  of  change  because  at  the  beginning  of  his  poem,  Frost  is  indicaLng  that  nothing  lasts  

forever.  This  idea  of  all  things  changing  is  clearly  indicated  in  verse  two  when  he  says,  ‘Her  hardest  hue  to  

hold.’  When  he  menLons  that  nature’s  hue,  or  in  this  case  vitality,  is  hard  to  hold,  Frost  is  suggesLng  that  

from  the  genesis  of  life,  there  is  great  difficulty  in  retaining  the  youthfulness  and  vigor.  (CD)  Frost  

conLnues  his  belief  in  change  in  the  next  two  verses  of  the  poem,  

Her  early  leaf’s  a  flower,  

But  only  so  an  hour.  (lines  3-­‐4)

(CM)  Here  the  poet  conLnues  with  his  use  of  personificaLon  by  assigning  a  gender  to  the  natural  world  

which  further  illustrates  his  allusion  to  Mother  Nature.  Frost’s  use  of  symbol  in  the  third  verse  is  again  

meant  to  comment  on  the  central  theme  of  the  poem.  When  he  refers  to  the  ‘early  leaf’  it  can  be  

concluded  that  he  is  again  referring  to  youth.  The  denotaLve  meaning  of  the  word  ‘early’  is  meant  to  

signify  being  near  the  beginning  of  life.  His  use  of  the  flower,  another  reference  to  the  natural  world,  is  in  

some  sense  related  to  a  flower’s  symbolic  connecLon  to  beauty.  Frost’s  intent  in  the  next  few  lines  of  the  

poem  is  meant  to  make  a  direct  reference  to  the  theme  of  change.  His  use  of  metonymy  when  he  refers  

to  an  ‘hour’  represents  the  passage  of  Lme.  This  suggests  that  the  youthful  vitality  that  exists  in  all  things  
new  and  young  only  lasts  for  a  certain  span  of  Lme.  This  suggesLon  decidedly  indicates  that  beauty,  

youthfulness,  and  vigor  are  not  promised  longevity.  Frost  then  uses  a  poeLc  shiY  in  the  fiYh  verse  when  

he  writes,  ‘ Then  leaf  subsides  to  leaf.’  He  does  this  to  show  the  eventuality  of  decay.  This  implicaLon  

further  suggests  that  youthfulness  is  almost  certainly  affected  by  aging.  (CD)  Frost’s  statement  about  the  

passage  of  Lme  and  change  is  further  suggested  in  the  sixth  and  seventh  verses,  

So  Eden  sank  to  grief,  

So  dawn  goes  down  to  day.  (lines  6-­‐7)

MODEL  
(CM)  The  allusion  to  the  Garden  of  Eden,  the  biblical  paradise,  is  a  reference  to  the  loss  experienced  by  

Adam  and  Eve.  Frost  is  intending  to  suggest  that  all  good  things,  including  paradise,  cannot  last  forever.  

The  use  of  dicLon  is  also  evident  in  verse  six  with  the  reference  to  grief  suggesLng  unhappiness  or  

displeasure.  Frost  then  uLlizes  the  Lme  of  day  to  illustrate  how  change  exists  in  the  natural  world.  He  

uses  the  symbol  of  ‘dawn’  to  suggest  youth,  or  the  beginning  of  things  and  the  use  of  ‘day’  to  represent  

grow  or  maturaLon  is  clearly  seen.  Here  Frost  is  a^empLng  to  comment  on  the  nature  of  all  living  things  

by  pointedly  implying  that  aging  and  change  are  synonymous.  Frost  then  ends  his  poem  with  the  last  

verse,  ‘Nothing  gold  can  stay’  as  a  means  of  punctuaLng  his  point.  In  this  verse  his  message  of  ‘at  the  

beginning  the  end  begins’  is  condensed  and  clear.

  (CS)  The  poem  ‘Nothing  Gold  Can  Stay’  by  Robert  Frost  is  an  effecLve  example  of  a  poet  uLlizing  

specific  poeLc  convenLons  to  convey  his  theme.  His  use  symbolism,  imagery,  and  allusion  aid  Frost’s  

a^empt  to  comment  on  the  connecLon  between  the  natural  world  and  humanity.

[674  words]

I have neither given nor received any unauthorized assistance on this assignment.
Olivia Knight
3/10/11
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