Introduction to Robert Lee Frost

Robert Lee Frost was a great America Poet who was born on March 26, 1874 in San Francisco, Ca and who later died on January 29, 1963 in Boston, Ma. He used rural settings in his poetry and often took a social and philosophical approach to his writings. He coined many poems and also wrote a few plays including "The Masque of reason." He had many achievements through his life that included over 40 honorary degrees from colleges such as Oxford and Harvard. His greatest achievements, though, were the four Pulitzer Prizes he had won for his work. He was a great poet who is often quoted and never forgotten.

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

The Road Not Taken













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;

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,

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

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.

1 comment:

  1. At first glance, Robert Frost's poem, The Road Not Taken, could be taken in a literal form as an inspirational piece directed towards individualism. Without careful examination, it could be wrongfully categorized as praising nonconformity. It seems to require an open mind in order to comprehend the true meaning behind the words. The Road Not Taken skillfully uses irony to create a thought provoking piece of poetry.

    The poem starts describing a fork in the woods dividing two roads. In the first stanza, the speaker examines both options until they curve out of sight and attempts to decipher which would be the better choice: “And looked down one as far as I could to where it bent in the undergrowth”. They seem to think one road is less worn and is taunting with desolation: “Then took the other, as just as fair and having perhaps the better claim, because it was grassy and wanted wear”. After choosing what they think is the “road less traveled,” they discover both roads have almost equally yet to have been journeyed: “Though as for that, the passing there had worn them really about the same”. The third stanza continues to describe the freshly fallen leaves that have never been exposed to another traveler: “And both that morning equally lay in leaves no step had trodden black.” The speaker then tells of their intentions of returning to explore the other road, but then doubts their return due to the many demands of life: “Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back.”

    Most of the irony and confusion is within the fourth stanza. Frost attempts to mislead the reader when the speaker makes the statement “I shall be telling with a sigh.” This can be interpreted as a sigh of relief or even a sigh of regret. The speaker's dissatisfaction with the road chosen or even thoughts of what the other road leads to can be the reasoning for this sigh. The line “Somewhere ages and ages hence” is describing the years to come that they will spend dwelling on the outcome of this decision. The last two lines of the poem states, “I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.” Most readers would assume the word difference would be a positive one, but it could also be referring to a negative difference. Since the speaker has only ventured through one road, the difference is unknown to them. The other road could have been a better choice, but it could also have been one they would regret. The only way to know the meaning of the “difference” would be to return and journey through the road unknown to them.

    The overall nature of the poem seems to be a mystery. The “sigh” and “difference” remain undefined. The only way the speaker could define these mystery words would be to explore the unknown road. It is not only unknown to us but also to the speaker. The Road Not Taken is bursting with irony which makes it extremely misinterpreted by readers.

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