Heart and Home in Frost's Term Paper

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Mary tells Warren that home is the "place where, when you have to go there, / They have to take you in" (122-3). This displeases Warren because he does not feel Silas deserves to call their home his own. Warren is not convinced and as he discusses Silas' brother with Mary, he claims Silas is "worthless" (149). Here we see how Warren thinks people should earn most of the things they have in life, including a place to call their own. Mary, on the other hand, understands Silas' need to feel as though he has returned to a safe place to spend his last days. With Silas at "home" she has hope for the future, even though Silas' state is grim.

Through irony, Frost also demonstrates how we all die alone despite our best efforts. Silas returns to a place he knew as home but in the end, Warren and Mary were bickering while he lay dying. Silas looked to the couple for companionship during his last days but he found none. Silas wants to do things to help Warren around the farm and while this sounds good, it may too little too late. Warren has no faith in Silas and Silas is too old and frail to be of much help. He is alone even though he did not want to be. When Warren returns and tells Mary Silas is "dead" (175), he encapsulates everything he knew about Silas' life, past and present.
We may not all live like Silas did but we will probably all want to have someone near us when we die -- preferably someone we consider like family. While this is a nice image, Frost is pointing out how unnecessary it is because it will not change the fact that we pass through the pearly gates with no one holding our hand. Silas returned to the only home he knew but it did not do him much good in the end.

"Death of a Hired Man" is a poem that tells different stories about humanity. From the beginning, Frost illustrates the differences between men and women using the sad image of Silas. Warren takes the more harsh approach while Mary sees the sorrowful old man with nowhere else to go. The man was a mediocre worker and his impression was not good with Warren. Mary, however, sees with the heart and realizes Silas chooses them because of how their place felt like home to him. With this example, Frost also emphasizes the importance of the home and how it can be anywhere one feels comfortable and safe.

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