Robert Frost wrote “The Road Not Taken” at the beginning of the 1900s to underline the difficulty of choices that people have to make. However, after a close reading, it is possible to define a number of meanings and intentions of the author. Frost discusses the theme of options that are usually available to people and shows the roots of human doubts and concerns. When a person has several options, it is never easy to stay confident, and some regrets and comparisons continue bothering people.
There are four stanzas, each of the five lines in the poem (quintains). The rhyme is masculine, as it is observed between the final stressed syllables in two lines (ABAAB). Both these rhythmic features differ from regular standards of British poems, proving the uniqueness of the poem and the complexity of the ideas that bother the speaker. To share such a composite message with the reader, Frost uses strong figurative language and symbols. Metaphors like “road,” “a yellow wood,” and “grassy and wanted wear” describe the unpredictability of life and the nature of hesitations. Images of leaves and the personification of words set the tone of something fleeting but amazing and powerful. Frost also perfectly applies the repetition of vowels and consonants to make the reader focus on particular parts of the poem and define the mood that has to be followed.
In general, “The Road Not Taken” becomes a classic example of how to combine different literary devices and raise a number of crucial topics in human life. Symbols make it possible to develop the reader’s imagination, and alliteration confirms the power of a poem and rhyme. Life is probably the most complex road people should take, and Frost describes why choices may help and distract, support, and lead astray.
The road not taken is a poem that most people have misinterpreted for a long time. Some say the poem the poet is talking about a road less travelled. However, a keen look at the poem reveals the opposite as the speaker talks about a road not taken at all as opposed to a road less travelled. The last stanza of the poem is ironic and talks about choosing a road and living with the decision.
The speaker is not concerned with the road less traveled, but choosing one road at the fork. A decision to take one road has to be made because “And sorry I could not travel both” (Frost 2). No road is less travelled as the speaker puts it “the passing there / Had worn them really about the same” (Frost 9-10).
Therefore, the speaker has to take one of the roads and live with the consequences of taking that road. The two roads pose a dilemma for the speaker, but a choice has to be made. The roads symbolize the decisions that people have to make in their day to day lives. Sometimes one cannot tell how the decision one makes will turn out, but it is fate that it has to be made and the rest left to chance.
The last stanza is ironic because the speaker introduces a sign of remorse through his words “I shall be telling with a sigh” (Frost 16). He seems to be justifying the reason he took the less travelled road “because it was grassy and wanted wear” (Frost 8). He is trying to say even though taking that road has its consequences it was really a matter of fate as both roads looked equally worn.
He seems to be saying that he could not have known what was ahead on the path he took, but maybe things would have different if he had taken the other road that he did not. It is ironic that he would feel remorse yet a decision had to be made to take one path between the two unknown roads.
It is ironical that the speaker would have to explain his decision in his later days yet he made a decision that had to be made and the nature takes its course. Furthermore, the speaker has no control of what may happen to his life in the path that he chose, but there is the chance of regretting taking it because the other one not taken may have had a different result. However, he will never know because there is no chance of going back to take the road not taken.
Besides, the speaker has shown independence of mind at the point of making his decisions because he says: “I choose the one less travelled by/And that has made all the difference” (Frost 19-20). Thus, he chose to go a different way than most people. For instance, many would take the more travelled road, but would it have made any difference?
The speaker is remorseful and he shall be telling “somewhere ages and ages hence” (Frost 17). The less travelled road does not mean it is necessarily a better choice because he says something different in the last stanza hence the irony (Pritchard 1).
On the other hand, the irony in the last stanza shows that we can only know the outcome of making a decision after we have made it and not a minute before as the speaker demonstrates. He observed both paths “And looked down one as far as I could/ To where it bent in the undergrowth” (4-5). The other road he saw it was grassy and he “And having perhaps the better claim” (Frost 7). At that point he could not tell the outcome of taking that road that he did even though he chose the one that was grassy and less travelled.
The irony is that one has to make a choice and only know if it was good or bad after setting out as opposed to knowing the implications beforehand so as to make informed choices. It means that human beings have to make decisions and learn on the go. The destination of human being will only be realized upon arrival (Richardson 1). Therefore, one must learn to live with the decisions made in life.
In conclusion, the two roads that the speaker has to choose between and take one look the same. He has to use his impulse to make the decision. However, at the end of the poem the tone becomes ironic and the speaker seems to regret taking the road that he took. Therefore, he can only guess how his life would have been if he had taken the other road, but he will never know the difference it would have made.
More importantly, should the speaker live with regret of the outcome of the choice he made or become content because there was nothing much he could do apart from choosing. It seems some decisions we make in life are really necessary, but we have no power over how they turn out and we can choose to live in regrets or be glad we took the road that we did for all the things we encounter in our lives.
