How Does Frost Tell the Story in "Out, Out"

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How does Frost tell the story in “Out, Out” In “Out, Out”, Frost tells the story by personifying the saw and making it appear to have a mind of it’s own. The fact that the saw “snarled and rattled” makes it seem like it is destructive. It is also interesting to note that there is a contrast between man and machine, as the first line echoes the fact that the saw is animate yet machine like. The loud noise of the saw also contrasts with the tranquillity of the setting and almost seems to pollute the serenity of nature. Frost could have done this because he is trying to portray man-made objects and industry in a negative way. It also highlights the conflict between the industry and nature, as well as culture, as the boy is forced to grow up too quickly, which goes against. Frost also uses caesura to signify a turning point in the poem, like when the boy’s sister tells “them ‘Supper’. At the word, the saw, as if to prove saws knew what supper meant”. This is a significant turning point in the narrative, as afterwards, the boy loses control of the saw, which ends up hitting his hand. Another example would be when the boy was keeping “The life from spilling. Then the boy saw all” which signifies that he is finally realising that his future is bleak, and because he was forced to be more mature and do an adult’s job, he realises that he will never be able to have a childhood. The last part of “Out, Out” reveals the unimportance of child workers such as the boy. When they listen to his heartbeat, there was “Little-less-nothing! - and that ended it”, which emphasises how quick the boy’s death is. Furthermore, there is no build up to the boy’s death in this part of the poem, and since the people “were not the one dead, turned to their affairs”, which implies that they have acknowledged the boys death and moved on. This could be a reflection of all child workers
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