One theme central to "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" is the contrast between society and nature.

From the first stanza, the speaker is on a journey between two places. He decides to "stop" and simply "watch [some] woods fill up with snow." This presents nature as a place of respite—a space to find serenity and a quiet stillness.

The speaker considers how his decision to stop must seem "queer" to his horse, who is likely used to pressing forward from point A to point B as quickly as possible. Undoubtedly, the speaker initially departed on this particular journey with a sense of urgency since it is the "darkest evening of the year." Yet despite his plans, he finds himself stopping in the midst of nature, completely alone and isolated as he notes the "easy wind" which blows through this forest.

This place of respite stands in contrast to the man whose "house is in the village" and who likely owns this property on which the speaker pauses. The speaker wants to avoid being seen by this man, which further demonstrates his desire to avoid a return to the restrictions of society. After all, who determines ownership of a beautiful wood covered in a majestic snowfall? The owner will never know of this speaker's presence, which demonstrates an ultimate futility in society's need to lay claim to the natural world.

Although these woods are "lovely," the speaker must eventually tear himself from the serenity of nature in order to continue on his journey. His obligations pull him back into the society which he would rather avoid and away from the sense of calm stillness which nature provides.

The speaker of the poem is mindful that he has "miles to go before" he can stop to rest, so aware is he and so pressing are his responsibilities that he actually repeats this idea twice at the end of the poem. He knows that his "promises" must be kept, his responsibilities met. However, he cannot help but be arrested by the beautiful and tranquil sight of the deep, dark woods "fill[ing] up with snow." It is the darkest evening of the year and the "downy flake" blows gently through the "lovely, dark and deep" forest. The speaker is so awed by the sight of the dark woods and the pure white snow that he stops, and even his horse is a little confused because he is used to their routine and knows that they would not normally "stop without a farmhouse near." Thus, one theme of the poem is that the beauty and tranquility of nature can provide a respite from the demands of society and work.

The two previous posts show how the interpretation of literature is fundamentally arbitrary.  There's no one right answer -- the first says it's about death, the second about accomplishing duties.

The eNotes discussion of themes of the poem argues that there are three main ones:

• Beauty
• Return to nature and how difficult it is to do this given the demands of everyday society.
• Duty and responsibility

As a non-literature person, I have always been struck by the beauty of the imagery or maybe it's the rhythm of the poem.  But I've always thought it was a beautiful and soothing poem.

If I had to pick what I think is the central idea, I would agree that it's about the second bullet above.

It seems that the narrator is contemplating death on this "darkest night of the year." Not that he is thinking about ending his own life, but he feels the lure of death that will be there later for him. Death looks to him "lovely, dark, and deep." Not scary, not grim, but rather welcoming, almost a relief.

But it is not yet his time, for he has connections with other people, "promises to keep" and a long way to go before the end finally comes..."miles to go before I sleep." Yet, it feels like he is comforted by the thought of the end in the distance. One day, sure, but not right now.

Frost focuses mostly on the theme of nature, and how the speaker's duties keep him from stopping and enjoying the beauty of nature.  He almost envies the owner of the woods.  He owns this beautiful land, yet he lives in town.  So there's a hint there that the owner does not appreciate what he has.

"Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though"

Even the horse gives his bells a little jingle as if he knows he's not supposed to be stopping.  It's as if the horse too has a sense of duty.  He understands that he is to keep moving and will stop when he gets to his stable. It's almost a reversal in roles here.  The man should be the one who continues on and the horse, being considered a part of nature himself, should long to stay a while.  Here it's the opposite.

The speaker longs to stay and enjoy the beautiful scenery, but knows he must move on after his brief stop.  He has "miles to go before [he] sleep[s]."

At the beginning of the poem, the speaker stops in the woods and simply enjoys the scene before him. He's in the country, and it is snowing. The beauty of it overwhelms him, and it's so quiet that the speaker hears nothing but a very gentle wind. He wants to go further into the woods, but if he gets lost, he won't be able to fulfill his obligations that he has in town, and he takes his promises to others very seriously. The speaker contrasts the man-made modern world with the elegant beauty of nature. He's more attracted to the natural world of the falling snow and the quiet, peaceful setting of nature, but he's pulled away from it by his obligations in the modern world.

This poem is about taking time to appreciate the beauty and wonder of nature. The speaker is overwhelmed by the sight of the snow on the fields, and he stops to enjoy it. He must move on, however, because he has responsibilities and "miles to go before I sleep."

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