The poem “The road not taken” by Frost was written in 1916. The beginning of the 20th century is a time for the world to search for new ways of development, so the poem makes sense of choice (Frost, 89). The lyrical hero is probably already at a crossroads in adulthood and cannot choose which of the two paths to go forward. Finally, he makes a choice in favor of the path that seems to him less well-traveled and difficult. Like the main character, I also chose the most difficult path when choosing a profession.
Frost uses epithets in his poem (“in a yellow wood”), comparison (two roads are compared), personification (“where it bent in the undergrowth”), but in small quantities (Frost, 40). There are no specific comparisons in the author’s text, there is only a detailed comparison of two roads. If the road is considered by him as a means for moving in space, then the path, in addition to the named meaning, also has a philosophical meaning – the way of life. In my opinion, the author used a minimal amount of artistic and visual means in order not to romanticize the choice of the hero. I know from my own experience that the choice of a more difficult path does not happen unconditionally and firmly, as it is most often depicted in literature. Just like the hero of the poem, I was tormented for a long time by doubts about which profession should still be chosen.
Unlike romantics, Frost is alien to confessional lyrics, which conveys insights and catastrophes experienced by the poet. He seeks to talk not about the conflict of the lyrical hero and the surrounding world, not about the tension of these relations, but about attempts to build them as harmonious — contrary to the objective logic of social life. Ultimately, the impossibility of such harmony is revealed, and realizing this, the hero of Frost’s lyrics experiences bitterness, and sometimes suffering, which, however, never develops into a feeling of loneliness and abandonment of God (Frost, 30). Just as the hero of the poem chose his path alone, I also chose it completely on my own. I would like to hear someone’s advice, however, like a hero who found himself at a crossroads alone, I also had no one to tell me which choice of profession would be right for me. In the poem, nature, and especially the earth, which generates rivers and lakes, plains and gorges, trees and ears, the whole tangible world, comes to the fore. Like the hero, making a difficult choice for myself, I also tried to focus on the inner, intuitive feeling that nature symbolizes in the poem.
It is for the reason that it will be more difficult to walk along one of the roads, and a choice is made. Therefore, one can say that the main idea of the poem is as follows. A person should always choose the most difficult path, as this makes him more experienced, tests his human qualities, makes it possible to understand the forces, abilities and purpose of life. In this way, a person is given the opportunity to experience and know himself. I felt it by my own example and I can confidently agree with the author that the strongest personal growth occurred for me during the exit from the comfort zone.
Work Cited
Frost, Robert. The Road Not Taken: The Classic Poem in Words and Photographs. Cider Mill Press, 2019.
Anne Sexton retells the old Cinderella story in a unique poetic way. The poem begins with illustrations of people whose lives changed drastically from worse to good or better still (Gardner, Lawn, Ridl & Schakel, 2012). The plumber got lucky one day when he won the Irish Sweepstakes (Gardner, Lawn, Ridl & Schakel, 2012). He moved from working in the toilets to becoming a very wealthy person. There was a nursemaid who won the oldest son’s heart to become a Dior. The poet also tells about a milkman who became a real estate owner and a Charwoman, who got involved in an accident and got insurance payments (Gardner, Lawn, Ridl & Schakel, 2012).
The stories she mentions above are meant to prepare the reader for the Cinderella story. Cinderella was the daughter of a wealthy man. One day her mother, while on her deathbed, blessed her and told her to be a good girl (Gardner, Lawn, Ridl & Schakel, 2012). The mother told her that she would look down from heaven and smile at her if she behaved well.
Her father married another woman who had two daughters. They mistreated Cinderella and even made her their maid. She was no longer a step sister to them but their worker. The poem describes the two daughters as being pretty but with hearts like blackjacks (Gardner, Lawn, Ridl & Schakel, 2012).
One day her father came with gowns, jewels and gifts for his new wife and her daughters but only gave Cinderella a twig. Cinderella accepted her gift. She planted it on the site where the remains of her mother lay (Gardner, Lawn, Ridl & Schakel, 2012). The twig grew into a tree on which a white dove settled. The dove fulfilled her wishes by dropping them on the ground the way a bird would lay an egg (Gardner, Lawn, Ridl & Schakel, 2012).
One day the Prince wanted a wife, and women were supposed to gather in a market for him to pick one. The stepmother kept her busy with work while her daughters prepared for the event. Even when she finished her chores, they still told her that she did not have a perfect dress for the occasion and that she did not know how to dance.
The dove gave her special dress and little slippers that could only fit her feet (Gardner, Lawn, Ridl & Schakel, 2012). The prince danced with her. She continued to meet with the Prince for three days until the prince had to find the mysterious girl (Gardner, Lawn, Ridl & Schakel, 2012). A girl’s shoe got stuck on the steps he had covered with glue and he went out looking for her (Gardner, Lawn, Ridl & Schakel, 2012). Cinderella fit into the shoe and got married to the prince. The dove pecked the two girl’s eyes while Cinderella and the prince lived happily ever after.
The Road not Taken, by Robert Frost is a story of a person who is regretting the choices he made about life (Gardner, Lawn, Ridl & Schakel, 2012). The roads he had to choose from were confusing, and yet he had to make a decision. He chose the road less traveled by many. His choice made all the difference in his life.
Cinderella made it in life by being lucky. She did not have to work hard to attain her status. On the other hand, the other person had to make serious choices about life. He ended up failing and regretting about his options. Such is the mystery of life.
References
Gardner, J., Lawn, B., Ridl, J., & Schakel, P. (2012) Literature: A portable anthology (3rd ed.).Boston: Bedford/ St. Martin’s.
Robert Frost is one of the most celebrated American poets of the early 20th century. The themes of his works address the life and nature of New England. His works are powerful and memorable due to the skillful use of various literary devices. This essay shall explore literary devices Robert Frost uses in his poetry..
In four poems under consideration, “The Road Not Taken,” “Fire and Ice,” “The Lockless Door,” and “After Apple-Picking,” the author makes use of four literary devices, such as form, symbolism, imagery, and allusions. These devices help the author focusing on particular themes and ideas addressed in the texts of the poems.
Robert Frost’s Literary Devices in “The Road Not Taken”
The first poem under consideration is “The Road Not Taken,” published in 1916. It is one of the most famous and analyzed works by the author. The leading theme of the poem is the non-conformist ideas of the author, the problem of life choice, and the dilemma in making the right decision. Thus, to present his views, Frost makes use of several stylistic devices, such as hyperbole, consonance, alliteration, antithesis, metaphors, images, and allusions. Moreover, the author uses figurative language in order to enrich the meaning of his poem. One of the most significant elements is the form in which the poem is organized.
Thus, the poem has four stanzas, and each stanza has five lines (quintains). The rhyme scheme of the poem is the following one: ABAAB. For example, as in the first stanza:
“Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, (A)
And sorry I could not travel both (B)
And be one traveler, long I stood (A)
And looked down one as far as I could (A)
To where it bent in the undergrowth; (B)” (Frost lines 1-4).
The basic rhyme of the poem is iambic, however, with some brakes.
The form of the poem is quite complicated but very strict. The author makes use of such a structure to emphasize the content of the poem. We can conclude that form is dependent upon form and vice versa. The form of the work (rhythm and rhyme) “departs from the established norm.” The same thing happens to the main protagonist who hesitates and cannot make up the right decision and choose one “road.”
Robert Frost’s Poetic Devices in “After Apple-Picking”
“After Apple-Picking” by Robert Frost is an excellent example of the author’s use of allusions. In this poem, Frost examines the perspective and its effect or religion and how the situation can influence one’s attitude towards this situation. To explore this question, the author makes use of allusions. Thus, the allusions are often met in the text, and they frame the main idea and make it easy to understand.
The first allusion in the text is the allusion to religion, “My long two-pointed ladder’s sticking through a tree/ towards heaven still” (Frost 1). The author addresses the Heaven to relate the rest of the poem to the area of religious beliefs. Such use of allusion helps the author to frame the whole text of the poem and make it more effective. The second allusion is an allusion to negative situations that people can meet in their lives and individual responses to these situations.
Having described several scenes of the apple gathering, the author claims, “But I am done with apple-picking now. / Essence of winter sleep is on the night” (Frost 6-7). Winter in the text is a synonym of problems, and probably death, and show how these problems can lead people to situations when they question their future and their faith.
In the text, the protagonist is giving up, but there are also other solutions to the problems, everything depends on the personal perspective. Further in the poem, the author explores the change of perspectives, “…looking through a pane of glass / I skimmed this morning from the drinking trough / And held against the world of hoary grass.” (Frost 10-12).
The author alludes to personal perspectives, claiming that the outcomes of the situation depend on how people look and interpret them. Finally, in the closing lines, the author alludes to death, “Long sleep…coming on” (Frost 41), describing it as an inevitable outcome on everyone’s life. Thus, in “After Apple-Picking,” literary devices, mostly allusions, express the main idea of the poem.
“Fire and Ice” Poetic Devices and Symbolism
Another literary device that Frost widely uses in his poems is symbolism. “Fire and Ice” is a prominent example of this usage. The reader can notice two main symbols in the text of the poem, “fire” and “ice.” In a few lines, the author manages to show a crucial meaning of his poetry to a reader. He makes this through the usage of literary devices. Thus, the main idea explored by the author is possible “end of the world.”
