"Acquainted with the Night" by Robert Frost

 

Acquainted with the Night

I have been one acquainted with the night.

I have walked out in rain—and back in rain.

I have outwalked the furthest city light.

 

I have looked down the saddest city lane.

I have passed by the watchman on his beat

And dropped my eyes, unwilling to explain.

 

I have stood still and stopped the sound of feet

When far away an interrupted cry

Came over houses from another street,

 

But not to call me back or say good-bye;

And further still at an unearthly height,

One luminary clock against the sky

 

Proclaimed the time was neither wrong nor right.

I have been one acquainted with the night.

Enjoy the poem with beautiful music.

Poem Video👇

https://youtu.be/uEvit55iGkM

Who wrote the poem "Acquainted with the Night"?

Robert Frost (March 26, 1874 – January 29, 1963)

 

Robert Frost was an American poet who was born in San Francisco, California. Frost’s life was marked by grief and loss. When he was 11, his father died of tuberculosis, leaving just eight dollars. Frost’s mother died of cancer when he was 26. Mental illness ran in his family. He and his mother suffered from depression, and his sister and his daughter were committed to mental hospitals. Using realistic depictions of rural life, his poems often examined complex social and philosophical themes. Frost’s first book was published at the age of 40, but he ended up winning four Pulitzer Prizes for poetry and becoming the most famous poet of his time.

"Acquainted with the Night" explanation

In the poem, the speaker walks the city streets at night, feeling deeply depressed, isolated, and lonely. He meets a watchman but refuses to interact. He listens to the sounds of the city but realizes that they are not for him. The moon in the sky tells him that time is meaningless for him. The speaker could easily be Frost himself, for he suffered from depression throughout his life.