The Road Not Taken

1. The Road Not Taken Robert Frost

2. 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;

3. The Poem – 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,

4. The Poem – 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.

5. The Poem – 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.

6. DIDLS - Diction • In “The Road Not Taken,” Robert Frost’s use of diction depicts the image of a person trying to decide between the two roads in front of him, and eventually deciding on one • Repetition of phrases: • “two roads diverged” • “travel/traveled/traveler” • “wear/worn” • The diction in Frost’s poem personifies the two roads • EXAMPLES OF PERSONIFICATION • “sorry I could not travel both” • “just as fair” • “having perhaps the better claim” • “wanted wear” • “and both that morning equally lay”

7. DIDLS - Imagery • “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood” • A road, split into two paths that lead toward the woods, in the middle of Autumn • “long I stood and looked down one as far as I could” • Speaker contemplating which road to take, and peering down each path to see how far they go • “it was grassy and wanted wear” • The second road seemed like it had not been taken as frequently • “I took the one less traveled by and that has made all the difference” • Taking the second road led the speaker to believe the outcome was different

8. DIDLS - Details • The interpretation of “The Road Not Taken” is left completely up to the reader. In one case, the poem is a motivational testament to individuality and straying away from the popular opinions of society, and in another case, it is just a poem about two roads. The first interpretation of the poem suggests that the speaker chose the “road less traveled by” in an act of individual expression, and was rewarded for doing so. The other interpretation expresses the idea that both roads were exactly the same, and the outcome relied specifically on fate rather than the speaker’s own free will. Since poetry is subjective, the poem’s interpretation lies in the opinion of the reader.

9. DIDLS - Language • The poem’s language is not difficult to comprehend, but it is creatively written so that it does not give way to the author’s intended “meaning” behind it.

10. DIDLS - Structure • This poem is structured so that each stanza shows a shift in the opinion of the speaker, allowing the reader to make his/her own decision about the poem’s true meaning. • The first stanza suggest that the first road would be preferable, the second stanza focuses on the second road, the third stanza compares the two and chooses the second, and the fourth poem states that the two roads are the same.