The Gift Outright (Masterplots II: Poetry, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Robert Frost
- First Published: 1942
- Type of Work: Narrative
- Genres: Poetry, Narrative poetry
The Poem
Robert Frost’s “The Gift Outright,” perhaps most famous for having been read by the author at President John F. Kennedy’s inauguration on January 20, 1961, discusses the relationship between Americans and America. In its sixteen iambic pentameter lines, the poem questions and affirms Americans’ history as a nation.
Frost begins by setting out the major argument of the poem: “The land was ours before we were the land’s.” He proceeds to explain and clarify that statement. The physical land of America, the plot of earth itself, acts as a major...
[The entire page is 1354 words long]
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