Robert Frost's "Home Burial" is a narrative poem that speaks of life's
tragedies. Robert Frost's writing style is very straight-forward and direct. In
"Home Burial" the setting appears to be the background of a tragedy
that centers around the death of a child. It is important for the reader to
recognize that "Home Burial" was pubished in 1914. That gives the
reader a better insight to understand the husband's reaction to the death of the
child. During this time period Society dictated that men should not show their
true feelings. Therefore, men tended to have dealt with conflicts by working
hard and being domineering. "Home Burial" demonstrates how one tragedy
can cause another to occur. There are three different tragedies that transpire
throughout this poem. The first tragedy is the burial of the child. The second
tragedy is the burial of the marriage. Finally, the most symbolic and ironic
tragedy is the burial of the home. Because of unfortunate circumstances the
three things closely associated with this home becomes buried. All of these
tragedies occurred as a result of the child's burial. This couple's marriage
could not survive such an emotional loss. Therefore the marriage becomes buried.
When the marriage became buried the home became its own burial spot for this
family's life. "Home Burial" tells a tale of tragedy in one family's
life. Robert Frost portrayed a very realistic chain reaction to tragedy in
"Home Burial"