Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

After reading these three Robert Frost poems last week, I chose "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" because I really liked what I thought it means. I figured that in the poem, Robert Frost is writing about a person who is taking time to stop by woods on a snowy evening (obviously) to just relax. The person is taking time out of his evening to stop and appreciate the greater things in life, such as nature's beauty. At the poems ending, Frost writes "But I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep." I thought this meant that even though the person is tempted to stay and watch the snowflakes fall, he knows that he must go because there is much more he needs to do before he lays down to rest, or maybe even die. 

As I already said, I chose this poem for its significant meaning. When I think about it, for some reason the saying "You never know what you've got until it's gone" comes to my mind. In the poem, the person is stopping to take time and appreciate something that he never really gets to see often. It is only until he has to go on, or die, that he realizes how special it really was. Everyday we are all most likely given opportunities to appreciate something we never really give much of a second thought; such as the leaves falling outside or a nice sunny day. Instead, we're all sitting inside on our Myspaces, not realizing that when this example of beauty surrounding us passes, we never got the chance to stop and watch.

The Movie.

One scene that personally stood out at me is the trial scene. I think the reason why is because a lot of things were both similar and different. I noticed that in the movie, Mayella was acting a lot different from what I visualized her as in the book. I thought that Mayella would be a little less nervous, because in the book the descriptions made me think that she was much more timid when testifying. Another thing I noticed is I thought that Tom would have more to talk about in his defense, but in the movie I thought he kept really quiet... In the book, he was still nervous, but he seemed way more nervous in the movie.

Some things were really similar, for instance the way the character's looked. When looking at Mayella and Bob Ewell, their physical descriptions fit really well with the book's descriptions. They were dirty and greasy, and everything I imagined. The picture in my mind of Jem was the same, too. I could see the interest on Jem's face as he watched Atticus speak and everything else that was happening. The same expressions Jem had were the same that I visualized while reading.

How the book has impacted me!

Now that we're finished with To Kill a Mockingbird, I noticed that while reading I learned a lot of lessons. I guess the only way I really "changed" was by realizing what some of the people in Maycomb had to realize. For instance, when Atticus is teaching Scout not to judge he says, "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view... until you climb into his skin and walk around in it." (30) To me, this is one of the most important quotes in the book. When I was done reading, this quote made me learn to be more aware of others and to put myself in their place.

When the trial was taking place in the book, I noticed how Atticus never gave up through any of it... No matter how much he got called bad names and was treated unfairly, he never stopped helping Tom Robinson. I guess in a way, the trial teaches you to also "do the right thing" and always try your best. I really don't think I have changed too much, but To Kill a Mockingbird has definitely made me realize a lot of things that most of us never really give a 2nd thought.