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Road not taken by Robert Frost

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R
Riddhi Patel

Robert Frost was an American poet known for his depictions of rural life. In his poem "The Road Not Taken", the narrator comes to a fork in the road in the woods and must choose which path to take, though he wishes he could take both. He spends a long time deliberating between the two seemingly equal paths before choosing the less traveled one. In the final stanza, he reflects that this choice has made all the difference in his life journey, and he will recount making this decision with a sigh, though it's unclear if it's a sigh of relief or regret. The poem is about how the choices we make in life can impact the direction of our journey in unexpected ways.

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The Road Not Taken [2110002]By Robert Frost
About The Author Robert Lee Frost (March 26, 1874 – January 29, 1963) was an American poet. His work was initially published in England before it was published in America. He is highly regarded for his realistic depictions of rural life and his command of American colloquial speech. Frost was honored frequently during his lifetime, receiving four Pulitzer Prizes for Poetry. He became one of America's rare public literary figures, almost an artistic institution. He was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in 1960 for his poetical works.
About The Poem First published in 1916 , “The Road Not Taken" shows Frost at his best as a pastoral who combines rustic simplicity with hidden , indirect and clarity of style and language.
‘The road’ is thesymbol of the choice made by us in life. Many times, we regret the choice we makebut whatis done once cannotbe undone. Man regrets for whathe has deniedhimselfin life , rather thanwhat he has chosen. Hence,thepoet has given his poem thetitle“The Road Not Taken”. The word "road" not onlymeans"way", it also means"journey"or a "stageof journey". Here "road" does not signifyany ordinary road, but functionsa metaphorof a vital decision in our life. Poem’s Title
Summary Of The Poem This poem talks about the choices one has to make in life and their consequences. One day while walking in a wooded area full of trees, the poet comes to a place where he has to decide which road he should take. He starts debating over the choices as he realizes he cannot walk on both. However he decides to take the second path with the intention of travelling on the first some other time in future
The Poem-
First Stanza 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;
Summary Of The First Stanza The speaker describes his position. He has been out for walking in the woods and comes in between the diversion of two roads, he stands there looking as far down each one as he can see. He would like to try out both, but doubts he could do that, so therefore he continues to look down the roads for a long time trying to make his decision about which road to take.
Second Stanza 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,
Summary Of The Second Stanza He looked down the first one “to where it bend in the undergrowth”, and then the second one , and he decided to take the other path, because it seemed to have less traveled than the first. But then he goes on to say that they actually were very similarly worn. The second one that he took seems less traveled but as he thinks about it, he realizes that they were “really about the same”. Not exactly the same but only “about the same”.
Third Stanza And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back.
Summary Of The Third Stanza The third stanza continues with the cogitation about the possible differences between the two road. He had noticed that the leaves were both fresh fallen on them both and had not been walked on, but then again claims that maybe he would come back and also walk the first one sometimes, but he doubted he would be able to, because in life one thing leads to another and time is short.
Fourth Stanza 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.
Summary Of The Fourth Stanza In this poem the word “difference” is taken in a positive way. But there is nothing in the poem that suggests that this difference signals a positive outcome. The speaker could not offer such information, because he has not lived the “difference” yet. The other word that leads non-discerning readers astray is the word “sigh.” By taking “difference” to mean a positive difference, they think that the sigh is one of nostalgic relief; however, a sigh can also mean regret. There is the “oh, dear” kind of sigh, but also the “what a relief” kind of sigh. Which one is it? We do not know. If it is the relief sigh, then the difference means the speaker is glad he took the road he did; if it is the regret sigh, then the difference would not be good, and the speaker would be sighing in regret.
Message Of This Poem Robert Frost’s poem “ The road not taken” seems to hold out the mortal that life is a continuous journey full of divergence now and then. The important thing is to move on without looking back whether the choice of paths taken was right or wrong. The right or wrong are relative terms. We cannot get everything in life and have to make choices. Whatever direction in our life takes is determined by the choice made by us . In the journey of life, one can seldom come back to travel the ‘roads’ not taken earlier.
• 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, • What literary device has been used in the above lines? Ans. The literary device used above is a metaphor. The narrator compares life to a road.
• Explain ‘in leaves no step had trodden black’? Ans. The narrator means that the path was not frequented. No one had walked that way and trampled upon the dried leaves that lay on the ground. • What made the narrator doubt that he ‘should ever come back ‘? Ans. He knew that one path would lead to another and he would never return to the path he had not taken and left for another day.
• What will the narrator tell with ‘a sigh’? Ans. He would tell about the fork that he had come to in the woods and how he had taken the road less frequented by people. • Do you think the narrator regret his choice later on? Ans. No, he did not regret his choice. The sigh could be a satisfied happy sigh that he had had the foresight to be different from rest of the crowd. Yes, the narrator regretted his decision as he says he will talk of his choice with a sigh as his sigh could be a sigh deep regret at having made the wrong choice.
The End Prepared by:- RIDDHI PATEL(160630107092) GANDHI NIRMITA(160630107026) RAJVI DOLARIYA(160630107019) PRINCY PATEL(160630107071) Class - CE 1 GUIDED BY :- PROF. HEENA PATEL

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Road not taken by Robert Frost

  • 2. About The Author Robert Lee Frost (March 26, 1874 – January 29, 1963) was an American poet. His work was initially published in England before it was published in America. He is highly regarded for his realistic depictions of rural life and his command of American colloquial speech. Frost was honored frequently during his lifetime, receiving four Pulitzer Prizes for Poetry. He became one of America's rare public literary figures, almost an artistic institution. He was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in 1960 for his poetical works.
  • 3. About The Poem First published in 1916 , “The Road Not Taken" shows Frost at his best as a pastoral who combines rustic simplicity with hidden , indirect and clarity of style and language.
  • 4. ‘The road’ is thesymbol of the choice made by us in life. Many times, we regret the choice we makebut whatis done once cannotbe undone. Man regrets for whathe has deniedhimselfin life , rather thanwhat he has chosen. Hence,thepoet has given his poem thetitle“The Road Not Taken”. The word "road" not onlymeans"way", it also means"journey"or a "stageof journey". Here "road" does not signifyany ordinary road, but functionsa metaphorof a vital decision in our life. Poem’s Title
  • 5. Summary Of The Poem This poem talks about the choices one has to make in life and their consequences. One day while walking in a wooded area full of trees, the poet comes to a place where he has to decide which road he should take. He starts debating over the choices as he realizes he cannot walk on both. However he decides to take the second path with the intention of travelling on the first some other time in future
  • 7. First Stanza 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;
  • 8. Summary Of The First Stanza The speaker describes his position. He has been out for walking in the woods and comes in between the diversion of two roads, he stands there looking as far down each one as he can see. He would like to try out both, but doubts he could do that, so therefore he continues to look down the roads for a long time trying to make his decision about which road to take.
  • 9. Second Stanza 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,
  • 10. Summary Of The Second Stanza He looked down the first one “to where it bend in the undergrowth”, and then the second one , and he decided to take the other path, because it seemed to have less traveled than the first. But then he goes on to say that they actually were very similarly worn. The second one that he took seems less traveled but as he thinks about it, he realizes that they were “really about the same”. Not exactly the same but only “about the same”.
  • 11. Third Stanza And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back.
  • 12. Summary Of The Third Stanza The third stanza continues with the cogitation about the possible differences between the two road. He had noticed that the leaves were both fresh fallen on them both and had not been walked on, but then again claims that maybe he would come back and also walk the first one sometimes, but he doubted he would be able to, because in life one thing leads to another and time is short.
  • 13. Fourth Stanza 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.
  • 14. Summary Of The Fourth Stanza In this poem the word “difference” is taken in a positive way. But there is nothing in the poem that suggests that this difference signals a positive outcome. The speaker could not offer such information, because he has not lived the “difference” yet. The other word that leads non-discerning readers astray is the word “sigh.” By taking “difference” to mean a positive difference, they think that the sigh is one of nostalgic relief; however, a sigh can also mean regret. There is the “oh, dear” kind of sigh, but also the “what a relief” kind of sigh. Which one is it? We do not know. If it is the relief sigh, then the difference means the speaker is glad he took the road he did; if it is the regret sigh, then the difference would not be good, and the speaker would be sighing in regret.
  • 15. Message Of This Poem Robert Frost’s poem “ The road not taken” seems to hold out the mortal that life is a continuous journey full of divergence now and then. The important thing is to move on without looking back whether the choice of paths taken was right or wrong. The right or wrong are relative terms. We cannot get everything in life and have to make choices. Whatever direction in our life takes is determined by the choice made by us . In the journey of life, one can seldom come back to travel the ‘roads’ not taken earlier.
  • 16. • 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, • What literary device has been used in the above lines? Ans. The literary device used above is a metaphor. The narrator compares life to a road.
  • 17. • Explain ‘in leaves no step had trodden black’? Ans. The narrator means that the path was not frequented. No one had walked that way and trampled upon the dried leaves that lay on the ground. • What made the narrator doubt that he ‘should ever come back ‘? Ans. He knew that one path would lead to another and he would never return to the path he had not taken and left for another day.
  • 18. • What will the narrator tell with ‘a sigh’? Ans. He would tell about the fork that he had come to in the woods and how he had taken the road less frequented by people. • Do you think the narrator regret his choice later on? Ans. No, he did not regret his choice. The sigh could be a satisfied happy sigh that he had had the foresight to be different from rest of the crowd. Yes, the narrator regretted his decision as he says he will talk of his choice with a sigh as his sigh could be a sigh deep regret at having made the wrong choice.
  • 19. The End Prepared by:- RIDDHI PATEL(160630107092) GANDHI NIRMITA(160630107026) RAJVI DOLARIYA(160630107019) PRINCY PATEL(160630107071) Class - CE 1 GUIDED BY :- PROF. HEENA PATEL