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 kept 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.
The Road Not Taken
Analysis, meaning and summary of Robert Frost's poem The Road Not Taken
550 Comments
Leave a Reply
Do you have any comments, criticism, paraphrasis or analysis of this poem that you feel would assist other visitors in understanding the meaning or the theme of this poem by Robert Frost better? If accepted, your analysis will be added to this page of American Poems. Together we can build a wealth of information, but it will take some discipline and determination.
This poem was very interesting.
it tells you that you have two decisions in life. You can always take an easier way out but it wont turn out the way you wanted to end or you can choose the harder way but it just might turn out the way you want.
In this poem I think that Frost is trying to say that throughout life we are usually at a crossroad of difficult decisions. No matter which way you choose you should back up your decision with confidence. He uses imagery to get his point across.
To me this poem has a very good message. I would say Robert Frost is saying that when people choose their own path in life and don’t follow the crowd they will get much more out of life. If we take the “road less traveled by” it may be more difficult but in the end we will get much more out of it. He uses good imagery of the two roads and it gave me a better visual and made the poem more interesting.
Often in life we are confronted with making decision, some big others small. This poem depicts that usually when someone is faced with making a decision they tend to take the easier path so to speak, but those who take the more austere path typically have a greater sense of accomplishment. In conclusion this poem does a prodigious job at personifying and adding sightful imagery to making decisions in real life.
I’m not sure if Frost means the ways in our real life, but what i would love to say that, political makers should take and follow the right path in thier ruling time in the governments. You would say that it’s not lnking with what he says, but politically we make a lot of decisions not recognising the situation that they are in, this poem in my opinion is showing the challenges facing those politicians to follow a righ route, not being hurtled makers of decisions, and think twice before doing that, after that, they regret what they have made!!
Actually, Life is like a rose if you touch it smoothly you will get and taste the beauty, but if you touch it hardly, you’ll be hurt.
I think Frost wants to justify the hardness of life and show us the way of happiness to be satisfied people in our life..
I wish that my explaination is jusstified.
Thank you so much for Frost for every thing and poems.
i think this poem is saying that in life we are faced with tough decisions and of course, we have to make a choice about which way to go, like the fork in the road, they are the two options he has which are layed out in front of him. one way may be the easier option but not always the best, yet it seems most people are attracted in that direction because it takes less effort. the other is the harder way, but the better way. so, perhaps Frost is saying that if you take ‘the road less travelled’, you will find greater contempt than if you took the road that had been worn away… hahaha, i have no idea what i just said…!!! too much procrastinating has destroyed my working brain!!
Forgive me if I am completely misplaced because it has been quite some time
since I last visited American Literature–and Robert Frost.
However, I sense that many commentators here have overlooked some revealing
and specific language Frost intentionally employed in this poem. As a
result of this oversight, these commentators have too strongly asserted
that Frost mocked romantic ideals of nastalgia and life.
Clearly, there exists a potential argument that Frost may have been
offering a caliber of criticism and satire. For example, the suggestion
that we could save the first road for another day: “Oh, I kept the first
for another day!” However, this is a flawed argument because it is possible
to revisit a life-altering decision. In fact, many have altered the course
of their lives in midstream by revisiting decisions. To offer contemporary
example, a mother in her mid-40s earing a college degree after dropping out
of highschool at the age of 17. Clearly, this typ of example was less
available in the 19th century, yet others examples of “second choices” did
exist–such as accumulating a fortune in ranching or mining. Still other
examples exist. Therefore, it is possible that Frost may have implicitly
offered this “Reality Americana” to reader–and not cynically dismiss the
idea that a revisiting of a life-altering decision was impossible.
Furthermore, to strongly assert that Frost is cynically criticizing those
romanic idealists who at times enjoy nastalgic recollections, or believe
they can travel 2 roads in life is misplaced. By offering this sentiment,
the argument sustains a very difficult position of explaining away Frost’s
last sentence: “And that has made all the difference.” Without doubt, it is
a vulnerable argument to convey that Frost communicated cynicism and
mockery of romantic ideals when at the crescendo of his poem he produces
the most romantic of all notions–to engage in probably the most personally
challenging of life-trajectories. According to Frost, this engagement
seemed to matter the most, and offer the greatest of sattisfaction.
To be sure, it is a difficult endeavour to explanin why Frost applied this
sentence to his peom without accepting that he was embracing a romantic and
old American ideal of hard work, perseverance, and sattisfaction in
challenging oneself. Unless the position is advanced that Frost simply and
universally misled readers with romanic works while fevershly mocking life
and choice, it must be accepted he was celebrating the moment of
life-altering choice, and the decision to pursue the more unique life path.
