This study provides a contribution to an understanding and an interpretation of Frost's poetry. It emphasizes the relationship between his life with his wife and their children and the thematic content in the poetry.At his mother's knee, Frost learned to look for the two-sidedness of every aspect of life. This dualism of nature and of human nature is the key to understanding his poetry. Humans must be ready both to build and to refuse to build walls, both literally and symbolically.The paper singles out and discusses the central themes in Frost's poetry: communication, escape-return, sexism, fear, and love. Other important themes discussed include: farming, fulfilling household responsibilities, and facing tragedy, death, and old age.Structurally, Frost expressed these themes most often through the use of physical barriers, barriers which were nearly always symbolic of emotional conflicts. It is oftena lack of communication which results in a fear of separation or isolation, and fear is contrasted with security: love and togetherness. The woods and darkness are symbolic of a fear of the unknown, as are the repeated appearances of strangers, tramps, and intruders so frequent in the poems.There are descriptions of actual places and events in Frost's life which inspired many of the poems. The paper points out many of the actual landmarks, e.g., the stone wall which divided the fir trees from the apple orchard, the birch trees, the brooks, paths, woods, and even the red sleigh, each of which were to receive such a prominent place in world literature.The study presents an analysis of Frost's poetic style: his use of balance, contrast of light and dark imagery, and the clashing of antithetical elements which resounds throughout his poetry.It also deals with the less-publicized side of Frost's life, the "darker side," which includes his contemplation of suicide, his threats to members of his own family (sometimes with revolver in hand), and the numeroustragedies in his personal life, including the suicide of his son, Carol.The study includes a treatment of such delicate subjects as Frost's habit of sleeping in his mother's room throughout highschool (for fear of the dark) and his relationship with his secretary-companion, Kathleen Morrison, following his wife's death.The poems are divided into those reflecting Frost's childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. The latter category is the most significant and is comprised of poems reflecting Robert's courtship of his wife (poems of rejection and reconciliation), their marriage, and his life following her death.The overall significance of this study is in that it establishes the important influence Frost's marriage had upon his poetry. In spite of conflict and tensions, the marriage of Robert and Elinor Frost was one that "...rested on a true and deep bond, one that made the poetry possible. Elinor...provided judgment, encouragement, and the necessary faith" to enable Robert to be the creative artist that he was. If it were not for his responsibilities to his family, he might never have overcome his fear of speaking before large groups or have become as endeared to the American public.

This is a study of the development of the myth of the White Goddess in the work of Robert Graves, a subject related to the wider field of the place of myth in modern culture. It begins by looking at the conditions which promoted Graves' interest in myth, principally his experience of the Great War. The responses of other writers are examined to provide a context for understanding Graves' transition from Georgianism to myth, as reflected in his early poetry, autobiography and writings on psychology. Before looking at how Graves' myth was formed, the history of the concept of myth is examined, from primitive peoples to civilized religion. Focus is centred upon the dual tendency of myth to reinforce and to undermine authority. Some of the figures behind Graves' interest in myth and anthropology are subject to scrutiny. An account of the relations between myth, literature and psychology permits the survey of Graves' gradual transition from psychological theory to mythographic speculation. The gradual emergence in his poetry of devotion to a Love Goddess can also be traced. Detailed interpretation of The White Goddess, its arguments and procedures, brings to light Graves' theories of the single poetic theme and the primitive matriarchy, both of which can then be evaluated and set in the context of his dedication to non-rational forms of thought. This leads into a close reading of Graves' major mythological poems, followed by reflections upon the myth's application in his critical writings and cultural commentaries. Finally, consideration is given to Graves' later writings, especially his attraction to Orphism and the adoption of mythic personae in his verse. The influence of the Black Goddess of Wisdom over these later works is interpreted and assessed.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Tufts University, 2005. / Advisers: Deborah Digges; Jesper Rosenmeier. Submitted to the Dept. of English. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 178-190). Access restricted to members of the Tufts University community. Also available via the World Wide Web;

Humboldt-Univ., Diss.--Berlin, 2005.

Zugl.: Göttingen, Univ., Diss., 2006

Zugl.: Münster (Westfalen), Univ., Diss.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2004. / Document formatted into pages; contains 218 p. Includes bibliographical references. Abstract available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center; full text release delayed at author's request until 209 March 29.

Zugl.: Graz, Univ., Diss., 2006.

Thesis (M.F.A.)--University of Louisville, 2004. / Department of Theatre Arts. Vita. "May 2004." Includes bibliographical references (leaf 40).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin, 1967. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliography.