One of Robert Frost’s most well know works: “The Road Not Taken”, is arguably one of the most controversial and misunderstood poems. By just reading the title, it seems fairly simple to assume that the poem is about making choices. When the speaker is presented the two roads he must make a choice as to which path he will take for he: “Could not travel both” (Line 2). As the speaker looks down both paths as far as he can, he deciphers back and forth from believing that the paths are equal to one path is better over the other. The speaker eventually decides which path to take and he states that his choice: “Has made all the difference” (Line 20). The title and plot lead people to believe that the central theme is about choices and the importance …show more content…
Though he may want to try it out, he comes to terms with the fact that there is no turning back and that: “Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back” (Lines 14,15). With these lines, Frost uses the tone of regret and shows that it is the speaker’s original choice that led him to his own new road. To carry on that tone of regret, in the sixteenth line the speaker states that he: “Shall be telling this with a sigh” (Line 16). By saying this, the speaker unintentionally shows that he is nostalgic on the decision of his path. If he were to be told which path to take, he may not have been in the position of regret. While the speaker was unsure of his road in the beginning, he also ended up being unsure of if he could take the other path later on. Yet again, Frost shows that the speaker had to be self reliant in his decisions, showing that he is alone in the world. Everyone has a journey to take in life and everyone is on their own individual path. While others may be along for the ride, it is ultimately everyone fighting for themselves and going places alone. Frost’s poem “The Road Not Taken” shows just this. He uses the simple task of a fork in the road with a division of paths to show how human desolation is real
"The Road Not Taken" is one of the number of Frost's poems that has endures through the years. Frost is well known for his reflective and philosophical nature within his poems. "The Road Not Taken" is both about actual roads as well as paths in life. The first person narrator of the poem describes his decision-making process as he takes a walk or hike in the outdoors. The narrator literally comes to a point in his journey where the road he walks splits; his most important choice for his current journey, as well as the entire journey that is his life comes to a crucial juncture. The poem and the author intend for the reader to engage with the experience of making choices in life. Readers may consider that the everyday choices made in life have literal, direct, and immediate results, yet each of the small choices additionally
The speaker decides on a path. In lines 16-20, Frost writes “I shall be telling this with a sigh somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference. As I mentioned earlier, the speaker sighs in line 16, wishing he could have taken both roads. He opted to choose the grassy road that wanted wear (line 9). The speaker reflects back on this decision, noting that his choice has made all the difference in his life. To me, this last line reflects contentment and gratification in his earlier life choice.
To start with, Frost displays the main idea of decision making by the words he uses throughout the poem. As much as people do not want to make choices, it is going to happen; life is full of them. Indeed, the first line hints that a choice is going to have to be made. “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood” (1). Therefore, people have to decide whether to go left or right, this way or that way. For some people making a decision is the hardest thing to do. Sometimes the choices presented in front of people could work either way. In the poem, Frost makes both roads seem equally desirable that the reader has no idea as to what path the traveler will choose. “Had worn them really about the same,” (10). With the choices being similar it makes deciding that much harder. Then there are some who, no matter what choice they make are never satisfied. Also, people often doubt their own abilities to make decisions and go into the “what if” mindset. With this in the
Choices are everywhere, some here, and some there, some good and others, not so good. “The Road Not Taken” is a poem written by Robert Frost which is all about choices, and how tradition affects those. In “The Road Not Taken”, Frost conveys that someone who decides to take a different path from the usual, leaves traditions behind and has new choices.
In the poem “The Road Not Taken,” Frost compares two roads to the choices people make daily between themselves. As it represents each decision being made, it also involves the new paths they will create and develop throughout the journey. The first stanza reveals that “two roads diverged in a yellow wood, / And sorry I could not travel both” (Arp, 725). In other words, the poem explains how the flow of people’s lives depends on certain decisions they make. To further elaborate, in the real world, people are faced with questions every day that direct them to various changes in
There comes a time in everyone’s life that we are forced to make lifelong decisions. What is chosen may more and or less be based off mood, values and priorities. Our behaviors and actions are what help us shape our future, therefore being very careful is a key quality in life when your deciding the next step, sometimes its known that bad decisions can lead to having regrets. “The Road Not Taken,” by Robert Frost relates to this because in the poem he describes being in the same situation of deciding which “road” will lead him to being and living a successful life or possibly living in regret. The use of metaphors, archetypes, and imagery were used throughout the poem to give a meaning of making your own decisions and really think about long term goals.
