"Design" by Robert Frost

While studying the poem “Design” by Robert Frost our teacher gave us classroom activity to draw a sketch of nature. Anything about nature, whatever we want. All students have drawn their imagination. As I’m not that much good at drawing but I tried to draw a sea, as water, sea and ocean always fascinates me. Here is my drawing of sea.

It is not exactly like sea but I’ve drawn sea only. I know its funny. Well that round in drawing, it is symbol of my dream. I’ve drawn it at bottom because it is trying to float. It doesn’t know how to swim.

Then we have one other task to read “Design” poem and draw something which can show what poem is saying. Design, an Italian sonnet by Robert Frost was published in 'A Further Range' in 1936. Here is my drawing of poem.

"Design" by Robert Frost


I found a dimpled spider, fat and white,
On a white heal-all, holding up a moth
Like a white piece of rigid satin cloth--
Assorted characters of death and blight
Mixed ready to begin the morning right,
Like the ingredients of a witches' broth--
A snow-drop spider, a flower like a froth,
And dead wings carried like a paper kite.

What had that flower to do with being white,
The wayside blue and innocent heal-all?
What brought the kindred spider to that height,
Then steered the white moth thither in the night?
What but design of darkness to appall?--
If design govern in a thing so small.

My Interpretation of Poem

Poet here choses the white color to justify the title of the poem and to show particular design of nature or of god. To find white spider is rare and to heal-all plants are normally blue but here they are also white and also the moth is white. The whole scene is also looking like white silky cloth. The day is also going to begun. The white color is symbolized is purity, beauty and goodness while day time or morning time also symbolized as life and also hope. But here in this poem the moth died when sun is rising and the white spider doesn’t look pure or good or beautiful. Here poet broke the myth of morning and white color, or may be poet wants to change the perspective and wants to show death is hope of beginning of new life and also wants to beautify death.

While in next stanza poet asks some questions like what that heal-all flowers have to do with being white because they are normally blue, then what spider is doing at that height. Simply he wants say that if design of god or nature is governed in so small things like this then how terrifying the design of darkness will be?

Here may be Frost wants to tell us that whatever is happening in our life is designed by goodness or darkness. If something terrifying is happening to our life it may be can the design of darkness and if something good happens to us it may can be the design of goodness.

Thank you.