# Mortality and Loss in New Hampshire

> Theme guide for New Hampshire by Robert Frost.

Death, grief, and the passage of time pervade the collection, seen in 'In a Disused Graveyard,' 'To E.T.,' and the haunting presence of the dead in 'The Witch of Coös.'

## Where it surfaces

- [The Census-Taker](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/the-census-taker): The decay of the house and the absence of people evoke a deep sense of loss and the passage of time.
- [Maple](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/maple): Maple's mother dies shortly after her birth, and the name becomes a lasting connection to that loss.
- [The Grindstone](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/the-grindstone): The grindstone's idle state and the memory of past labor evoke a sense of transience, loss, and the passage of time, symbolized by the Father-Time figure.
- [Place for a Third](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/place-for-a-third): The chapter centers on Eliza's death and the negotiation of her final resting place, highlighting grief and the desire for control over one's legacy.
- [Two Witches](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/two-witches): The skeleton in the attic and the murder it represents, along with the Pauper Witch's decline from youth to poverty, underscore themes of death and loss.
- [I: The Witch of Coös](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/i-the-witch-of-co-s): The skeleton represents death and the unresolved past; the mother's confession reveals a murder and the haunting consequences.
- [An Empty Threat](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/an-empty-threat): The poem invokes Henry Hudson's dark fate and the extinct Great Auk, meditating on failure, death, and the haunting legacy of lost endeavors.
- [I Will Sing You One-O](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/i-will-sing-you-one-o): The poem contrasts the eternal, unchanging stars with human history of conflict and decay, evoking a sense of loss and the transient nature of human endeavors.
- [Grace Notes](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/grace-notes): Evident in 'In a Disused Graveyard,' 'To E. T.,' and 'Fire and Ice,' where death, destruction, and the end of the world are contemplated.
- [Fire and Ice](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/fire-and-ice): The poem directly addresses the ultimate destruction of the world, framing it through the human emotions of desire and hate.
- [In a Disused Graveyard](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/in-a-disused-graveyard): The poem centers on death, the inevitability of dying, and the human fear of mortality, as seen in the graveyard's verses and the speaker's reflection on why no dead come.
- [To E. T.](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/to-e-t): The poem mourns the death of a friend and the permanent silence of unspoken words.
- [Nothing Gold Can Stay](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/nothing-gold-can-stay): References to Eden sinking to grief and the loss of gold evoke themes of mortality and inevitable loss.
- [Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/stopping-by-woods-on-a-snowy-evening): The 'darkest evening of the year' and the repeated line 'miles to go before I sleep' suggest a meditation on death and the obligations that delay it.
- [The Onset](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/the-onset): The speaker likens the snowfall to death overtaking a person, yet finds precedent in nature's resilience against winter's 'death.'
- [To Earthward](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/to-earthward): The speaker's longing for the sting of tears and the stain of love reflects a deep engagement with loss and the passage of time.
- [Not to Keep](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/not-to-keep): The soldier's wound and the inevitability of his return to danger highlight the constant presence of death and loss.
- [Looking for a Sunset Bird in Winter](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/looking-for-a-sunset-bird-in-winter): The absence of the bird and the dying of the warm season evoke a sense of loss and the passage of time.
- [Misgiving](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/misgiving): The speaker contemplates death and the afterlife, hoping that the desire for rest does not overcome the quest for knowledge beyond life.
- [The Lockless Door](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/chapters/the-lockless-door): The knock may symbolize death or change, and the speaker's evasion suggests a confrontation with mortality.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/themes/mortality_and_loss
- Themes index: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/new_hampshire_se/themes