The Rose Family
The Rose Family - meaning Summary
Essence Persists Despite Theory
Frost playfully questions contemporary attempts to reclassify things by abstract theory. He contrasts a stubborn, simple truth — "the rose is a rose" — with a trend that stretches the category to include apples, pears, and plums. The speaker treats such theoretical renaming as passing fashion, unsure what will next be declared a rose. In the final lines the poem becomes personal: addressing a beloved, the speaker insists that she "was always a rose," restoring concrete identity and affection against reductive or speculative labels.
Read Complete AnalysesThe rose is a rose, And was always a rose. But the theory now goes That the apple’s a rose, And the pear is, and so’s The plum, I suppose. The dear only knows What will next prove a rose. You, of course, are a rose – But were always a rose.
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