Death of the Hired Man

by Robert Frost

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Student Question

What is the thematic importance of "home" in the poem "Death of the Hired Man"?

Quick answer:

In "Death of the Hired Man," the thematic importance of "home" is that it symbolizes a place of unconditional acceptance and love. While Warren views Silas's claim to their home as overstepping, Mary sees it as a rightful refuge due to Silas's trust and lack of alternatives. The poem ultimately portrays home as a sanctuary where bonds, whether biological or emotional, are honored.

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Frost's poem contains one of the most quoted lines in all of poetry;  "Home is the place where, when you go there, they have to take you in" (lines 118-119). 

The idea is that "home" is the one place where you cannot be rejected.  One is bonded for life to their biological ties, but "home" is also the place where love creates an unbreakable bond. 

The conflict of the concept of home occurs when the itinerant worker, Silas, makes himself too comfortable, in the eyes of Warren, the owner of the home he shares with his wife, Mary.  Warren feels that Silas is taking advantage of them and their good nature, making claims of "home" to which he has no right, for Silas is not a blood relation. 

Mary, however, is more open to the concept of home.  She feels that because Silas has placed such trust in them, and because Silas has no other place to go, that the man can rightfully claim their home as refuge, even if he has a living relative.  Mary pleads with her husband, "But have some pity on Silas.  Do you think / If he had any pride in claiming kin/ Or anything he looked for from his brother, / He'd keep so still about him all this time?" (135-38).  For additional leverage, Mary reminds Warren of Silas' service.  "But Warren," she cajoles, "please remember how it is: / He's come to help you ditch the meadow" (156-57). 

Home, indeed, is where the heart is. 

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What is the idea of home in "Death of the Hired Man" and its importance?

It is definitely like reading a short story, and I felt that way until I got to the second page where the one of the longer stanzas is found. As I read in my mind I could feel something very familiar going on--the rhythm! I went back and counted syllables in the lines and compared them to others in the poem only to find that he mostly used iambic pentameter. How fun that was to discover that he wrote most of it in blank verse! Bravo! I thought back to my professor teaching our class about the fact that iambic pentameter is most like every day speech and thought it quite an appropriate technique when discussing a common topic among common folk like farmers.

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