Without doubt, if the assumption that the more unique life-road is more
unique because it is more difficult, Frost is also celebrating hard work
and the decision to engage in this work
The position that Frost simply and universally misled readers with romanic
works while fevershly mocking life and choice is possible, but unlikely. In
fact, Frost specifically reveals that he will probably never return to this
divergence because life will not avail him the opportunity: “Yet Knowing
how way leads on to way I doubted if I should ever come back.” If Frost was
mocking life and our inability to exercise choice by offering romantic
words and notions, it is once again difficult to explain why he specfically
indicates he will not be capable of returning to this divergence. This
specific assertion seems to suggest that he is not hiding a message–that
he is forthright and transparent. Otherwise, it would seem Frost would have
concealed this inability to return to the divergence. The fact he clealry
asserts this inability weakens the notion that he is mocking life and the
availability of choice (and perhaps free will)–as if somehow implying we
have no choice.
Clearly, Frost states he is incapable of a return to the divergence because
of the vigors of life. For this reason, it seems readers should be slightly
more literal and less symbolic in analyzing Frost if the assumption is
accepted that he is employing some degree of consistency. Clearly this
assumption makes sense: a poet’s message often reflects consistency.
Indeed, a poet would probably not write of God and then alter paths
midstream and write of the culture of ants. The poet would continue writing
of God. In short, and with the application of this logically parallel
example, Frost is offering his feelings freely and transparently–thus the
argument for hidden and symbolic mockery is not there.
There is little doubt, Frost forthrightly offers his perspective on the
choices of life in The Road Not Taken. Frost specifically asserts the
poem’s narrator (perhaps Frost himself) is at a difficult position in life,
and a life-altering decision is necessary. He analyzes both options with
depth, and realizes he will not sustain a second opportunity to produce
this choice. After careful deliberation, the narrator chooses a trajectory
that is relatively less employed. This lesser relative employment perhaps
infers that it is a more difficult journey. Yet, in the end, Frost suggests
that this relatively unique trajectory (and perhaps more difficult
endeavour) offered him the greatest of sattisfaction probably due to not
only its uniqueness, but its challenges as well: “And it has made all of
the difference.”
This poem is one of my favorites and I would give it two thumbs up. I love it.
no matter what road we choose (easy or difficult road) we should be responsible enough and brave enough to face whatever problem that may arise from those dicissions.
im at school
I can learn everything from this poem
Our mind usually oscillate, what to choose. We should be bold enough to take risks to know the hidden treasure.
i like this poem a lot….but people need top stop saying,’ it’s about’ you can only say that if robert frost told you himself! say,’i think it’s about’. i know i have a lot of ideas but for all i know he could be writing about which type of tomato sauce to buy for the dinner!! okay obvisouly it’s not quite like that but you get my point…..
love it!!!
one of my english coursework poems…one of my faviourtes and i’m always coming up with new meanings every time i read it……
In the poem nothing gold can stay is a very short but meaningful poem. he
uses the line: “Her early leaf’s a flower; But only so an hour,” to show
that in the begging of something that you are doing seems so right and the
good thing to do but sometimes when u get to know the thing you are talking
about it isn’t what you thought it was. The main point of this is that
things start off as plan but towards the end it is the total opposite from
what you thought it would be
This is one of the best peoms ever. Its simple and lucid and speaks my mind. I am loving it !! 🙂
The poem tells us that there are two kinds of road in life and we have the freedom to choose which way to take. But oftentimes, we choose the easier way which usually leads to damnation. Choosing the other will give us ultimate happiness and satisfaction.
i read this poem i thought that we not go for that path which is very easy weshould sometimes go for the difficult ones as by taking that we can achieve what we want not by easier one.
May be im a mourner may be i deserve to do something else.
Need to feel the sense.
i have read this poem it is v nice poem it is fantstic it gave me alot of courageous
wHEN FOR THE FIRST TIME I RADE THIS POEM I FELT TAHT IM READING SOMETHING THAT FIRST TIME TOUCHED MY HEART I WAS VERY NERVOUSE AT THAT TIME BUT BY READING THIS POEM I FELT SOMETHING GOOD AND BETTER Mr.ROBET FROST IS THE GREAT POET OF AMERICA I HAVE READ MANY POEMS WRITTEN BY HIM