Frost's "Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening" conjures a tone of quiet reflection and wintry reminiscence. When the rider first stops, he knows he is trespassing, but knows the owner's house is in the village. Winter imagery is obvious, of course, but the reader is left questioning about "the darkest evening of the year." The reader reflects, as the rider is reflecting on the scene and ruminating about "darkness" and "winter." The quiet reflection and feeling that there's some work to be done arrives full force in the last stanza. With "But I have promises to keep" and the twice repeated "and miles to go before I sleep" we are reflecting on a job at hand and left wondering what these promises are that keep the rider out so late and in such wintry weather. The feelings are not of pain or sadness, but more of a meditative appreciation and realization that there's still much to be done that day (or figuratively in the rider's life).
He uses a consistent rhyme scheme and the same number of syllables in each line.