Thus, Frost sees two endings, “Some say the world will end in fire, / Some say in ice” (Frost 1-2). “Fire” is a symbol of war and destruction, some nuclear explosion or death from the sun radioactive emission,” as opposed to this, “ice” is a symbol of cooling of the planet, ice age, etc.
The author also explores human deeds, such as “desire” and “hate.” Fire is associated with desire, which is regarded as a sin, “hate” is “ice” and also provides a perspective on human’s sins. Thus, fire and ice are also symbols of human’s bad behavior and how it can influence society and nature. The author claims that “the end of the world” is a result of human activity, their attitude towards each other, and the better world.
Robert Frost’s Poetic Devices in “The Lockless Door”
“The Lockless Door” by Robert Frost is filled with imagery, which has significant meaning. Almost every line of the text presents an example of it. In the poem, the author uses this device to convey his emotions. Thus, he describes the situation when people are afraid of uncertainty, which prevents them from making decisions and living a full life.
For example, Frost describes how he is afraid of “whatever the knock” (Frost 15) and shows his behavior, “But the knock came again. / My window was wide; / I climbed on the sill / And descended outside” (Frost 9-12). The author expresses the hope that he is able to rescue from the changes and return his usual lifestyle. However, the author also provides the idea that our lives can be easier and safer if we face our problems, we can start all over again.
Robert Frost’s Writing Style: Conclusion
Thus, we can conclude that literary devices that Robert Frost used in his poetry helped the author to express his ideas and provide the reader with an in-depth understanding of the themes of his poems. Metaphors, allusions, symbols, imaginary, and other literary devices are often met in his works.
The poems discussed earlier in this paper are great examples of how the author uses allusions, symbolism, imagery, and form to attract the reader’s attention to the problems discussed in the poems and make his works more expressive and understandable to a broader audience of readers.
Works Cited
Frost, Robert. “After Apple Picking”. The Literature Network. Web.
– – -. “The Lockless Door”. Poetry Archive. Web.
– – -. “Fire and Ice”. The Literature Network. Web.
– – -.”The Road Not Taken”. The Road Not Taken, Birches, and Other Poems. Ed. Robert Frost. San Diego: Coyote Canyon Press, 2010.
The poems “The Raven” and “The Road Not Taken” by Edgar Allen Poe and Robert Frost are masterpieces of American and world literature written in 1845 and 1916, respectively. The first mentioned text tells a story about a mourner talking to the raven to find answers to the questions that worry him. The poem impugns the immortality of the soul, and this makes it revolutionary by the standards of that time. “The Road Not Taken” depicts the challenges faced by any individual who must make a choice. The narrator stands at the fork and thinks on which road to take. Eventually, he decided to go on a less popular path. From first sight, it seems that the poems do not have much in common. Nevertheless, analyzing “The Raven” and “The Road Not Taken” demonstrates similarities and differences simultaneously; for instance, they share the topic of relations between nature and a human being as well as the issues of decision-making and rationality but consider them from different perspectives. The current essay examines how the previously mentioned topics were reflected in the poems of Poe and Frost.
The first issue addressed by both poems is one of the connections between man and nature. Through interaction with animals or woods, the narrators comprehend inner worries, doubts, fears, desires, and hopes. Besides, in both poems, nature is used as a metaphor. From reading the texts, it becomes evident that the protagonists are alone, and communication with nature happens only in their minds, not in reality. The principal character of Poe’s poem converses with the raven, who finally informs him that he would never see his beloved Lenore again (Poe 15). This dialogue with a bird looks like an attempt of the narrator to persuade himself that she is gone, and he must keep on living alone. Frost tells a story about the choice that should be made because the process of the narrator’s standing at the fork reveals that he fears to take a wrong decision (Frost 9). In both cases, nature reflects the emotions and thoughts of the protagonists and could be viewed as an inner dialogue conducted with the attempt to learn yourself.
The second topic that unites both works of literature is the issue of decision-making. The common ground is that both main characters think about their present and future and try to understand how to live further. The narrator tries to accept the fact of her death and move on but occurs to be unable to do so. Choosing between forgetting and keeping the memories, he wants the latter. The raven’s refusal to “take thy beak from out my heart and take thy form from off my door” proves this statement (Poe 15). Talking about decision-making in Frost’s poem, it should be noted that the author writes about a hard choice that every person sooner or later should make. What is more, according to Al-Jumaily, Frost informs the readers that the consequences of the choice might not always be positive, and they must bear responsibilities for their decisions (19). Thus, Poe writes about the necessity to make an undesirable and painful decision, whereas Frost talks about the importance of thinking about the possible consequences.
