Analytic Post- Fire and Ice

Fire is a symbol for passion and desire. Passion and desire are emotions that can overtake a person and can drive them to do things that they would have never done before. They cloud a person’s judgment easily. It is no wonder that Robert Frost believes the world can end in “fire”. People driven by passion and desire will do anything and everything to get what they want. In such a place, no morals exist so anything goes. The mere thought of that brings chaos and terror to my mind. Fire is not the only plausible cause for the destruction of the world; ice is quite possible as well. Ice symbolizes hatred. Hate is a very powerful emotion which causes nothing good. Hate can eat away at a person until they are nothing more then a hollow shell. With the hollow shell of a person walking around, what good can come of them? Hate is an emotion that can be passed on as quickly as the flu or another virus. So, is it not possible that hate can be just as destructive as its counterpart of passion/desire? “I think I know enough of hate to say that for destruction ice is also great…” Hatred destroys people and the people around them. With enough hate, it is logical to think that the world (as we know it) will end. *It is interesting to note that at the time of this poem, scientists were debating whether the world would end by burning from the inside out, due to its firey core, or whether there would be a second ice age that would destroy everything.