There are times in life when you find yourself standing right in front of two paths. They seem different. Yet they are the same. Choosing one and following it, no matter how hard it might be. Robert Frost born in San Francisco, March 26 became one of America’s foremost 20th century poets and a four-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize. Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken” and “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening,” both portray a monumental moment in the speaker’s life, where the narrators is presented with two courses in life, where they have to choose any one path to follow. In “The Road Not Taken” and “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening”, Frost’s use of theme, meaning, and writing format helps bring these two poems to life. Frost’s use of theme and meaning, both portray the decisions or choices the narrator must take in “The Road Not Taken” and “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening”. In “The Road Not Taken,” the speaker describes coming upon a problem in his travels, with a fork in the road. “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood” (Bouchard/Frost). He must go down one, but feels he would not be able to take back his decision. Taking in both pros and cons, the speaker chooses the one that is less traveled. “He predicts that the path he will choose will affect his life greatly. In fact make “all the difference,” that he tells this with a sigh, “I shall be telling this with a sigh,” (Frost) indicated that he will have some questions, about where the other path may have brought him”(Bouchard). “The Road Not Taken,” is a double perspective when it comes to making choices. One is fairly obvious while the other is more subtle. “It expresses both turmoil of making the choice and the depressing expectation that the choice he makes between ... ... middle of paper ... ...ly from line to line, with the balance of rhythmic pull of the verse, “The speaker never arrives, nor really leaves” (Ingebresten). The natural scene of the woods is heightening by the drama Frost adds, while his sense of dramatic and contextual irony undercuts the simplicity of the narrative. In conclusion, the use of theme, meaning, and writing format of “The Road Not Taken” and “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening,” both share choices the narrator must take daily without knowing the outcome of each decision. The poem “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening,” is a meaningful poem. It conveys an important idea of keeping one’s duties and responsibilities when alive, while “The Road Not Taken” is a decision, for good or ill, the choice he makes will be permanent and highly effecting. We cannot travel all the roads available to us; we must make a choice and move on.
The central image that Frost presents, which is the path, provides a clear picture that the reader can focus on in order to reveal something about the poem. The “two roads diverged in a yellow wood'; vividly portray the fact that it is always difficult to make a decision because it is impossible not to wonder about the opportunity that will be missed out on. There is a strong sense of regret before the choice is even made and it lies in the knowledge that in one lifetime, it is impossible to travel down every path that one encounters. In an attempt to make a decision, the traveler "looks down one as far as I could." The road that will be chosen leads to the unknown, as does any choice in life. As much as he may strain his eyes to see how far the road stretches, eventually it surpasses his vision and he can never see where it is going to lead. It is the path that he chooses that sets him off on his journey and determines where he is going and what he will encounter.
Decisions are an everyday part of life. Although many decisions made throughout the day may not be crucial to our path of life, most every decision will affect life in some way. Pop tart or bagel, milk or orange juice, as well as drive or take the bus are all choices people make to begin their day, but Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken” is a perfect example of a life altering decision. Frost wrote this poem when his dear friend, Edward Thomas, was stuck between staying with Frost and becoming a poet, or going to war against Germany in World War I. “Two Roads”, later changed to “The Road Not Taken”, angered Thomas, and caused him to enlist in the war, only to be killed in action two months later at Arras on Easter Day. "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost has a literal meaning from the speaker, or traveler, of the road he did not take, but the deeper meaning certainly shows how decisions alter your life.
Have you ever been faced with two important decisions? Life is full of options and when when you encounter two decisions you have to choose what path you are going to take. Robert Frost’s poem “The Road Not Taken,” represents two tough decisions and having to choose one and not the other. Robert Frost uses a few poetic devices, such as, metaphor, symbolism and vivid imagery to express and show the decisions we make in life. These poetic devices also help Robert Frost get his point across about the roads.
Frost realizes that had he taken the other road he would not be where he is today. He was adventurous and choose the road that had been traveled the least recently and that one decision changed his life
The style of the poem is a sonnet; the language used in the poem is clear and simple. The poet Frost tells a story in easy to read form. There is repetition throughout the poem. For example; “”I have been”, I have walked out in rain,” I have out walked””, (Frost 1-2-3). There is a comparison within the poem, a night watchman (the only person mentioned) in the poem and the walker. Frost draws the comparison of them both being alone at night, with the night watchman one walking with purpose, whereas the walker’s purpose is not defined.
