The Road not Taken: For Frost

1. IMAGES
The poem describes a road in a forest that divides, the road was grassy, covered in leaves. The poem gives a vivid image of a deserted road in the woods.

2. THEME
The theme I perceived in the piece is ‘choice’ or ‘inconclusive decision’. The poet had to choose which way to go which he ended in choosing one with a difference.

3. FEELING
The poet here felt staying straight on his choice of road was taking him to a better side. Taking the road less traveled made a difference in his life, there was relief as he knew his decision was proper.

4. FIGURE OF SPEECH
-Alliteration ( Then took the, wanted wear, first for)

-Rhyme ( ABAAB CDCCD EFEEF GHGGH) 2nd line rhymes with 4th line

-Irony (The roads have multiple significance, it could mean the road to take in life, either the one more traveled or less traveled. The poet’s choice of road was ironic since they were both worn and fair, he chose the one less travel led)

-Assonance (And lOOked down as I cOUld, Then tOOk the other as just as fAIr)

5. EXPECTATIONS – Rudolph

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1. IMAGES
-low spreading plant with yellow flowers
-forest part in the Fall
-Morning
– A traveler standing between two pathways

2. THEME:
A. Impossibility/Furtherance/Adventure : It’s impossible for Frost to be on both roads at the same time. Seen in the first stanza “and sorry i could not travel both/and be one traveler…”. The picture of furtherance comes to play upon the opening of the poem. Without maybe a sense of direction, the poet still forges on on his trip or supposed adventure.He didn’t turn back as would have been the case of some, he went on ahead ready to face whatever the outcome would be. Sorta like the saying,’if you wanna know what’s inside the nut, break it’.

B. Choices: Traveling two roads is impossible, making a choice which to travel is something we would live with for as long as our decision is made. Evident in Stanzas 3 & 4:
I think this is the central theme of the poem. It should be noted that both roads are traveled on, making it more difficult for the poet to decide. The poem is filled with metaphors x-raying the poet’s personal life with nature.

3. Feelings: First the title suggests the poet could be sad or happy not taking the other road. This isn’t about the road he took. This is about the road he didn’t take.
1. Stanza 1:Disappointment
2. Stanza 2- 4: mixture of Sadness, doubt, adventure

4. Devices:
1. Stanza 1-Imagery: “Two roads diverge in a yellow wood”-the poet employ nature to leave mental pictures of being caught between two choices and having to pick one; lesser or not.
2. Stanza 2:-Alliteration/Simile(Line 1)
Personification (Line 3: The road…”wanting wear”)
3. Stanza 3:- Personification,Metonymy
4. The rhyme scheme all through :
abaab, cdccd, efeef, ghggh. The “road” is a metaphor for the poet’s choice. -Leon

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1.Imagery.basically the visual as the person tells about the scenery.
The path that divides in the forest are portrayed as “grassy, fair and also equally worn”. There by describing the forest and it’s path..
The paths are said to be not trodden which means it’s less traveled.

2.
1. Choices, decision on which direction to go because the road slits in two direction.
2. Dreams, plans and hopes.
3. Man and the natural world.

3. The feelings of the poet is seeing his journey as unfair and feels it’s gets harder with choices.

4. Imagery
Alliteration.
Personification
Rhyme

5. The poets expects, that towards the end of his journey it should lead to a valuable desired destination.-Hypermind

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IMAGES
I pictured the woods, with a grassy road that divides into two . The mention of leaves suggest the presence of trees. Morning also suggest that the grasses and leaves were covered in dew. The leaves could have been blown off by the wind during the night. Yellow wood suggest summer.

THEME
Choices and decision making. We always have to make choices and take difficult decisions in life, therefore we should try and choose that which will make a difference.

FEELING
There’s a feeling of confusion which comes from trying to decide on what decision to make. The writer seems to be standing in-between the devil and the deep blue sea. There’s also a feeling of satisfaction at the end. Knowing the decision he took made a difference.

POETIC DEVICES
Stanza1
Imagery… mention of two roads. In fact all stanzas contain imagery.
Repetition. And” is repeated 3 times in stanza one and at least once in each of the remaining stanzas. Assonance, “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood. O” assonants. This statement was also repeated in the last stanza. Symbolism, road and paths symbolizes choices. The poem generally adopts the 1st person narrative by using I’.

Stanza2
Simile… as just as fair. Comparison of the two roads.
Alliteration… wanted wear, W’ alliterates. It is also personification. A road cannot want.