Robert Frost’s, “The Road Not Taken”, addresses challenges every human must face. The poem describes a man in the woods who has come upon two trails. The man is faced with a decision. The poem explains that the paths look very similar, but each leads to a different outcome. The poem is a direct represents facing or two choices. Choices define people. Frost sheds light on the difficulty and curiosity that comes with making decisions and how people will allow pre-determined regret to affect the choices they make. (Secondary source)
When analyzing literature, there are many different interpretations on what the poem, or book, might be about. In the poem by Robert Frost, “The Road Not Taken”, you can interpret so many different things. In the poem, there are at least two different interpretations and even more if delved into deeper. One popular interpretation comes off of the bottom three lines in the last stanza. The lines are, “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I, I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.” The common interpretation that people use with these lines is that the speaker in the poem took the road less taken by others, and it paid off in the end. The other clear interpretation that people could get out of this poem is that in the first three stanzas, the speaker was talking about the path they took and why they took it. And then in the last stanza, the speaker is saying how in the future, they will talk about
"The Road Not Taken" Everyone is a traveler, choosing the roads to follow on the map of the continuous journey of life. There is never a straight path that leaves someone with a single direction to head. Regardless of the message that Robert Frost had intended to convey, his poem "The Road Not Taken", has left many interpretations for his readers. It is one's past, present, and his attitude with which he looks upon his future. In any case however, this poem clearly demonstrates Frost's belief that it is the road that one chooses that makes him the man who he is. It is always difficult to make a decision because it is impossible to wander what opportunity lies at the other end and what will be
Frost wrote another great poem called “The Road Not Taken” that also deals with deciding between two possibilities. This poem is set in the woods during what seems like the fall time. A person has come to a fork in the road that they are walking on and they must make the decision on which path to follow knowing that they can’t travel both. The person examines both paths equally and finds that one appears to be less traveled than the other, so he decides to take the one less traveled. He states that he kept the first path for another day though he doubts he will return (Frost). This decision between two roads may seem irrelevant because the two roads will always be there and he can always return but if you allow the road to be a metaphor for his life then the poem is more relatable. For instance, this scenario is highly applicable to many decisions that you may be faced with in life. This person didn’t just make a decision quickly, he took into consideration what each road had to offer then made a decision based on what he felt was the best for himself. His decision between these two roads is a
Robert Frost was an American poet who was well-known for his realistic depictions of rural life and his appreciation of American colloquial speech. He wrote the poem “The Road not taken”, after walking with Edward Thomas, another poet. Thomas was indecisive about which road to take and in the end they both agreed that they should have taken the other one, not really knowing which one was better. Overall, this poem was written as a joke but was taken seriously after Thomas presented it to some college students. In the ironic title “The Road Not Taken”, Frost discussed the decisions a traveler must make when given two very similar choices, about which road to take since he cannot take both. While the tone is reflective, the poem has actual and figurative meaning, and it contains poetic element such as irony, ambiguity, conflict and symbolism.
He predicts that he will always remember this moment of choice and will be telling it "with a sigh" (16) when he is old. His choice will have made "all the difference" (20) and affected his whole journey. Frost creates a tone of inevitability that no matter what the choice, there will always be regret.
The Road Not Taken was published in 1916, almost 100 years before I would read and find direction from his words. On the first read through I knew that this poem would soon be a favorite of mine, as it is for so many other people. This is understandable because of the poems timeless nature about an age old question, which path do I take? Throughout life we are faced with choice after choice, these choices form the route that becomes our life. So choosing your path when it comes to a fork in the road is a crucial part of where you end up and who you become. In the first stanza frost outlines an important factor of making a choice:
Deep down, the traveler knows he won’t be able to walk the other road and part of him regrets his decision, but he’s also accepted his decision knowing that his choice makes him, him. In Robert Frost’s poem,
Robert Frost uses a plethora of literary devices to present the idea that humans are the product of the decisions they make. “The Road Not Taken” uses analogy, and an allegorical story where a man is walking down a road and is forced to choose a path to follow. While the poem illustrates a man walking down a road, the actual words of the poem can be translated into a deeper meaning of person being forced to pick between two paths of life. Frost some time to describe the different paths. In the second two lines of the first stanza, the narrator explains that he looked down one path as far as he could, but under growth prevented him from seeing far.