Your Favorite Line in the Poem
“So dawn goes down to day”
The Multiple Meanings
Frost says somewhere that the shorter the poem, the higher the standard of perfection. “Nothing Gold Can Stay” is a perfect example. How poignantly the line “So Eden sank to grief” deepens what begins as a simple nature poem. My favorite, however, is “So dawn goes down to day”—not just for the alliteration, which is beautiful, but for the double nature of “to day”—two words on the page that can snap together like an elastic band when read “by ear.” Today. This day!
Lessons Learned
How those two words bring the poem’s lament into the present moment.
