ROBERT LEE FROST

President John F. Kennedy, at whose inauguration Robert Lee Frost delivered a poem, said of the poet, "He has bequeathed his nation a body of imperishable verse from which Americans will forever gain joy and understanding." And famously, "He saw poetry as the means of saving power from itself. When power leads man towards arrogance, poetry reminds him of his limitations. When power narrows the areas of man's concern, poetry reminds him of the richness and diversity of his existence. When power corrupts, poetry cleanses." Read here.

MARCH

"Oh, give us pleasure in the flowers today;

And give us not to think so far away

As the uncertain harvest; keep us here

All simply in the springing of the year.

Oh, give us pleasure in the orchard white,

Like nothing else by day, like ghosts by night;

And make us happy in the happy bees,

The swarm dilating round the perfect trees."

Robert Frost, A Prayer in Spring

DECEMBER

DUST OF SNOW The way a crow Shook down on me The dust of snow From a hemlock tree Has given my heart A change of mood And saved some part Of a day I had rued. Robert Frost  (1923)

OCTOBER

O hushed October morning mild,

Thy leaves have ripened to the fall;

Tomorrow’s wind, if it be wild,

Should waste them all.

The crows above the forest call;

Tomorrow they may form and go.

O hushed October morning mild,

Begin the hours of this day slow.

Make the day seem to us less brief.

Hearts not averse to being beguiled,

Beguile us in the way you know.

Release one leaf at break of day;

At noon release another leaf;

One from our trees, one far away.

Retard the sun with gentle mist;

Enchant the land with amethyst.

Slow, slow!

For the grapes’ sake, if they were all,

Whose leaves already are burnt with frost,

Whose clustered fruit must else be lost—

For the grapes’ sake along the wall.

Robert Frost

Here  you can download a booklet on Robert Frost's poetry.

II PROVA SCRITTA ESAMI DI STATO

Last Thursday  just a couple of  my students of  5^ C Liceo Linguistico decided to take the English test on the day of  their II Prova Scritta, rather than the French or Spanish test. 

It included a text analysis, a summary and a composition, but they could  choose between an article about the 2012 London Olympic Games, taken from The Financial Times, and one of Robert Frost's most  celebrated  poems,  "The Road not Taken".

Here  you can download  both of them,  just in case you are curious!

By the way, I have found some gorgeous YouTube clips about Robert Frost's poem.  I hope you will find them inspiring!