Nothing gold can stay.
Genuine
Yes. In New Hampshire (1923), ‘Nothing Gold Can Stay’, final three lines (lines 6–8); New Hampshire (1923), p. 84, said by the poem’s lyric voice. These are the character’s words, not a statement in Frost’s own voice.
Checked against Robert Frost, New Hampshire: A Poem with Notes and Grace Notes (New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1923; first edition, ‘Printed October, 1923’), ‘Nothing Gold Can Stay’, p. 84, p. 84, on a page scan.
- Work
- New Hampshire, 1923
- Where
- ‘Nothing Gold Can Stay’, final three lines (lines 6–8); New Hampshire (1923), p. 84
- Source
- Robert Frost, New Hampshire: A Poem with Notes and Grace Notes (New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1923; first edition, ‘Printed October, 1923’), ‘Nothing Gold Can Stay’, p. 84, p. 84
- Checked
- On a page scan
Researched by AI. Entry updated 23 October 2026. Editorial review: pending. How we check
About this quote
The scene
The short poem begins with the gold of nature’s first green and the brief flower-like appearance of an early leaf. Leaf becomes ordinary leaf; the fall of Eden and the passing of dawn into day extend the same pattern. The final sentence names the transience shared by these images.
What it means
A first, precious state of beauty or innocence cannot be held unchanged. The poem describes loss through ordinary growth and passing time as well as the biblical fall.
Often misread
Read only as a maxim about money or possessions, gold loses its connection to spring leaves, dawn and Eden. Read as a command to stay innocent, it reverses a poem about how an early state necessarily passes.
Topics
Related quotes
- There is a loneliness in this world so great that you can see it in the slow movement of the hands of a clock. Charles Bukowski
- Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else’s opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation. Oscar Wilde
- Some are born to enjoy illusions, others are cursed to see the truth. (not found) Friedrich Nietzsche
- The greater the difficulty, the more glory in surmounting it. Skilful pilots gain their reputation from storms and tempests. (misattributed) Epictetus
- Yet each man kills the thing he loves. Oscar Wilde
Sources
- archive.org/details/NewHampshireRobertFrost1923 (New Hampshire, New York: Holt, 1923, first edition: page images, p. 84)
- gutenberg.org/ebooks/58611 (Project Gutenberg e-text: public domain in the US only, not stored here)
- en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Robert_Frost
Cite it
Robert Frost, New Hampshire (1923), ‘Nothing Gold Can Stay’, final three lines (lines 6–8); New Hampshire (1923), p. 84. Spoken by the poem’s lyric voice. Checked at Quotogeny, https://quotogeny.com/q/nothing-gold-can-stay/ (23 October 2026).
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Checked by people
People who checked this entry against its source, under their own names. Their checks do not change the verdict: an editor reviews every entry.
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