Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I've tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To know that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice.
Notes
Composition date is unknown - the above date represents the first publication date.
The lyrical form of this poem is abaabcbcb.
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Comments
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ICE would suffice
From guest Ye Qin Zhu (contact)
The world will end with desire's fire, but it is one in the same depending on stance. The world will end with ice if one is to stand and watch indifferently as fire consumes. -
fire and ice
From guest anyonomous (contact)
i think that the peom means simply that the world would end in fire because of the desire but like fire ice can both give and take life and that they are equal, with diffrent ways to get to the same final conclusion -
""FiiRE && iiCE""
From guest MiZZ.ASHER :] (contact)
I believe this poem is saying that fire is desire and ice is equivalent to hate?! But the point of the matter is that hate and desire are the main factor in ending the world today. Not an ice age or global warmings. -
beautiful
From guest Lauren (contact)
Personally, I think that the term "world" represents Frost's relationship - and that together him and his lover are formed as one. Therefore I think he could be describing the status of the relationship now - how they have good times and bad times - and also how it would end well, or end badly (the hatred being represented by the ice). Just a thought :) -
Fire and Ice
From guest Aleksandra (contact)
This is my favourite Frost Poem. Personally.. ( well, im an ammature..) ..I take this poem as: Ok, there has got to be an end. An end to life, for the individual and an end to the conciousness of our world..which is always reinstated with the next in line. In the end, though... I think Frost is lamenting...or debating about how we as a people will end. Will it be in fire... destroying ourselves with our hot passion and desire?(So through extensive emotions towards human desire to bite of more than we could chew.. to create wars, to try and claim glory through another's deprivation) Or will we end.. in ice? Cold.. cemented will mistakes of the past.. so cold where there is nothing more to desire but the end? Well, that was my trail of thought anyway... :S Aleksandra. -
Startegy: The Falcon (contact)
Frost has always written with stategy...He creates a parallelism between hate and ice. He is a man who writes from a time where technology has yet to be prevalent. He writes from a perspective where the school of theology is giving way to psychology. Betwix the inner mind of humanity there lies not so much as judgement but choices and the future the choices have affected and how it will prolong life itself. -
From guest j bond (contact)
I don't mean to sound like I know what I'm talking about, but i trip over the second line. It seems a bit truncated. The addition of two, or even four more syllables on the second line would make this read smoother. -
fire and ice
From guest joshua frost (contact)
i think this is a poem about the ways that people have effect on the way the world will. an example would be the cold war. for years the people thought U.S. and the Soviet Union would bomb eachother and destroy the world -
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my view
From guest quyen tran (contact)
the fire is the hate and the ice is the desire which are destroying our being and world. -
My Veiw on the Poem Fire & Ice
From guest Leigh Anne (contact)
I believe that Robert Frost is trying to say Fire is equal to Desire and Ice is equal to Hate. There for he is not saying that fire and ice will destroy the world, he is saying Hate and Desire are what damn the world and will inevitably end it. -
fire and ice
Eclipse -
Ice And Fire
I have read the comments about this poem. FIRE is DESIRE; come on guys he SAYS this. DESIRE is hot, a kinetic emotion, and will destroy you. On the other hand HATE is cold by nature, a static emotion, and will also destroy you. -
From guest april nicole (contact)
Either way, it'd gotta happen, and there's nothing one extreme or the other can do to stop it. I guess Frost knew this unequivocally! THIS IS CONCISE! -
Wonderful piece of work to me this is obviously about the end of the world and of a man's life. Frost suffered of deep depression.
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DA BOMBDIGGITY
From guest rosie (contact)
oh my gosh this guy is lyke the best... he has an excellent way of discribing thigs through his point of veiw....i love him so much if he was alive i would have a love affair with him -
Hot Ice?
Did you know that there is a planet only 30 light years from here which is composed of hot ice? It orbits around a red dwarf star, fairly closely compared to Earth and our Sun, and it's relatively larger than earth. The increased atmospheric pressure produces the hot ice. This may be more a comment on current news than a comment on this poem.
Charley Noble -
Less is more
From guest They talk to me (contact)
I like it when people can actually get the point across without taking fifty stanzas to do it. Frost clearly illustrates that people who focuse to much on what they want instead of what they need will ruin them and everyone else as well. But our "icy" indifference for each other will do it just as easily. -
that was the best poem
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nice
From guest cooper hardison (contact)
this is a good poem it talks about cool stuff and stuff, i like this poem -
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Poetry is all in the depth of the meaning if you cant grasp the meaning then your point of good poem bad poem is invalid.
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My words cannot describe
This man was a legend, and his metric works, and his measured lines are, and have lately been my inspiration.
Just consider how he ironically places his bids upon the destruction of world, it's as if he's saying (what makes you think that life needs an elemental domination when it has got the worst of all entities..humans), but he also tags along, elaborating with those who persist to argue in such manner, that (yes, it might end in flames, as well as blizzards, all is certain, blazing oblivion is nearer, but frost, and cold death is also an opportunity)..
How sarcastic, how sie, and compelling, indeed..all we do is manage to debate on which will be our doom, when in fact we are our own demise.
