When communicating, women typically value emotion, whereas men tend to rely on reason. The fact that men and women approach each other in different ways during conversation is crucial to the outcomes that result. A conversation would not end happily if a man speaks bluntly without considering the feelings of a woman, or when a woman keeps complaining rather than getting straight to the point. These circumstances are well presented in "Home Burial," by Robert Frost. .
"Can't a man speak of his own child he's lost," which is said twice by the unnamed farmer in "Home Burial", is simply his point throughout the conversation with Amy. He thinks that death is inevitable and Amy should move on, instead of "taking her mother-loss of a first child so inconsolably." The peace treaty he offers is "to bind himself to keep hands off anything special Amy is a-mind to name," which seems sincere, but not effective. He is always straightforward and uses numerous imperative clauses, such as "Don't go to someone else this time" and "Don't carry it to someone else this time," to emphasize his unwillingness of her leaving, and more importantly his caring for Amy, which is obviously not caught by her. However, a woman needs more than just some commands; she wants to feel connected to him, but the farmer cannot express himself effectively. If he shared his sorrow with .
Amy or explained his way of grieving (digging the grave with bare hands) to her, or if he said something like "I wish you were standing beside me when I was building that grave," consequences would have turned out completely different. .
On the other hand, Amy constantly accuses him of not being considerate. She challenges, "You don't," to show doubt that he sees what she was looking at; she also accuses him: "You don't know how to ask it," and "You can't because you don't know how to speak," in order to indicate his failure to understand her emotions.
