18 pages • 36 minutes read
Robert FrostThe Gift Outright
Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1941A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Further Reading & Resources
Related Poems
“The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost (1916)
Unlike “The Gift Outright,” Frost’s well-known poem “The Road Not Taken” features a specific “I.” While the people in “The Gift Outright” surrender themselves to America, the speaker in “The Road Not Taken” preserves their agency and makes a choice about the path they should take. As with “The Gift Outright,” the poem has an enigmatic, grim feel—it’s not clear why Frost’s speaker took the “road less traveled by” (Line 15) or why that decision “made all the difference” (Line 16).
“Tired” by Langston Hughes (1931)
Frost’s poem doesn’t present a conspicuously positive America, and neither does “Tired”—a lyric by the famous Black American poet Langston Hughes. While Frost arguably references the violent past of the United States in parentheses in Line 13, Hughes directly calls out inequities when his speaker prompts the reader to “cut the world in two— /And see what worms are eating / At the rind” (Lines 6-8). As with Frost, Hughes uses plural pronouns (“us”), assuming the audience identifies with the speaker.
“The Hill We Climb” by Amanda Gorman (2021)
Amanda Gorman recited “The Hill We Climb” for the inauguration of Joseph Biden in 2021. Like Frost, Gorman uses the plural pronoun “we,” turning her into a representative for the American voice. Unlike Frost, Gorman explicitly mentions America's violent past, noting that she descends from slaves. Gorman attended Harvard University and recited a poem at the 2021 Super Bowl. Her fame and influence arguably rival Frost’s literary stardom.
Further Literary Resources
“A Poem for President Drone” by Michael Robbins (2013)
For Barack Obama’s second inauguration, Yahoo asked poets to write an inauguration poem, and Robbins wrote a poem addressing Obama’s constant use of deadly drone strikes in predominately-Muslim countries. Unlike Frost, Robbins directly confronts America’s war and foreign policies. Robbins wrote an essay about the controversial poem, and the essay includes the original work.
“Political Poeticizing” by Siobhan Phillips (2015)
Phillips’s essay provides a postcolonial reading of Frost’s poem while conceding its ambiguity. She also details other inauguration poems and unpacks why poems written for inaugurations tend to be sanitized and problematic.
“Kamala Harris as the VP Pick Challenges What We Know About Representation” by Jenn M. Jackson (2020)
Part of the criticism of Frost’s poem is due to Frost’s identity as a white man. He was a privileged member of society, and his poem reflects his entitlement, making him an inadequate representative of America. The professor Jenn M. Jackson tackles the notion of representation, pitting descriptive representation versus substantive representation. The latter is superficial, while the former carries critical meaning. Jackson writes,
Substantive representation is less focused on physical attributes and similarities and more oriented toward the real-world policies and actions of legislators.
Thus, a person from a historically marginalized group doesn’t automatically speak for them or share their interests. Jackson makes her point through Vice-President Kamala Harris, but her nuanced thesis links back to poetry and representation. Arguably, a poet like Amanda Gorman has more in common with a poet like Frost than a less-visible person from a lower socioeconomic class.
Listen to Poem
Listen to—and see—Frost read his poem at the inauguration for John F. Kennedy. The footage shows Kennedy and his wife Jacqueline “Jackie” Kennedy. Frost struggles to read his first poem, so he pivots to “The Gift Outright,” which he recites from memory.
Related Titles
By Robert Frost