Stanza 4
Ages and ages. A, assonants.—Vera

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(1) IMAGES:
The poet created a picture of a forest in summer, as seen in the following lines “….TWO roads diverged in a yellow wood…” And “….lay in leaves no step had trodden black…”

(2) THEMES

CHOICES AND DECISION:
Choices: the poem opened with the choices the poet is faced with “…TWO roads diverged in a yellow wood…” “….And sorry I could not travel both….” So he had to choose (make a DECISION) from his choices

ADVENTURE: The road chosen by the poet portrays his adventurous mind, he “….took the other, as just as fair,….. Because it was grassy and wanted wear…..” Not minding the fact that its the one people don’t take nor the reason why people have avoided it.

SELF-RELIANCE: The poet chose to be self reliant, depending on himself to make a good choice, as against taking the road everyone else takes.

OPTIMISM: Though the poet wasn’t sure of what to expect down his chosen road he “…. doubted if I should ever come back ….I shall be telling this with a sigh….”. He stayed positive in spite the uncertainties.

(3) FEELINGS:
CONTENTMENT: the poet showed his contentment in the outcome of the road he chose as he thinks it “…..has made all the difference.”
DISAPPOINTMENT: the poet was disappointed with the fact that he could not take both roads when he said “…..sorry I could not travel both…
….And be one traveler…..”

(4) FIGURES OF SPEECH/POETIC DEVICES
1st stanza:
Enjambment. “…..long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could….”

2nd stanza
Personification:
“…..Had worn them really about the same….”

3rd stanza
Personification & Enjambment:
“…..both that morning equally lay
In leaves…..”

4th stanza
I think the poet used both road and wood metaphysically.
Wood = life
Roads = choices.-Tee2emm

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1. IMAGES
Stanza one opens with a visual imagery and visual imagery is used all through the poem. Example Line one, ” two roads diverged in a yellow wood” and stanza two,”Because it was grassy and wanted wear” also used visual imagery that employs the reader’s mind’s eyes.

2. THEMES
i.INDECISION: The poet seems indecisive in the first stanza. “And be one traveler, i stood” shows the writer was trying to choose the road to travel by.
ii REGRET: The poet express regret when he says ” i shall be telling it with a sigh”
iii. Choice is the major theme of this poem as the writer expresses his decision to travel by one road and leave the other.

3.FEELING: At the end Frost could be seen to have resigned to his decision to travel one road and leave the other for some other time. Some of the writer’s feeling is embedded in the poem as themes too. The poet seems both sad and happy.

4. FIGURE OF SPEECH AND POETIC DEVICE
-Visual imagery, alliteration, simile, personification, and metonymy were used through out the poem. Frost employs the reader’s imagination by use of figure of speech to help the reader understand the poem better.—Omolola
1. Imagery: two varying paths through the forest, the view of one extending to bend where there were no tall trees with a yellow carpet, while the other was almost the same but had a greener path (the greener path as a sign that it was not tread by many). Fresh leaves that had fallen off the trees.

2. Theme: taking a decision or treading a future.

3. Feeling: the writer was sad, with a mixture of fear and uncertainty. He felt sad leaving but had to. He wasn’t certain where the path he took will lead him which made him scared.

4. Repetition- and
Smile- as
Dictation- most of the words are simple to understand
Assonance- sorry I could not travel both, looked down one as far as I could,
Enjambment- I shall be telling this with a single sigh
Rhyming pattern- abaab, cdccd, efeef, ghggh.—Hijab Gurl

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IMAGES
The poet paints a picture of two roads to depict two choices available to passersby.                    
He describes one of the two roads as one that was “grassy and wanted wear”, as if to say that it was the road that was treaded less or not treaded at all. He also mentioned the colour of the woods been “yellow” and how  “in leaves no step had trodden black”.

THEME                         
Choice; “then took the other, as just as fair”. “Oh, I kept the first for another day”!

Uncertainty; “yet knowing how way leads unto way, I doubted if I should ever come back”.

Accomplishment; “I took the one less traveled by and that has made all the difference”.

FEELING.
Fairness; “Then took the other as just as fair and perhaps having the better claim, because it was grassy and wanted wear”.

Pity; “And sorry I could not travel both, and be one traveler, long I stood”.

Doubt; “I doubt if I should ever come back”.

Resolution;   “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 travelled by,
And that has made all the difference.”

FIGURES OF SPEECH
Imagery.
Simile.
Personification.
Alliteration.-Hybrid