In this poem, the topic of death is implicite, it can be seen in many ways along the vers, through metaphors and images that put it in evidence. There are actually two principle ideas that make think about death in this poem: the description of the wood and the curious nameless character, only known as « He » (3).
The woods in winter described in the poem give an ambience of death: « Between the woods and frozen lake The darkest evening of the year » (7-8) « The woods are lovely, dark and deep » (13). The fact that this poem takes place in winter must be pointed out because it is a season (in occidental countries of course) associated with the death of nature, the long nights, the sleep of animals. The term « dark » come twice in the poem and black is a color usually associated with death in occidental culture. Though the narrator is not talking about a violent death, there is nothing associated with the fact itself of dying or its commitment, it is a peaceful death, associated with cold and dark, there is no action related to it, only descriptions creating an ambience.
There is also mystery in this poem, because there are a lot of elements that are not completely explained or revealed. The identity of « He » is never revealed and the exact localization of his house is unknown, like the reason of why he is expecting the narrator to join him « He gives his harness bell a shake To ask if there is some mistake » (9-10). Apparently the narrator was supposed to, but he continues his travel at the end of the poem. Thinking about was has been said previously, the « He » can be seen as an incarnation of the Death itself, because he is waiting the narrator in this strange atmosphere and the narrator does not come to him.
Even if this image of death could be an important theme of this poem, the central subject is the stop that the narrator is making and during which all of the events of the poem are happening. At the end of the poem the narrator goes on his road even if he is waited elsewhere and this is emphased by the repetition of the last vers « And miles to go before I sleep » (15-16).
The fact that the narrator is stopping brings several questions, because if he knows that those woods belongs to death itself « Whose woods those are I think I know » (1), he should go on and not stop for a moment. The more logical reason can be that the narrator is hesitating to stop here definitely. The woods are qualified
« lovely » (13) so the narrator appreciates them but in the following vers he says « But I have promises to keep » (14) and the « But » involves that he has others things to accomplish even if he enjoys the woods. The narrator has promises to keep before he may one day come back « and miles to go before I sleep » (15) The verb « sleep » is also a clue indicating the implicite subject of death in this poem.
At the end of the poem, the narrator refuses to confront death « He will not see me stopping there » (3) waiting for him, he continues through the snowy woods even if every elements of the poem is suggesting him to stop here for ever. As seen before, death can be interpreted in almost every vers and the narrator has to travel through the whole poem and finally carry on.