After Apple Picking Questions 8/18/13

1.     How does the poet convey so vividly the experience of apple picking? Point out effective examples of each kind of imagery used. What emotional responses do the images provoke?

a.     Frost uses imagery and a storyline-like progression to take you through the process of apple picking. He doesn’t simply stick to visual images either. The pressure of the ladder, the sway in the branches, and the physical strain all allow the reader to feel what the speaker does. The smell of apples entices us through the poem. The constant talk of sleep shows us the speaker’s tiredness and perhaps lends a sense of otherworldliness to the poem. Dreams and their effects are often mysterious and the poem even mentions this in line nine.

2.     How does the speaker regard his work has he done it well or poorly? Does he find it enjoyable or tedious? Is he dissatisfied w/ the results?

a.     In After Apple Picking readers get the sense that not all is well. The speaker is not quite happy with all the apples picked and frets over any dropped ones, even though they go to make cider and are not wasted. He mentions fatigue and a desire to sleep multiple times, maybe a subconscious desire to escape the unhappy world within which he was placed. Being dissatisfied would certainly cast a shadow over any work.

3.     Why does he shift to the present tense (18) when he begins describing a dream experience differentiated in the poem?

a.     The speaker does this because his dream is seeping into his real world life. The lack of restful sleep could easily cause him to grow confused

4.     The poem uses the word sleep six time. Does it, through repetition, come to suggest a meaning beyond purely literal? If so, what attitude does the speaker take toward this second signification? Does he fear it? Does he look forward to it? What does he expect of it?

a.     Sleep is symbolic of many things.  Death, regeneration, mystery, and spirituality are all commonly associated with sleep. The speaker is rather torn. Physically his body craves rest after his long hard day at farming, but mentally he is unsure of what sleep will bring due to previous experiences. He does not see his own light rest as helpful, comparing a small woodchuck’s slumber as more restful.

5.     If sleep is symbolic, other details may also be. How would you interpret the ladder, season of year, pane of glass. What denotation does the word essence carry?

a.     The ladder, reaching out toward heaven, is a reflection of his greatest wishes. Like most, he wishes to escape earthly troubles. God and heaven are often portrayed as being above humanity in the stars and sky. Greater thins are also portrayed as being above lesser ones.

6.     How does a woodchucks sleep differ from a human’s rest?

a.     A woodchuck hibernates in the winter, conserving his energy in the harshest season. He hides from a season and it’s dark days. The sleep of an animal is also untroubled, free from the human worries that plague the speaker.

All appearances point this poem towards a sense of longing for permanent repose. The speaker’s life has been spent toiling the earth and his body and mind long for rest. Heaven and sleep are classical ways to express death. Mentioning both of these things point towards the obvious answer. As the land around him fades for winter, so too does the speaker.