In this poem, Frost illustrates that every person has his own opinion. He states “Then took the other, just as fair, and having perhaps the better claim” (line 6-7). What make it better was “it was grassy and wanted wear” (line 8). It was something that was obviously not for everyone because it seems that the other people take the more popular one. “And both that morning equally lay/ In leaves no step had trodden black” (line 11). No one had yet to pass by on this road since the leaves have fallen. “I kept the first for another day” (line 13). The desire to travel down both paths is expressed and is not unusual, but “knowing how way leads onto way” (line 14). The speaker of this poem realizes that the decision is not just a temporary one, and he “doubted if I should ever come back”
My father introduced me to "The Road Not Taken" when I was a young teenager because he figured that I was beginning a period of my life where I would be forced to make many important decisions, and he saw this poem as a source of guidance through those decisions. This poem carries truth and edification in its words. It forms a beautiful analogy of life and all its complications. After my father finished reciting the poem, I never gave a second thought that day to Robert Frost or his poetry. It was weeks, possibly months, before I resumed thought on "The Road Not Taken." It was not until one year ago that I actually read it. Nevertheless, I did remember that poem, and no matter how many times I put it aside to contemplate other things, it was always waiting for my return. Through all of my high school years, it tagged along beside me, reminding me that change is good, reminding me that risk is what life is all about.
The four quatrains of this poem are the definition of simplicity. It tells of an experience on a late night where Robert Frost comes across some snowy woods late in the evening. The lovely scene before his eyes intrigues the author and tempts him to remain in the woods. However, the author is still aware of the large ground that is to be covered before he can relax for the remainder of the evening. When it comes to Robert Frost's "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening," the surface analysis gives a basic story. But a deeper, poetic interpretation offers into the author’s perspective. For instance, this is evident in the first quatrain where the author is...
David Wyatt writes, "Nowhere in Frost is the tension between surprise and anticipation, wayward experience and the form into which it is cast or forecast, more acute than in 'The Road Not Taken'" (129). As the poem is read, one cannot help but be pulled into the questions of which road will be chosen, how they differ, and what will become of the traveler. Perhaps some hope to find guidance for their own journeys by seeking answers in Frost's work. According to Michael Meyer, "The speaker's reflections about his choice are as central to an understanding of the poem as the choice itself." (97) Frost himself admits, "it's a tricky poem, very tricky." (Pack 10)
Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken” and “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” provide us contrasting and sometimes similar glimpses of life. “The Road Not Taken” is about taking control and living life. “Stopping by Woods on Snowy Evening” entails the desire for rest, perhaps due to the speaker’s feelings of weariness from facing life’s struggles. The poet also explains the tough choices people stand before when traveling the road of life. Sometimes people regret the possibilities of the road not chosen, sometimes people feel proud about the road they have chosen.
In Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken”, Frost shows the everyday human struggle to make a choice that could change the course of one’s life. In his poem, a person has the choice to take one road or the other. One road is worn out from many people taking it, and the other is barely touched, for fewer have taken that road. Throughout the poem, the speaker learns that just because so many other people have done one thing, or walked one way, does not mean everyone has to. Sometimes you just have to go your own way.
In the poem “The Road Not Taken”, author Robert Frost uses the simple image of a road to represent a person’s journey through life. A well-established poet, Frost does a proficient job of transforming a seemingly common road to one of great importance, which along the way helps one identify who they really are. This poem is one of self-discovery. Frost incorporates strong elements of poetry such as theme, symbolism, rhyme scheme, diction, imagery, and tone to help create one of his most well known pieces about the human experience.
Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken” and “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” show the readers similar struggles of life. “The Road Not Taken” is about taking control of one’s life and living it aside from how others live theirs. While “Stopping by Woods on Snowy Evening” shows the desire for rest. Sometimes people regret the possibilities of the road not chosen, sometimes people feel proud about the road that they
There are many choices that one needs to make on a daily basis to simply get through the day. Life choices however are more important and have an everlasting effect on the individual. They are less frequent but have more of an impact on one’s life. The writer Robert Frost chose to use the poem “The Road not Taken” to show how one’s decisions can change the outcome of your life. Frost used the details of picking the road, the inability to reverse his choice, the consequences of his judgment, along with the external factors that influenced his judgments to express to the readers how life’s decisions make a difference all by writing a poem.
Perhaps one of the most well-known poems in modern America is a work by Robert Frost, The Road Not Taken. This poem consists of four stanzas that depict the story of the narrator traveling through the woods early in the morning and coming upon a fork in the path, where he milled about for a while before deciding upon one of the two paths, wishing he could take both, but knowing otherwise, seeing himself telling of this experience in the future.