The Silken Tent

The Silken Tent

She is as in a field a silken tent
At midday when the sunny summer breeze
Has dried the dew and all its ropes relent,
So that in guys it gently sways at ease,
And its supporting central cedar pole,
That is its pinnacle to heavenward
And signifies the sureness of the soul,
Seems to owe naught to any single cord,
But strictly held by none, is loosely bound
By countless silken ties of love and thought
To everything on earth the compass round,
And only by one's going slightly taut
In the capriciousness of summer air
Is of the slightest bondage made aware. 

Robert Frost incorporated symbolic meaning throughout his poem “The Silken Tent”. The title alone shows the deception of the poem by creating this image of a luxurious loose tent. The tent is symbolic and intern is a woman who like a tent is a foundation and structure but for her loved ones. This woman holds her own tent up, keeps it erect physically and spiritually. Frost expresses more about the symbolism's as he wrote “And its supporting central cedar pole/That is its pinnacle to heavenward” (5-7). The cedar pole he’s describing is symbolic for inner strength and durability. There are many types of words, Frost chose this particular type to stress how supportive, emotionally and physically the woman is for her family. The cedar pole being central emphasized her role as the center and everything she loved was revolving around her, she kept it bonded together. When frost mentions the cedar pole toward heaven it is symbolizing her soul. This woman is compared to heaven, she’s respected, loving and protective. If the woman described in the poem was not the foundation “tent”, as strong as “cedar pole” or pointed towards heaven her soul would leave earth and that structure she built would fall apart.