The Road Not Taken

By examining Frost’s “The Road Not Taken,” we get a deeper understanding of the theme, mood and tone of the poem. Before delving into the thick of the explication, one must remember that this is one particular interpretation of the poem, one which may border on the original intent of the poet or altogether veer away from it. Nonetheless, “The Road Not Taken” encompasses both the microcosm and macrocosm of human existence and experience. The literal scene and situation is a traveler in a “yellow wood” who comes upon “two roads diverged.” The speaker views each of the paths and decides that each is “just as fair” and “the passing there/Had worn them really about the same.” The speaker decides to keep one path for another day, though “knowing how way leads on to way/…doubted if…[he]…should ever come back.” As he starts down one path the speaker postulates he shall one day tell the story with a “sigh” as he recalls taking the roa

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ut symbolically they mirror the individual choices we must make which will affect our lives in significant ways after the choosing. This can be true for one individual or for an entire nation. For instance, America faced two roads during World War II. How different history may have been had we not chosen to enter the War. Entering it, at least for Americans, democracy and capitalism, has made “all the difference.” Yet, certainly in remembering back when we were originally faced with the two choices, we might “sigh” over the path not taken, one which would have perhaps saved untold numbers of American lives. The speaker is not necessarily in a depressed or unhappy-with-his-present-situation mood at the end of the poem. He may only be sighing because he is aware of the complexity of life, the short span of life, and the fact that one traveler can never walk down more than one road at the same time. We may sigh over the fact that not entering World War II would have saved thousands of lives, but this does not make us regret choosing to enter it and perhaps saving ten times that number in the long run. However, each choice we make defines us and each choice we make negates the possibility of another choice. In that instant o
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Approximate Word count = 1484
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page)

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