The third topic that could be found in both poems is one of rationality. More precisely, this theme implies the debates between rationality and irrationality. The difference is that the character of Frost’s poem is illustrated as a rational actor. That is so since he thinks about the future and the choice that should be made. This conclusion is based on the lines in which Frost says that the narrator is standing for a long time at the fork, looking “down one as far as” it is possible (Frost 9). These actions are commonly done when a person wants to make the most rational decision that would make him better off. Moving to “The Raven”, though Poe used “rational approach” while writing the poem, his main character could hardly be called sensible and sane (Harris 869). The protagonist knows that the raven would answer all the same; however, he questions over and over again. This way, it could be inferred that Frost’s poem shows how people could come to a rational decision through thinking and reflection. On the contrary, Poe illustrates that the same processes could deprive an individual of rationality and take away common sense.
In conclusion, it should be mentioned that the two previously mentioned poems are entirely different in their attitude to the indicated topics. More precisely, Poe and Frost address the issue of connections between the narrator and nature, the living beings. The latter is used as the reflection of thoughts of the former. “The Raven” and “The Road Not Taken” vary in how they consider the themes of rationality and decision making (Poe 14-15, Frost 9). That is driven from the fact that the poems are dedicated to different life circumstances and the personalities of the leading characters. Poe tells a story about a grieving man who tries to escape his feeling but sees no entrance from what is going on. Frost’s protagonist has hardships as well since he is burdened by the necessity to make a significant decision that could affect his future life. The mentioned differences create unique tones and contexts for each of the two poems and signify that they have more dissimilarities even though some common features are present.
Works Cited
Al-Jumaily, Ahmad Satam Hamad. “A deconstructive study in Robert Frost’s poem: The road not taken.” Journal of Literature, Language and Linguistics, vol. 33, 2017, pp. 16-22.
Frost, Robert. Mountain Interval. Henry Halt and Company, 1916.
Harris, James C. “Edgar Allan Poe: The Raven.” Archives of general psychiatry, vol. 65, no.8, 2008, pp. 868-869.
Poe, Edgar Allan. “The Raven.” New York: The Evening Mirror, vol. 1, no. 13, 1845, pp. 14-15.
“The Road Not Taken” contains ambiguity, satire, irony, and contradictions. Even though it initially seems that it is solely based on the life of his poet friend, it soon becomes clear that it might just as easily be talking about the author. First-person narration in the poem suggests that Frost is the primary speaker. Frost employs an obscure and conflicting analysis to show how the character must choose which direction to travel in or how to live because of the inability to follow both tracks at once.
The poem’s opening stanza serves as the author’s starting point for using ambiguity to describe the choices one takes in life. He asserts, “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood / And sorry I could not travel both” (Frost lines 1-2). The author expresses himself and justifies the choice using metaphors in the first two lines. Here, the yellow wood represents life while the roads stand for choice. The author was probably alluding to his decision to leave one location and settle in another.
The second line has a profound significance and a somber attitude. Frost most likely felt this way since he could not choose both options. In essence, this could be read as either remorseful or dreadful consequences for the future. Additionally, it can indicate what he will miss most when he departs his current location. Frost asserts, “And one be a traveler, long I stood” (Frost line 3). Essentially, this statement captures his uneasiness about what the prospect might contain in light of the decisions he had already taken. Generally, he made some choices based on how his life developed in his new nation. Therefore, it appears that his memory may have been revised in this way.
Finally, Frost’s word choice and diction are the most crucial aspects of his style. In the last stanza, he posits that “I shall be telling this with a sigh / Somewhere ages and ages hence (Frost lines 16-17). Words like “sigh” and “ages and ages” portrays his eventual relief and any audience can relate to them in everyday life. Essentially, it is clear from reading the poem that the author does not utilize a sophisticated or complex vocabulary. Instead, he uses straightforward language in conversations to make it simple for the reader to understand.
Whether there is value or purpose inherent in our lives, other than that which we ascribe to, has remained a matter of speculation. And if one was to consider the idea of the immortality of the human soul, the possibility of the afterlife and the certitude of our physical death, life becomes an affair of profound perplexity; and at times, one of little value and significance. It is our conscious or unconscious take on these questions that shape our attitude on life and, consequently, how we go about living it.
These questions have plagued humanity for a long time and have made the subject of many a poem. This essay will be based on two poems; the “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost and May Oliver’s “When Death Comes.” I will show that implicit in these two poems is the celebration of the sublimity of the present moment and the intrinsic value of the novel experience. Indeed, I will show that, according to the two poems, life is nothing but an accumulation of experiences.
Discussion
Mary Oliver’s “When Death Comes” at first seems like a poem about death. This take is implied from the first three stanzas which, in quite morbid a manner, allude to the suddenness and inevitability of death. The use of ‘when’ as the first word in the first line may seem simple enough. The word though conveys certainty, an unquestionable surety of something to come. The use of similes such as ‘like a hungry bear in autumn’ and ‘like the measle-pox’ serves to show us the unannounced nature and unwanted presence of death in our midst (Oliver).
