The Road Not Taken Poem Analysis

Improved Essays
In Connie Ann Kirk’s book, “Reading and Interpreting the Works of Robert Frost,” she talks about his early life and the hardships he went through as a young adult, and a striving poet, as well as his life while being a poet. The Bread Loaf Writer’s Conference focused mostly on writing and the teaching of writing (Kirk 91). According to Kirk’s book, “The concept was that if students and faculty could interact informally outside the walls of the classroom they might be more inspired to create, share ideas, make new discoveries, and experiment more freely with language” (Kirk 91). This different approach to education highly interested Robert Frost. He did not like the concept of regular classes, which is what students practice today. Frost was a very influential individual in his time of writing poetry. It inspired may individuals to do many great things. …show more content…
This is a very subtle metaphor for living life as a lonar and choosing independence for its own sake when all other considerations come up equal (Napierkowski and Ruby). The theme in, “The Road Not Taken,” is about making life choices and individualism (Napierkowski and Ruby). We can prove this theme by citing from the poem, “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood.” This basically means, that you had to choose between two different things, and you ended up choosing one. “And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth.” This talks more about dreams, hopes, and plans (Napierkowski and Ruby). So, “The Road Not Taken,” as a whole, is a very influential Modernism time period poem that gives people the incite to make the right choices in life and to enjoy those

Related Documents

  • Superior Essays

    In “The Road Not Taken” the speaker (Frost) describes both roads, he states “long I stood… And looked down one as far as I could… To where it bent in the undergrowth” (Frost, 137). This excerpt can be seen as the roads being a metaphor for the future. When the speaker examines both roads but cannot see beyond the undergrowth, this demonstrates the poet’s interpretation that no one knows what the future holds. As the audience reads further the speaker states “Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way” (Frost, 137).…

    • 1245 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Decent Essays

    The Road Not Taken talks about a man who has to decide between two roads as a way of showing that people should makes a decision and go through with it. The speaker had to decide between two “worn… about the same” roads (Road 10). Even though both looked similar some how he still was supposed to make a choice. There is ultimately two ways one can go in decision-making, but once that person chooses they cannot go back. Even though the speaker was looking at two similar roads, he “[knew which] way leads on to way” (Road 14).…

    • 237 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Cosi Inner Journey

    • 963 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The Road Not Taken talks about the decisions people have to make throughout their life’s inner journey and where these decisions will lead them. As written in Stanza Two “Then took the other, as just as fair, and having perhaps the better claim”, Robert Frost is expressing that these options we have in life and the decisions we make are not easy to do and at times it may be stressful and confusing but to continue on with our life’s inner journey we must make a decision. Although at the time we may have chosen the wrong pathway or road but we should always be optimistic as the future holds great experiences and surprises for us. We can see this concept through Julie in the novel “Cosi”, she experienced rough patches throughout her life which put her away in a mental illness hospital but through time and hard work she managed to fix her life and get herself back on track for the rest of her life’s inner…

    • 963 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Having a carefree attitude can come with harsh consequences. Being safe is better than being free because when given too much freedom, one is not cautious in their actions. Therefore in The Rights to the Streets of Memphis, welcoming refugees into the U.S. and having a car accident all demonstrates the importance of being cautious to ensure one’s life is safe. Parents tend to not give their children too much freedom, for example go out alone or be out extremely late. However in the story The Right to the Street of Memphis, written by Richard Wright, Richard’s mom gave him the freedom to go out alone, leading him into some trouble.…

    • 606 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The poem consists of four stanzas with five lines each. The Road Not Taken begins with two roads which symbolizes choice with Frost starting his first stanza off as “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood”. As Frost continues on within his stanza, he talks about a lonely traveler looking down two roads uncertain on which way to go. The Road Not Taken relates to a journey and in life everyone stumbles upon many challenges, and there are points where we have to let fate take the lead. Robert Frost is significantly known for his intelligent descriptions and representations about life illustrated in his work.…

    • 720 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The use of poetry is, according to Frost, is about what is inside the person's head and how it can be reflected on paper. This is similar to how an artist expresses himself by painting what they feel. In a great deal of Frost's works, he shows what he feels about life. Robert Frost had multiple views of life and expresses it greatly in his poetry. A good example would be his short poem Fire and Ice.…

    • 1429 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    In Robert Frost poem, “The Road Not Taken” the writer employs the use of a metaphor to demonstrate the concept of choice. The line, “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood” symbolizes the very difficult task that the writer is faced with in terms of which way he should proceed. This decision will undoubtedly be a life altering one since there are only two unknown possible outcomes. The choice is presented in the form of one option which has been tested many times before and the other which not many been brave enough to take. There is no turning back once our path is chosen.…

    • 121 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    First he focuses on each poem with its own great detail. A lot of authors don't really focus the way Frost does. Other authors just go with the flow and don't take their writing as seriously as Frost does. Frost really says everything in great detail. Another great attribute of Frost is his social vision, in distinguishing differences in groups of people.…

    • 1749 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    The name of the poem is quoted universally even though some people do not know what the context of the poem is. For instance, “‘The Road Not Taken’ has been used in advertisements for Mentos, Nicorette, the multibillion-dollar insurance company AIG, and the job-search Web site Monster.com, which deployed the poem during Super Bowl XXXIV to great success” (Orr). The point of view of Frost 's poem is telling us that, sometimes, could choose the one that not too many people has chosen. Also, in rhetorical, Frost prefers to use word of choice, symbolic, and metaphor in his poem…

    • 1313 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    It was the winter of 1906 and the only thing that was present in the life of a middle-aged New Englander was failure. “After a near death experience with pneumonia that winter, this man turned to poetry as his only form of consolation” (Thompson 151). That man was Robert Frost. He was a loving father, husband, and friend. Frost was inspired by the sights around him, the people he met, and the experiences he had.…

    • 1916 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Road Not Taken

    • 800 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Robert Frost (1874 - 1963) was born in San Francisco. He was a teacher, writer, and poet and was primarily influenced by daily events. He is a modernist. During World War I, he met Edward Thomas. This was when Frost came up with The Road Not Taken.…

    • 800 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In Robert Frost’s poem, “The Road Not Taken” is a poem about this traveler came across two pathways. The poem shows a conspiracy about which road is less traveled. One road is more plain, the other one, they are both covered in virginal leaves. It implies that during the harvest dawn, neither road looked shabby or damaged, crude to how the speaker will tell his story years from now. The speaker has to choose which road to take and whatever road he choose to take he has to stick with his decision and never look back.…

    • 771 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    That is the difference between the first road and second road. There is an adventurous spirit in his decision. Actually, The Road not taken speaks of how we are often forced to make decisions involving alternatives. The theme appeals to everyone, as the need to choose the right path. It is a problem often faced in…

    • 1074 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Road Not Taken" takes a different approach as the speaker has to make a choice of two paths in the forest. One of the paths seems more new, and unfamiliar to take while the other…

    • 1151 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost is a very simple yet very symbolic poem. It’s a poem regarding various choices that one has to make in life and then live by the outcomes of the decisions made. The consequences of ones choices might turn out to be positive or negative but these decisions have a significant impact in the way one’s life turns out to be. The poet, Robert Frost, begins the poem with describing a walk in the forest on a fall day as the leaves are turning yellow. As he walks, the road forks and comes a moment of decision regarding which direction to take.…

    • 1541 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays