Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Robert Frost's poem "Fragmentary Blue" reflects on the beauty and significance of fleeting glimpses of the color blue in nature. Through his characteristic contemplative style, Frost questions why we place so much importance on these brief, fragmented appearances of blue when the sky provides a vast and continuous expanse of the color. The poem delves into the human inclination to find meaning and satisfaction in the transient and ephemeral aspects of life.

The poem begins with a rhetorical question:

"Why make so much of a fragmentary blue

In here and there a bird, or butterfly,

Or flower, or wearing-stone, or open eye,

When heaven presents in sheets the solid hue?"

Here, Frost asks why we value the scattered instances of blue found in various elements of nature—a bird, a butterfly, a flower, a stone, or an eye—when the sky itself offers an uninterrupted, expansive display of blue. This question sets the stage for exploring the relationship between the fragmentary and the whole, and the human tendency to appreciate the small and fleeting over the vast and constant.

The second stanza provides a possible explanation for this phenomenon:

"Since earth is earth, perhaps, not heaven (as yet) --

Though some savants make earth include the sky;

And blue so far above us comes so high,

It only gives our wish for blue a whet."

Frost suggests that because earth is not heaven, the perfect and eternal blue of the sky remains out of reach, both physically and metaphorically. He acknowledges that some scholars ("savants") argue that the earth encompasses the sky, implying a connection between the two realms. However, the distance and inaccessibility of the sky's blue make our desire for it even more intense. The phrase "gives our wish for blue a whet" means that the unattainable blue sharpens or intensifies our longing for it, much like a whetstone sharpens a blade.

By presenting these ideas, Frost touches on the human condition—our constant yearning for the unattainable and our tendency to find beauty and significance in the small, fragmented pieces of the world around us. The scattered glimpses of blue in nature serve as reminders of the vast, unreachable beauty of the sky, fueling our desire and appreciation for the fleeting moments of beauty we encounter.

In "Fragmentary Blue," Frost encapsulates the tension between the ephemeral and the eternal, the accessible and the unreachable. Through his reflective questioning and thoughtful imagery, he invites readers to consider why we cherish the brief and fragmentary instances of beauty and how they relate to our larger, more unattainable aspirations. The poem ultimately celebrates the human capacity to find meaning and joy in the transient, even as we remain ever aware of the greater, elusive beauty beyond our grasp.

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