When one reads on and when closer attention is paid to the significance of every word however, one realizes that the poem is indeed a celebration of life. From the fifth stanza onwards, the persona expounds how she, faced with the certainty of death, sees fit to lead his/her life.
The persona says that s/he will celebrate the uniqueness of every life and appreciate the harmony of our immortal nature: ‘and I think of each life as a flower, as common as a field daisy, and as singular’ (Oliver). Thus, Oliver gives life an almost surreal quality. She advocates for a holistic lifestyle, one in which we appreciate all living beings, where we connect with every other human, marveling at whatever one beholds, where nothing is taken for granted:
“and each name a comfortable music in the mouth tending as all music does, toward silence,
and each body a lion of courage, and something precious to the earth.
When it’s over, I want to say: all my life I was a bride married to amazement. I was a bridegroom, taking the world into my arms” (Oliver).
The last line of the poem, ‘I don’t want to end up simply having visited this world,’ foregrounds the significance of experiencing our world (Oliver). If we don’t take it all in while we still had the time, we would have been mere visitors to the world. The supremacy of the ‘now’ has been brought out quiet forcefully in the poem. When death is certain and sudden, and eternity is ‘just another possibility,’ the only reality we know is now (Oliver).
The Road Not Taken on the other hand is a poem about decisions. The persona of the poem is faced by a moment where a decision has to be made. Frost has used the analogy of a forked road. The persona, after a lengthy consideration, takes the one less travelled; the one which was ‘grassy and wanted wear’ (Frost). In doing so, he hopes to travel the other road some other time: “Oh, I marked the first for another day! / Yet knowing how way leads on to way/ I doubted if I should ever come back” (Frost).
In this decision, to take the road that fewer people had trodden, while he knew that he probably will never come to travel the second, lies the meaning of the poem. Frost impresses upon us to be explorative, to not be afraid to find things out about which no one else seems to have bothered. Not taking the popular road made all the difference in the persona’s life. The persona looks into the future and predicts that he will look back upon his life and be appreciative of that one moment that he dared to explore:
“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” (Frost).
Implicit in the meaning of this poem is the value attached to new experiences. Such an attitude, where great significance is attributed to the present moment, is informed by a lack of certainty about the future and apparent distrust in the notion of immortality; a concern to be found in Oliver’s “When Death Comes.”
Conclusion
At first glance, the two poems seem to clearly expound divergent subjects. When deeper analysis is carried out though, it is revealed that they actually share thematic concerns and are informed by similar attitudes.
In his ambiguous poem “The Road Not Taken”, Robert Frost speaks about life choices and how critical decisions shape one’s life in the long run, or, perhaps, forever. The poem has a rigid rhyme scheme of ABAAB with four stanzas each with five lines. The title captures the attention of the reader by arousing curiosity to find out about this road that is not taken, and ultimately, the poem addresses this issue by talking about the road and its implications in life. The speaker arrives at a junction on a road and he has to decide which route to take. However, the narrator does not know what lies ahead, thus any choice can be good or bad. The poet takes the reader through a journey of emotional turmoil trying to make the right decision because the path chosen defines the future and life’s destination. As such, if the wrong choice is made, the decision-maker has to live with the consequences therein. This understanding calls for careful consideration when making important decisions in life because once a choice has been made, there is no going back. Frost uses symbolism and metaphor to warn people about the importance of making the right choices in life.
The opening stanza introduces the reader to the inevitability of change and decision-making in life. The speaker in the poem is traveling down a road and comes to a junction with two roads diverging “in a yellow wood” (Line 1) and he stands there contemplating which road to take. The first line ends with a metaphor – “a yellow wood”, which hints that the setting of the poem is in the forest, most probably during the fall, a season of change or transition – the inevitability of life. The two diverging roads symbolize choices in life and Frost quickly adds that unfortunately, he “could not travel both” (Line 2), which is an expression of curiosity about life choices and, at the same time, regret that the speaker is limited in his decisions and the inability to know what lies ahead. Therefore, he stands at the junction and looks “down one as far as I could” (Line 3), which symbolizes the difficulty of preferring one decision over the other. This line also carries some level of procrastination because the speaker wants to see what lies ahead of each path before making a choice. Unfortunately, the roads “bent in the underground” (Line 4), an indication that there are no guarantees in life. The last line is a metaphor for human beings’ inability to foretell the future with certainty; hence, no matter which road is taken, there will be challenges.
