Picking Apples and Existential Crises
In Robert Frost’s “After Apple-Picking”, the speaker falls asleep after a day’s work picking apples. The speaker starts by discussing his apple-picking adventures. Fatigued from picking apples, he reflects on the morning and enters a dream-like state. He then ponders over his exhaustion and sleep before the poem concludes. At first glance, this poem appears to be a straightforward observation about an apple-picking trip. However, it holds deeper implications and meanings. The text primarily delves into the complex psyche of the speaker. Frost employs the simple task of picking apples to explore the perplexing realm of human consciousness.
The speaker’s ability to stay awake is unclear and ambiguous. He mentions being “done with apple-picking now… I am drowsing off” (6, 8) but then reminisces about picking up ice earlier in the day. The ice melted and he let it fall and break, but he was already on his way to sleep before it fell (13-15). The purpose of the ice is debatable – it could just be an interesting occurrence mentioned by the speaker. However, once the ice falls, he enters a dream-like state and begins to struggle with awareness. He describes “magnified apples [that] appear and disappear” (18). This portion of the poem introduces an internal question of consciousness.
The speaker grows tired towards the end of his apple-picking experience, but he was already drowsy at the start, as evidenced by the encounter with the ice. After that, he recounts a dream about apples, which, according to the author’s tense, would have occurred after morning. Overall, this raises doubts about whether the speaker actually went apple-picking. Later on, the speaker expresses confusion regarding the type of sleep he experiences, pondering whether it is a “long sleep… or just some human sleep” (41, 42). Throughout the poem, the speaker seems unaware of his mental state, as indicated by clues in the text, which may suggest a more significant issue.
At a deeper level, the speaker expresses a suspicion about his impending death. Initially, the poem’s meaning is unclear. However, further examination reveals more evidence about the speaker’s uncertainty. Frost provides examples from the text that suggest the debate about consciousness could be compared to a debate about existence. In one passage, he openly mentions an afterlife: “my long two-pointed ladder’s sticking through a tree / Toward heaven still” (1-2). Additionally, the speaker experiences a “strangeness” (9) after looking through the ice and feeling drowsy. These subtle clues create a feeling of unease and doubt. Frost also explores the questionable state of reality by referencing winter. After finishing apple-picking, he mentions that the “essence of winter is on the night” (7), referring to the coldness of winter in the air. Lastly, at the end of the poem, the speaker reflects on the quality of his sleep:
This sleep of mine, whatever sleep it is.
If he were still here,
The woodchuck would know if it’s like his
Long sleep, as I describe its arrival,
Or just some human sleep (38-42).
Here, the woodchuck is referenced, similar to the groundhog, known for predicting the length of winter. The connection between winter and sleep is significant: winter traditionally represents death, suggesting a potential similarity between consciousness and existence. The mention of the “long sleep” in contrast to “human sleep” also implies death. By reaching this level of comprehension, the poem becomes a larger metaphor for the speaker’s uncertainty about life.
Considering the newfound depth of meaning, one can draw further metaphorical implications from the text. The ladder serves as a symbol that allows for analysis. Initially, in the poem’s opening lines, the ladder points “toward heaven still” (2). It could represent the journey of life, with the speaker’s ultimate destination ideally being heaven. This metaphor extends to another example: “my instep arch not only keeps the ache, / it keeps the pressure of a ladder-round. / I feel the ladder sway as the boughs bend” (21-23). As the speaker continues to pick apples, the ladder begins to weaken. This can also be applied to life; as time passes, the speaker ages. One could theorize that apples symbolize accomplishments in life. The speaker describes “a barrel that I didn’t fill” (3) and “ten thousand thousand fruit to touch, / cherish in hand, lift down, and not let fall” (30-31). Once again, Frost may be making a simple observation about his experience, but on a metaphorical level, apples may represent missed opportunities in life. Additionally, the speaker mentions those apples.
The apples falling to the ground without being damaged or impaled by stubble were discarded and thrown into the cider-apple heap because they were considered worthless (33-36). These reflections on apples are symbolic of the speaker’s disappointments in life. It seems that he missed various opportunities and many of them ended up being wasted, even though they were initially perfectly good. Ultimately, the speaker’s existence appears to have been a difficult one. He feels burdened by life, stating, “for I have had too much / of apple-picking: I am overtired” (28-29). The speaker’s contemplation of death further compounds his struggle to accept his own life.
Looking at the bigger picture, this poem is intricate. On initial reading, it appears to be a simple narration of the speaker’s emotions after a day of apple-picking. However, delving deeper reveals deeper implications as a clash of reasoning becomes apparent. The speaker clearly experiences a disheartening chaos, demonstrated by the unconventional use of tense and non-chronological order. The author’s adept use of metaphorical conventions in objects like the ladder and apples is notable. Ultimately, Frost’s “After
Apple-Picking” examines the struggle of human existentiality.
The source of the text is a website called Poets.org, specifically the page for a poem titled “After Apple-Picking” by Robert Frost. The page was created in 2007 and last updated in 2013. To access the poem, the website can be viewed at the following URL: http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/19975
In the poem “After Apple-Picking” by Robert Frost, the speaker reflects on their experience of apple-picking. They describe a ladder sticking through a tree, indicating that there are apples they did not pick. However, they declare that they are done with apple-picking. The winter sleep of the season is prevalent, along with the scent of apples, which causes them to become drowsy. They mention a strange sight they saw through a pane of glass earlier in the day, and how it melted and broke when they let it fall. They were already on their way to sleep at that point and could anticipate their dream. They observe magnified apples appearing and disappearing, showing both stem end and blossom end, with every russet fleck visible. Their instep arch not only aches but also feels the pressure from climbing a ladder. They perceive the ladder swaying as the tree branches bend. Additionally, they hear the rumbling sound of loads of apples being brought into a cellar bin. The speaker confesses that they have had enough of apple-picking and are exhausted from the vast harvest they desired. They had countless fruits to touch, cherish in hand, lift down, and ensure they don’t let fall.
No matter if it was not bruised or spiked with stubble, everything that struck the earth went surely to the cider-apple heap, as if it had no value. One can see what will trouble my sleep, whatever type of sleep it is. If he were still here, the woodchuck could say whether it’s similar to his long sleep, as I describe its approach, or if it’s just some human sleep.
