Research Paper On The Road Not Taken
“The Road Not Taken” By Robert Frost
Lindsey Stevens
ENG102W
September 22, 2012
“A Road Not Taken” is a poem that most of have read or heard of at one time or another by the writer Robert Frost. I first read this poem in Elementary school but it always stuck with me whenever I would read it again. “A Road Not Taken” shadows that we as humans make choices regardless if the choice was good or bad, there are consequences that affect our destiny. The setting of “A Road Not Taken” takes place in the woods to me I see a quiet opening in the woods, with a ray of autumn sun shining on the narrator, the season of fall with a fork of two windy roads both full of potential opportunity. The yellow woods represent fall and I imagine the smell of crisp cold breeze. The wet leaves lay on the ground with dew or rain, unworn and freshly blown onto the road where the decision maker stands. One reason why I’m driven to this poem for how the reader can choose his or her own meaning from Robert’s work. The narrator says his reaction to the decision with words and phrases that could mean positive success or negative regret. Robert made his …show more content…
writing simple with the one character without description, the narrator is up to you to imagine. When I read “A road Not Taken” I picture an older man who is conflicted and confused with what route to travel down or what decision to make. Feel that this decision is a very important one that is going to affect the narrators life greatly or perhaps a mid life crisis. The character being outside shows his adventurousness and I believe is symbolizes a peaceful nature.
“The Road Not Taken” By Robert Frost
Lindsey Stevens
ENG102W
September 22, 2012
“A Road Not Taken” said two main points to me. One the more obvious, our decisions impact our lives and we should make the decisions that will have better results for the person. I also took from the poem was that we can tell comfort ourselves when making a decision by Lessing the seriousness by saying we can try again later but often times our decisions make it impossible to return to the original decision point and try again. During the poem the narrator contemplated which road to travel down for he suspects he may end up taking the wrong path and miss out on something with his final decision being to take the less traveled path. After the narrator made his decision for the less traveled wrong the mood of the poem became a mystery. It’s hard to tell if the narrator was ever happy or if he regretted taking the road less traveled in other words his final decision.
Which is where the reader can make his/her own meaning, tone and overall message of the poem. If an optimistic reader was to read this poem, one could take out that taking the less traveled road brought the narrator great success. An optimistic reader could perhaps sense that the man is telling this with dignity and a way to show non-conformity and independent decision-making. Compared to if a more pessimistic reader was to read they could take back that the man regretted his decision with taking the less traveled road and wish that he could go back and try his decision again. The pessemtic reader could feel that the narrator was regretfully saying this poem alone “The Road Not Taken” By Robert
Frost
Lindsey Stevens
ENG102W
September 22, 2012
which could represent failure and regret. I enjoy this poem because it’s so universal and adaptable to the person reading the poem it can change ultimately because of the readers current mood and the readers can pick their own meaning and take what lesson they want from the poem. “A Road Not Taken” shows readers the importance in making decisions with the metaphor of a split road. The poem is simple and the reader can take what they choose for a lesson, either the narrator was happy with his decision or regretful. I hope he was happy. Making decisions are tough to begin with; we all make choices everyday that will affect life in one way or another.
Lindsey Stevens
ENG102W
September 22, 2012
“A Road Not Taken” is a poem that most of have read or heard of at one time or another by the writer Robert Frost. I first read this poem in Elementary school but it always stuck with me whenever I would read it again. “A Road Not Taken” shadows that we as humans make choices regardless if the choice was good or bad, there are consequences that affect our destiny. The setting of “A Road Not Taken” takes place in the woods to me I see a quiet opening in the woods, with a ray of autumn sun shining on the narrator, the season of fall with a fork of two windy roads both full of potential opportunity. The yellow woods represent fall and I imagine the smell of crisp cold breeze. The wet leaves lay on the ground with dew or rain, unworn and freshly blown onto the road where the decision maker stands. One reason why I’m driven to this poem for how the reader can choose his or her own meaning from Robert’s work. The narrator says his reaction to the decision with words and phrases that could mean positive success or negative regret. Robert made his …show more content…
writing simple with the one character without description, the narrator is up to you to imagine. When I read “A road Not Taken” I picture an older man who is conflicted and confused with what route to travel down or what decision to make. Feel that this decision is a very important one that is going to affect the narrators life greatly or perhaps a mid life crisis. The character being outside shows his adventurousness and I believe is symbolizes a peaceful nature.
“The Road Not Taken” By Robert Frost
Lindsey Stevens
ENG102W
September 22, 2012
“A Road Not Taken” said two main points to me. One the more obvious, our decisions impact our lives and we should make the decisions that will have better results for the person. I also took from the poem was that we can tell comfort ourselves when making a decision by Lessing the seriousness by saying we can try again later but often times our decisions make it impossible to return to the original decision point and try again. During the poem the narrator contemplated which road to travel down for he suspects he may end up taking the wrong path and miss out on something with his final decision being to take the less traveled path. After the narrator made his decision for the less traveled wrong the mood of the poem became a mystery. It’s hard to tell if the narrator was ever happy or if he regretted taking the road less traveled in other words his final decision.
Which is where the reader can make his/her own meaning, tone and overall message of the poem. If an optimistic reader was to read this poem, one could take out that taking the less traveled road brought the narrator great success. An optimistic reader could perhaps sense that the man is telling this with dignity and a way to show non-conformity and independent decision-making. Compared to if a more pessimistic reader was to read they could take back that the man regretted his decision with taking the less traveled road and wish that he could go back and try his decision again. The pessemtic reader could feel that the narrator was regretfully saying this poem alone “The Road Not Taken” By Robert
Frost
Lindsey Stevens
ENG102W
September 22, 2012
which could represent failure and regret. I enjoy this poem because it’s so universal and adaptable to the person reading the poem it can change ultimately because of the readers current mood and the readers can pick their own meaning and take what lesson they want from the poem. “A Road Not Taken” shows readers the importance in making decisions with the metaphor of a split road. The poem is simple and the reader can take what they choose for a lesson, either the narrator was happy with his decision or regretful. I hope he was happy. Making decisions are tough to begin with; we all make choices everyday that will affect life in one way or another.