The second stanza ushers the reader into the realm of decision-making in life. The narrator takes the other road, but it is “just as fair” (Line 6). This assertion underscores the need to consider one’s choices and realize that once a decision is made, there is no turning back. In Line 7, the speaker uses the word “perhaps” as a continuation of the theme of the uncertainty of life. The reader makes an informed guess that the speaker has taken the road less traveled because it is “grassy and wanted wear” (Line 8). This path symbolizes the hard decisions that people have to make in life. However, the metaphor of a less traveled road indicates that most people are unwilling to break away from the norms and the status quo. Nevertheless, the speaker is yet to decide because both roads are “worn…about the same” (Line 10). Procrastination is a common human character trait and the speaker in this poem is not spared from it, hence the indecision at the end of the second stanza.
In the opening of stanza three, the speaker recalls that both roads equally lay untraveled, and thus he took one path and saved the “first for another day” (Line 12). The narrator hopes to come back in the future and travel the other road perhaps to explore what lies ahead. However, he immediately realizes the futility of his thinking and regrets, “Yet knowing how way leads on to way/ I doubted if I should ever come back” (Lines 14-15). This realization symbolizes real-life occurrences. When a person makes a decision and settles on a certain path in life, it leads to another decision and on to another path, thus there is no coming back. The stanza also has subtle regret of the inability to travel both roads at the same time. In other words, in life, people have to choose one option over the other and stick to their choices no matter how the future turns out. It is a call to be prepared to live with the consequences of one’s decisions and take responsibility because what has been done cannot be undone. Such is life, the speaker is well aware of it, and as he closes the third stanza, he casts doubt on the possibility of ever revisiting his choices.
The last stanza throws the reader into confusion with an open-to-interpretation statement. Frost says, “I shall be telling this with a sigh” (Line 16). The use of the word “sigh” at this point is equally confusing and thought-provoking. It could be chosen to show the speaker’s failure to make the right choices – regret, disappointment, frustration, or contentment. Nostalgically, he posits, “Somewhere ages and ages hence” (Line 17). The alliteration used in this line emphasizes the long-term effects of decisions that people make in life – perhaps they endure for a lifetime. The speaker finally confirms that he “took the one less traveled by” (Line 19) and it “made all the difference” (Line 20). The metaphor of the road less traveled is used to encourage people to make unpopular decisions if they are convinced that they are the right ones. Every invention or discovery in life has resulted from people making unconventional decisions and choosing to travel the less trodden road.
In the poem “The Road Not Taken”, Frost takes the reader on a journey to unravel the complexities of life and the uncertainties of the future. Nevertheless, people have to make decisions, which ultimately shape their lives irredeemably. In the end, Frost makes his choice and decides to take the road less traveled and he realizes that he made the right decision. The poem uses metaphors and symbolism to resent the inability of human beings to predict the future with certainty. As such, individuals have to make decisions and be prepared to live with consequences thereafter. However, the inability to foretell the future should not paralyze people to live indecisively. As Frost finally finds out, the road less traveled can change everything and without trivializing the difficulties and emotional anguish involved in making such decisions, he encourages readers to gather one’s courage and make the right life decisions based on convictions and careful consideration.
The late Robert Frost was born in 1874. He is a highly regarded American poet who wrote numerous poems before his death. He managed to win four Pulitzer prizes for poetry in his lifetime; a testimony to the outstanding nature of his work. Faced with personal tragedies as a result of the death of his father, mother and later sister, Robert had a fairly difficult life. He spent his life in both the United Kingdom and the United States; a factor that came with choices. Like most if not all of us, Frost had to make choices throughout his life and it is not by chance that he wrote the poem; the Road Not Taken. He died in 1963 at the ripe age of 88 years at his Florida home (Muir 41). Much of his life was spent in urban areas but his poetry shows unique understanding of rural life (Nelson 84).
The Theme of the Poem
A Brief Dissection of the Poem: The Road Not Taken
The Road Not Taken is about an individual who comes across two roads that lead into the woods and then diverge. This is the individual we can identify as the poetic persona or the person who is doing the speaking in the poem. In literal terms, one can assume that these are actual routes. But the paths are a symbol for the twin options that we face in life and we have to choose one since we cannot have both at the same time. The paths under consideration by Frost are not the same. One has been used before and it is relatively more worn than the other. But the difference in the wear is not that big as we are told in line four and five of the second stanza; “Though as for that the passing there, Had worn them really about the same”.
The persona or the person confronted with the choice goes ahead to pick the less used one; “I took the one less traveled by….line 4, stanza 4”. He wants to use the one that is yet to be exploited. He tells us in the 2nd stanza, 3rd line that “it was grassy and wanted wear”. In the last stanza, it is clear that he knows what the choice means. It will have a big impact in his life; “….And that has made all the difference”, stanza 4 line 5.The sigh mentioned at the end of the poem can run both ways. It can be a sign of regret for having made the wrong choice or a sigh of relief for having achieved the better from the path taken or the choice made. This sigh has been a source of scholarly friction for some time with some suggesting that it shows regret (Larry 479).
