stops because the woods are lovely and quiet The snow is falling on the trees He feels calm and peaceful It feels like a place where he can forget everything for a while Here the woods symbolize beauty and rest The poem gives us a sense that the speaker is tired from his long journey He wants a break from his duties So the woods become a place where he can stop breathe and enjoy nature The Woods Eternal Rest or Death But the woods are not only beautiful They are also lonely dark and deep As he says The woods are lovely dark and deep No one is there No one is watching him The cold dark empty woods look like a place where someone can die The speaker s wish to stay there longer hints at a deeper feeling Maybe he is too tired and sad He wants to escape from life completely So the woods also symbolize death or eternal rest The Horse Common Sense and Reality As the speaker stops the horse becomes confused The horse thinks it is strange to stop there Because it is a lonely dangerous place and there is no farmhouse nearby He says My little horse must think it queer The speaker thinks his horse is shaking the harness bells to give him a warning He says He gives his harness bells a shake To ask if there is some mistake The horse shakes his harness bells as if to ask whether they should move on Here the horse symbolizes the speaker s common sense It reminds him that stopping here is not normal and is dangerous It brings him back to reality It is like the speaker s sense is telling him to continue his journey He has responsibilities waiting for him The Journey Life and Responsibility The speaker is on a journey This journey symbolizes the journey through life Even though the woods attract him and he wants to stop he knows he cannot He still has promises and responsibilities to fulfill in his life So he decides to carry on his journey As he says in the most famous lines But I have promises to keep And miles to go before I sleep Here promises represents responsibilities Miles represents the rest of his life And sleep symbolizes the final rest or death The speaker cannot take his final rest until he completes his duties The Poem s Central Conflict The poem shows the conflict of the human heart Sometimes people feel tired Sometimes they want to escape or stop living But life does not allow that People must keep moving and carry out their responsibilities In fine it is a simple poem on the surface But Frost makes it deep with his symbols He shows the struggle between rest and responsibility The poem gently teaches that although we may feel tired we must continue our journey through life