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The Road Not Taken

Decent Essays
The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth; (5)

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the same, (10)

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back. (15)

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the
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Diction is the poet 's choice of words to create meaning based on the denotation and connotation of any given word. The word "sorry" in the "and sorry I could not travel both" (2) has a strong meaning of regret; it shows that the persona was regretful before he even made the choice. He knows that he can only choose one or the other. Then, the word "sigh" in the "I shall be telling this with a sigh" (16) expresses regretful and sadness. The persona tells his decision he made at the past time with a facial expression of regret. Next, the word "difference" in the "and that has made all the difference" (20) has a meaning of changing in his life.

From the poetry devices, we can see the literariness and the meaning of the poem. The choice that the persona made in front of the two diverging roads impacts the rest of his journey. Same as the persona, people are just like that traveler, traveling on the journey of life. The journey consists of many roads. Different choices on different roads lead to different destination and impact the rest of
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