The Theme of the Poem: Choices in Life
The Road Not Taken can be interpreted in a number of ways. But the most explicit theme that is effectively communicated by Frost’s symbol of the Road is that in life we are bound to make choices from time to time. The “roads” as it appears in the 1st and last stanza can also be classified as a metaphor. The veiled or hidden meaning of these roads is life’s choices. Just like in real life, human beings are not able to make two choices at a time. If one choice is made, all the others are left out. The persona or the speaker in the poem also make it clear in the 1st stanza that he or she does not have the ability to travel both roads, “……And sorry I could not travel both” 1st stanza, line 2. The meaning of this is that it is not possible for the persona to have both choices.
So what choice does the persona take?
In the 1st stanza, the persona tells how he or she takes time to examine the two roads, “And looked down one as I would”, line 4. He also looks down the other one and realizes that it is a bit “grassy”, stanza 2 line 3, and according to him, this is a reason for declaring that it has a better claim. This discloses a character trait of the persona or the speaker in this poem. The persona is non-conforming. He or she does not like doing what everyone else has done. This is the reason as to why he or she goes for the road that is grassy. It is grassy because very few people have walked through it compared to the first choice.Metaphorically; the message is that the persona is out to make a choice in life that is not a favorite in society. Very few people have made that same choice; but this is not an issue to him or her. He or she knows that the choice is significant and it will make a difference in life, “And that has made all the difference”, stanza 4 line 5. It is important to note that the persona expects to be telling the world about the choice and the difference it will have made at that time. This is shown in the first two lines of the last stanza. “I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence”
Stylistic Devices Used in the Poem
Like most of Frost’s poems, The Road Not Taken is rich in style. Below are some of the stylistic devices that have been used by Frost in this poem.
First Person narrator
In this poem, the persona speaks to us about what is going on. The choices he confronts and what he looks forward to doing sometime in the future as a result of the choice made. The evidence for this first person narration is all over in the poem. In line 2 stanza 1 “I could”, line 3, stanza 3, “I marked”, line 5 stanza 3, “I doubted” and line 1 stanza 4, “I shall”. The first person narration creates a moment of intimacy in communication as we can picture the persona explaining to us in detail what he or she is doing, did or intends to do.
Imagery
Frost presents a detailed description of the roads. One was a bit worn while the other was “grassy and wanted wear” 2nd stanza 3rd line. We are left with a clear imagery of two paths that begin off from the same point and take different directions with different characteristics.
Metaphor: This is the usage of real life objects or items with the aim of communicating a hidden meaning. “The road Not Taken” is metaphorically used to refer to the choice that was left out. We are always confronted with options in life and we have to make choices. As we go for some, we leave out others. The left out ones are represented by “the roads that are not taken”.
Symbolism: This is the usage of an object to refer to some other aspect of life.
In another dimension, the “roads” are symbols for the choices that we face in life from time to time.
Rhyme (Perfect rhyme)
This is perhaps the most pronounced style in this poem. The Road Not Taken exhibits perfect rhyme. The format of the rhyme is regular. It is as follows: a b a a b.
1st stanza:
wood……. a,
both……….b,
Stood………a,
Could… a,
Undergrowth…….b.
2nd stanza:
fair,…………….a,
claim,…………….b,
wear,…………….a,
there,…………….a,
same,…………….b.
Rhyme scheme is a b a a b.
This rhyme scheme is reflected in the whole poem. It makes the poem have a musical touch, makes it more readable as well as understandable (Harpham & Abrams 316-317).
Repetition
The line “Two roads diverged in yellow wood” has been repeated. It appears in the first stanza as well as the last stanza. It stresses the significance of choices in life. In the 1st stanza, it is the first line while in the last stanza, it is the 3rd line.
Conclusion
The road not taken by Robert Frost is a well crafted poem. Its main theme is that in life we are always confronted with choices and we have to make them. The poem has a number of stylistic devices that make effective in the communication of the main message. The styles used include imagery, repetition, metaphor, symbolism and first person narration.
Works cited
Harpham, Geoffrey & Abrams Mike. A Glossary of Literary Terms.Boston: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2009.Print.
Larry, L. Finger. Frost’s “The Road Not Taken”: A 1925 Letter Come to Light.American Literature, Vol. 50, No. 3. 478-479.Durham: Duke University Press, 1978. Print.
Muir, Helen. Frost in Florida.Mitcham: Valiant Press, 1995. Print.
Nelson, Cary.Anthology of Modern American Poetry. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000. Print.