Rose Family, The

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Rose Family, The By definition the word “beautiful” means “having qualities that give great pleasure or satisfaction to see, hear, think about, etc.” However, society has many variations on this definition, a description that has changed dramatically over the course of many centuries. Early American poet Robert Frost gives his two cents on the subject with his witty poem “The Rose Family.” By ludicrously utilizing the idea of an apple or a pear becoming a rose, he manipulates the rich literary tradition of exhausting roses for female beauty. The poem incorporates mockery and science to derive meaning from a perhaps conceptual thought: that beauty is not real, it only exists in perception. Thus, by exploring the human’s comprehension of nature and the universe, Frost nonchalantly addresses the notion that nothing is essentially unique or by definition beautiful, we are who people perceive us to be. The poem opens with the unpretentious statement “The rose is a rose.” Not only is the line simple to the point that it can be conceived as an understatement, it is also a reminiscent of Gertrude Stein’s “Rose is a rose is a rose” from the poem “Sacred Emily.” Likewise, it is this line that prepares the reader for an ironically romantic poem. By minimizing the importance of a rose we can assume Frost is diminishing the meaning behind the term “rose”. In today’s culture we view the rose as the romantic flower, symbolizing beauty and sophistication. Frost takes advantage of this notion and makes it the focal point of his witticism. By belittling the “rose” Frost begins to sarcastically suggest that it is juvenile for society to conceive the idea of the rose changing, i.e beauty altering is feasible. In order to fully comprehend the next four lines of the poem it is necessary for one to obtain knowledge of plant biology. Moreover, the poem proceeds to implement science as
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