He says in other words-- wake up you fools..
We made fire, and we made ice,
both shall roll their deathly dice.
This lyrical form, is one to be reckoned with, and indeed is interesting to follow.
Be well,
RD. -
Love it
From guest Jake. M (contact)
Although this movie doesn't imply an enormous amount of emotion, he was able to tell us exatcly what he woul want.. -
V. Good
From guest The Cadmanator (contact)
I've read this poem countless times, and each time I'm as awe-struck as the first. Amazing.. -
hmm...
I see many appreciated this piece, but I don't really think that it had a been influence over me...maybe, not a my kind of poem... -
I think.........
From guest Whitney (contact)
I think that this poem is fantastic! It tells of the world's more potential fate if our society keeps being cold blooded and hateful. The world will either end in two ways, ice (the world freezes over) or in fire (with the weapons of destruction from war). -
fire and Ice
From guest Zeke the Frog (contact)
Says it all succinctly.
I've never read anything (yet) by this guy that I didn't think was top.
What i'd give for a talent like that. -
The meaning (I Guess)
From guest Eli August (contact)
This is what I think he means with this peom but I'm not really a super peom fan & only 9th grade so bear with me if I'm off a wee bit
I really like this poem; it says some very true things about earth. It will end in either ice (an ice age) or fire (destruction by war) also in my mind it somewhat makes you think that you only live once (if you aren’t Hindu) so live your life to the fullest. I also like the flavor of words that Robert uses; he makes simple words very clear & visual. I find it reasonable to find why Frost wins to die from fire than ice sense ice would make you suffer before you truly freeze the death while fire (destruction) will kill you swiftly but also fire is a symbol of man destroying everything just because of their ignorance. But Robert if he had no option he’ll deal with ice, it would be suffice to his eyes seeing that the human race didn’t suicide its own existence. So I pretty much see it in more of a physical way than emotional or mentally I guess -
Sensational/bloody brilliant!/breathe taking/truthful
I have to admit, I have never thought about how the world will perish, but after reading this poem, I did. I think that the world will persih in both Fire and Ice, because they are both destructive. This poem is good, and has inspired me to write more dealing with these two destructive forces. -
Sensational/bloody brilliant!/breathe taking/truthful
I have to admit, I have never thought about how the world will perish, but after reading this poem, I did. I think that the world will persih in both Fire and Ice, because they are both destructive. This poem is good, and has inspired me to write more dealing with these two destructive forces. -
Thought Inducing
I really loved this poem. It sums up pretty much all the answers to all the questions about what the end of the world might be like without usuing cliche or too many over-used, 0ver-rated, fancy choke on 'em words
Peace & Love,
May
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One of the first poems I ever heard
My dad use to read robet Frost to me. I guess he gets into your very blood. -
Loved It
Metaphorically this is brilliant, and simplistic at the same time. I detest over-analyzing poems, when it is very clear what he meant. I see desire as meaning greed, and ice he made very clear. It also didn't matter to him how the world ended, just that it would eventually end! -
interesting twist to this piece
I think I know enough of hate
To know that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice
very interesting topic -
HeartBreath
Think the only possible reading is that fire is passion/desire while ice is hatred. Unfortunately, hatred as ice just does not make sense. Ice can be apathy, indifference or even arrogance but certainly not hatred . I do not think it clicks and I must assume that the Frost simply could not find the right imagery to go with the rhyme. It may sound absurd but the poetic way is the same and sometimes poets go with second best or third best because the rest is so good. Take for example Dylan's wonderful poem "do not go gentle into that good night" There is a line "you my father there on your sad height" which is so silly and sounds silly. It is absolutely forced. In Frost's case it does not sound forced but has the opposite problem : the meaning makes no sense! I'd love someone to prove me wrong because, hey, I love the poem otherwise. -
contemplative and impressive... in crisp words...
the poet anticipates... that the world would end in fire... which is lust
or the ice ... which is hatred for fellow human beings...
he says... he knows enough of both...
so he anticipates that the world will perish in lust ...
and even if lust gets extinguished... he is sure... the world will end in hatred and bitterness... which is also equally sufficient to cause destruction...
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cool
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How is this possible?
This is by far the best poem I have ever read. I found myself reading it over and over at least a dozen times. The flow and words are masturful. If I were half the poet this man was I could die happy. -
BRILLIANT
This is one of my fav. poem.Two contradictory ideas are merged in this poem.Simply beautiful. -
It's all about how your your life leds to your dismay
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bloody brilliant!
This reminds me of the Norse myth of the Ragnarok, for sure. It makes me want to put on some good post-apocalyptic folk music like Current 93 and jam. This is my first reading of this poem, and I am totally blown away. Robert Frost is a genius and I am looking forward to reading more of his work.... -
I sure hope it will not be by ice! Neither as a matter of fact. This poem gave me a bit of a chill thinking of the choices for “the end”! I suppose I could that this in a different light as a metaphor and not literal. Either way it makes one “think”. Good poem!
