@article{ART003313486},
author={Lee, Jeong Min},
title={The Poetics of Ownership in Robert Frost - Order and Chaos in “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” -},
journal={Journal of Humanities},
issn={1598-8457},
year={2026},
number={100},
pages={499-524}
TY - JOUR
AU - Lee, Jeong Min
TI - The Poetics of Ownership in Robert Frost - Order and Chaos in “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” -
JO - Journal of Humanities
PY - 2026
VL - null
IS - 100
PB - Institute for Humanities
SP - 499
EP - 524
SN - 1598-8457
AB - This study investigates the function of “ownership” in Robert Frost’s poetry, with a primary focus on “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening.” While the poem is frequently celebrated for its aesthetic achievement, the speaker’s opening query regarding the ownership of the woods introduces a jarring element of everyday social reality. This juxtaposition generates a subtle yet significant tension with the poem’s overwhelming natural beauty. By repositioning the first stanza’s reference to ownership-often marginalized in critical discourse-as a central interpretive key, this paper argues that the concept of ownership serves as a crucial lens for understanding not only this poem but Frost’s poetics more broadly. Drawing on Frost’s conviction that poetry offers a “momentary stay against confusion,” this study posits that ownership functions as a symbolic mechanism for imposing order upon chaos. Just as Frost embraces conventional verse forms to contain confusion, references to ownership-signifying the social contract-act as a structural counterweight to the speaker’s existential anxiety. Ultimately, the analysis reveals that the invocation of ownership in “Stopping by Woods” constitutes a desperate and largely unconscious attempt to tether the self to the human world, thereby preventing a total dissolution into the seductive darkness of nature.
KW - Robert Frost;“Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening;” Confusion;Ownership;Poetic form;Social order
DO -
UR -
ER -
Lee, Jeong Min. (2026). The Poetics of Ownership in Robert Frost - Order and Chaos in “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” -. Journal of Humanities, 100, 499-524.
Lee, Jeong Min. 2026, "The Poetics of Ownership in Robert Frost - Order and Chaos in “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” -", Journal of Humanities, no.100, pp.499-524.
Lee, Jeong Min "The Poetics of Ownership in Robert Frost - Order and Chaos in “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” -" Journal of Humanities 100 pp.499-524 (2026) : 499.
Lee, Jeong Min. The Poetics of Ownership in Robert Frost - Order and Chaos in “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” -. 2026; 100 : 499-524.
Lee, Jeong Min. "The Poetics of Ownership in Robert Frost - Order and Chaos in “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” -" Journal of Humanities no.100(2026) : 499-524.
Lee, Jeong Min. The Poetics of Ownership in Robert Frost - Order and Chaos in “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” -. Journal of Humanities, 100, 499-524.
Lee, Jeong Min. The Poetics of Ownership in Robert Frost - Order and Chaos in “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” -. Journal of Humanities. 2026; 100 499-524.
Lee, Jeong Min. The Poetics of Ownership in Robert Frost - Order and Chaos in “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” -. 2026; 100 : 499-524.
Lee, Jeong Min. "The Poetics of Ownership in Robert Frost - Order and Chaos in “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” -" Journal of Humanities no.100(2026) : 499-524.
