- Published: November 13, 2021
- Updated: November 13, 2021
- University / College: University of California, Davis
- Language: English
- Downloads: 43
“ The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost Essay Sample
“ The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost is about the decisions that a person makes in life and how it affects their life. Frost uses nature to express this, which is a characteristic of romanticism. The poem first starts off with a mood of regret which then switches to satisfaction towards the end.
The theme of “ The Road Not Taken” is that the choices a person makes in life slopes one’s future experiences. Basically, Frost is telling the reader to follow his or her desire and do what one feels is right. Not let anyone keep you from doing what you want to do. It appeals to everyone to a great extent as all have dreams and desires, which Robert Frost displays in his poem and gives his outlook, as to how the decisions we make drastically change our life. Critic Lawrence Thompson has argued that it is a slightly mocking satire on a perennially hesitant walking partner of Frost’s who always wondered what would have happened if he had chosen their path differently.
Right at the beginning of the poem the traveler says, “ And sorry I could not travel both…” which sets the mood of regret. The remorseful mood of poem changes to a more positive and clear outlook when the speaker states that he “ Then took the other, just as fair, and having perhaps the better claim.” The speaker is content and happy with the road or choice taken.
The tone of the poem is satisfaction as the speaker reflects on his past decisions made. Some metaphors use are as the speaker helps the reader identify with these opportunities through choices and circumstances of those choices. “ I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.”
Romanticism is characterized by a heightened interest in nature, emphasis on the individual’s expression of emotion and imagination. Robert Frost utilizes these characteristics of romanticism. In “ The Road Not Taken” Frost uses nature in his poem to relate it to life, “ Two roads diverged in a yellow wood.”