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MasterPiece
I really like this poem. There are two opposite things which can destroy eachother and then fire and ice can destroy the world too. Robert Frost is a great poet. I love the way he puts small but complicated things in his writings. I admire his work. -
SENSATIONAL
this is amazing. i love this piece very much. this is out of this world. i enjoy myself very much reading forst's poem. this is a masterpiece -
a really great poem
you know i have never really thought of it the way riley has put it. i know we all have our own interpretations of it. but you are right, both ice and fire can destroy humanity. your ideas about anger and hatred and apathy might be right on.
-mike -
[[From what I've tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.]]
I love those two lines, and I love this poem. Of all of Frost's works that I've read, this has to be one of my favorites. -
I must say one thing first. I wish I could have met this man in person. This is for me ONE of the best poets all time. I just live the way he came write a few lines and say so much. It touches my mind my body and my soul. Few authors can do that to me. I personal must say that this poem is the one that hang on my wall and I read it as often as I can to remind me that you only live once and that you must live it the best you can. I am glad that we wrote so much.
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Another one of Frost's short yet grandiose poems. Very deep.
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The great thing about poetry is that you can interpret it to mean whatever you like. I personally interpret the fire in here to be anger and hatred and the ice to be depression and apathy. Excesses of either really could destroy humanity.
Of course, we're an ethnocentric species. Whenever we speak of the world ending, we really talk about humanity ending. I have no doubt that humanity can kill off. But I think people don't give this planet enough credit. We may be able to poison this planet so much that we all die and that it takes several million years for it to recover possibly, but it will recover and some other species will recover to dominance. Those enivirnomentalists who say "Save Earth!" really mean "Save Humanity!"
The Earth can take whatever we throw at it. And if I'm wrong, if it can't, the Earth won't care any way. It's a planet, it doesn't have feelings. So either way, we kill ourselves off and we and the other species we destroyed would be the only ones who care. Comforting thought, isn't it? -
i love this poem soo much im glad my 9th grade teacher made me memerize it its beautiful and it holds such truths about the world and the people who populate it.
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I think that this poem is very good because it is really just talking about how the world will end and it does have a rhym scheme and oxymorons
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I enjoy how different we see things, it certainly is what makes the world interesting, and beautiful. I have always construed fire to emcompass both love and hate. I read somewhere once, that the opposite of love is not hate, but apathy, and i hold that true. Psychologically, if you were to look at the emotions of man, in my perspective ( not at all fact), is that the fire of passion, projects into the hatred we come to know. The truth is, for us to hate something, we must care about something, something that can only be accomplised with an ardent vigor. However, you examine ice, and the apathy of things. Imagine, that your mother denied you....after years of love, she denies you, and doesnt care....that destroys the rest of you.( assuming you loved her)...in the end...it destroys your mother, because she didnt love...bottomline, is that both extremes are bad, both passion/hate, and indifference. In comment to the in flux of eastern philosophies, i can concur, especially because in the most simplistic taoist philosophy, some of the most profound doctrines are attributed to nature. I can see , why Frost may have thought, of a ying yang perhaps as he wrote this, but i've always liekd to think of this as a warning to everyone...i think , that we must find our salvation through an understanding of fire and ice, but not an all out fall in of it, because that can be our downfall, and lead us to misery.( sorry if this was too long)
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I love this poem. It's short, but every line is beautiful and dense in emotion. There is so much meaning to this poem...and many different ways to look at it. I like Alliecat's point, because that's what I got out of it the first time I read it; Fire is the passion of man, while ice is the hatred, and either way the passion or hatred will kill us all.
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Well, also keep in mind the time which Robert Frost was writing in. The Eastern philosophies had begun to spread and become popular even over here. He could be comparing the Judeo-Christian River of Fire to the Eastern Crags of Ice, both forms of Hell which are very opposite.
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Ah, I love Robert Frost. He's quite possibly my favorite poet...I love how he uses metaphors. The first time I read this through, I got the idea of people destroying themselves either way, but I can also see where Allie's interpretation comes in. All perspective, I suppose, that's the best thing about writing.
-Proxy -
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heartbreath
Think the only possible reading is that fire is passion/desire while ice is hatred. Unfortunately, hatred as ice just does not make sense. Ice can be apathy, idifference or even arrogance but certainly not hatred . I do not think it clicks and I must assume that the Frost simply could not find the right imagery to go with the rhyme. It may sound absurd but the poetic way is the same and sometimes poets go with second best or third best because the rest is so good. Take for example Dylan's wonderful poem "do not go gentle into that good night" There is a line "you my father there on your sad height" which is so silly and sounds silly. It is absolutely forced. In Frost's case it does not sound forced but has the opposite problem : the meaning makes no sense! I'd love someone to prove me wrong because, hey, I love the poem otherwise.
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my favorite
I love this poem so much, it is my favorite. If you stop to think about it's meaning, i think that you would like it too. Either way, the world is one day going to end, either by fire or by ice. Fire is the emotion, the extreme passion, just human emotions. But the ice is hatred and being cold to other people. If we don't warm to eachother, the coldness and hatred in the world is going to be anouhg to destroy us all. God I love this poem. What are your feelings about it? I'm open to discussions/ other ideas.
allie -
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