THE ROAD NOT TAKEN

I. MIND MAP:
II. WORDS AND MEANINGS:
1. undergrowth- dense growth of plants and bushes
2. wanted wear- had not been used
III. THEME OF THE POEM:
The main theme of the poem is making the right decisions at the right time. It offers a
profound perception of decision making. It suggests that sometimes in life, we have to make
decisions without the full knowledge and understanding of the state of affairs. But it is also
necessary to consider all the available options and make an appropriate choice. The choice at
the crucial moment determines and changes the path of our lives. Hence, the poem focuses on
a deep analysis of the situation before we arrive at a decision.
IV. TONE AND MOOD OF THE POEM:
1. TONE:
A. Reflective: The speaker is looking back on a past decision and pondering its implications.
B. Pensive: The speaker is thoughtful and introspective, considering the choices made and the
paths not taken.
C. Somewhat Melancholic: The speaker expresses a sense of regret or longing for the path
not taken.
2. MOOD:
A. Contemplative: The poem invites the reader to reflect on their own life choices and the
uncertainty of the future.
B. Ambiguous: The speaker's final words, "I shall be telling this with a sigh," leave the reader
wondering whether the chosen path was truly the "less traveled" one and whether the speaker
is ultimately happy with their decision.
C. Regret or Longing: The speaker's repeated emphasis on the "sorry" and "sigh" creates a
sense of regret or longing for the path not taken.
V. SUMMARY:
The poet, Robert Frost says that once, he was walking down the road and reached a fork. He
could walk over one of the paths only. So, he got confused over which path he should choose.
He took time to choose the right path. One path was greener than the other. The greener path
indicated that it had not been used much.
He inspected them to decide which was a better option and then chose the one which seemed
less walked over which shows his adventurous nature. He was keen to check out the other
path as well. So, he kept the other one for some other day although he knew that he would
never get the chance to walk over it. He knew that one path leads to another and one never
gets a chance to go back and take the other path that he had once left. He would go further on
the chosen path and not get a chance to go back on it. As he walked on the chosen path, he
realized that it was not really different from the other path. He wants to convey that
whichever path we choose in life, they all have the same struggles and challenges. He felt that
his future depended on the choice that he made that day.
Then he says that after several years would have passed, he would say that once upon a time,
he was at such a point in life when he had to choose one path out of two. It was that decision
of his that had made him what he was. He wants to convey the importance of the decisions
that we make. These decisions shape our future and so, we must decide mindfully.
Through the poem titled The Road not taken, the poet tries to sensitize the youth that the
decisions and choices that they take today will be crucial in forming their future. So, wise and
mindful decisions must be made.
VI. COMPETENCY BASED QUESTIONS:
Q1. Bring out the contrast and similarities between the two roads mentioned in the
poem.
A: Both the roads mentioned in the poem are the offshoots of the same road. As this mother
road running through the ‘yellow woods’ forks into two – these two roads are formed. Both
of them are equally inviting and put the traveller in a fix as he stands to wonder which road to
take up. A keen observation reveals that, unlike the other road, one of the roads is well-
trodden. It has commonly been chosen by a majority of the people. Maybe it is considered to
be an easier path. However, it takes a turn and its end cannot be seen just as the other road’s
destination cannot be foreseen. In the morning both the roads are well-covered with leaves as
no one has so far ventured on either of the two. Both the roads once chosen would have to be
stuck to. Years later whichever road is not taken would be looked at wistfully and one would
wonder whether the right choice had been made.
Q2. What is the moral presented by the poet in the poem ‘The Road Not Taken’?
A: This is an inspirational poem and quite tricky, according to Robert Frost himself. The
poem presents an antithesis. The traveller comes to a fork and wishes to take both, which is
impossible. First, one of the roads is described as grassy and `wanted wear’, then he says that
both the roads look the same. This represents the eternal dilemma in man when he finds the
grass greener on the other side. This poem is a call for the reader to forge his or her way in
life and not follow the path that others have taken. This poem encourages self-reliance,
reinforces the power of independent thinking and sticking to one’s decisions. The poet does
not moralize about choice. He simply says that choice is inevitable and you will never know
until you have lived the `difference.’ So there is nothing right or wrong about a choice, it is
all relative. Whatever direction one takes one must pack it with determination and zest for
one can never turn the clock back, or relive that moment.
Q3. ‘The speaker is purposefully ambiguous about whether or not he’s -happy with his
choice.’ Throw light on the given statement.
A: “The Road Not Taken” is a poem about the other road or the choices one makes. When he
has to make a choice, the speaker takes the road that many people have avoided, or the road
less taken. The other road is the road the speaker did not take. He does want to return to the
road at some point, but knows he will not be able to come back to take that road. There is
something about his decision of not taking the other road that causes the speaker to sigh in
remembrance of not leaving it. The sigh seems to be a sad sigh, simply because he could not
take both roads.
The speaker feels his decision has made all the difference. In a sense, the speaker is trying to
convince himself that he took the right road. However, the fact that the speaker is still
thinking about the other road is an indication that he will forever have a doubt. Truly, this
poem is about the other road, the road the speaker did not take. Seeing as how “way leads on
to way,” the speaker doubts that he shall ever go back. Therefore, he visits the idea of taking
the other road only in his memory.
Q4. Discuss the anticipation or remorse in The Road Not Taken’.
A: There is a fair amount of irony to be found here in the poem but this is also a poem
infused with the anticipation of remorse. Its title is not ‘The Road Less Travelled’ but “The
Road Not Taken”. Even as he makes a choice (a choice he is forced to make if he does not
want to stand forever in the woods, one for which he has no real guide or definitive basis for
decision-making), the speaker knows that he will second-guess himself somewhere down the
line— or at the very least he will wonder at what is irrevocably lost: the impossible,
unknowable Other Path. But the nature of the decision is such that there is no Right Path—
just the chosen path and the other path. The Road Less Travelled is a fiction the speaker will
later invent, an attempt to polarize his past and give himself, retroactively, more agency than
he really had. What are sighed for ages and ages hence are not so much the wrong decisions
as the moments of decision themselves— moments that, one atop the other, mark the passing
of a life. This is the more primal strain of remorse.
Q5. The poem, ‘The Road Not Taken’, symbolizes or reveals a meaning or aspect of
freedom or responsibility. Comment.
A: The poem reveals the complex nature of a seemingly simple decision. The narrator is
conflicted as he thinks about which road to take. Even after some deliberation and the fact
that usage “Had worn them really about the same,” he cannot help wondering, but then
doubting “if I should ever come back”. He is even trying to convince himself that he has
made the best choice as, when he looks back “Somewhere ages and ages hence”, he is sure
that he will be able to say that he made the best choice and that it “has made all the
difference”.
This poem highlights the fact that freedom (of choice in this instance) brings with it its own
set of responsibilities. Hie poem also, perhaps, indicates the futility of over-thinking some
situations. If, even trivial decisions require so much thought, how can anyone ever make life-
changing decisions. Apparently for the narrator, this is life-changing. At least the choice is his
to make.