Hello Soupers! I submit this with apprehension as I do not want to come off as one who really knows what Frost was thinking as he wrote: "The Road Not Taken". However, I will post this as I do believe in my interpretation. Don't all jump on me at once. I know there are many opinions!
The Road Not Taken
Robert Frost - 1874-1963
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;
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,
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.
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.
My Interpretation of the Poem
With this writing I will try to show the brilliance of the poet Robert Frost and his famous poem, The Road Not Taken.
At first reading this is a poem of accomplishment, making one decision over another and its triumphant result. It is obvious that everything worked out all right for the traveller in the wood. For he saw, as the last three lines state;
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
But did it really…?
In the very first line Frost writes; “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,”
Why does he say “roads” in a yellow wood? It doesn’t make any sense. There are no “roads” in a “wood”. There are paths or trails, not roads. So why would Frost say roads? I believe this, to be a subtle reference that Frost wants to convey to the reader, to suggest a walk in the forest, but perhaps also introducing the metaphor of this poem. The metaphor is about a decision and this will be explained later. “Roads diverging” are something we all encounter daily. It suggests a decision we need to make as we decide what “road” to take. Be it a simple one or a difficult decision. The question is; is he really walking in a wood or is this, a metaphor for our everyday lives as many of us live in cities or towns with roads and make decisions every day in our own lives about which road to travel both physically and literally.
At the time of writing this in 1915, Frost was living in England. He and his close friend Edward Thomas, another poet, would go for walks. They called them “walking talks”. They would walk in the countryside, through forests and fields. It was during one of these walks they encountered an angry farmer who did not think they should be on his land. Frost apparently stood up to this man stating that they were only walking and not causing any harm. However, the farmer took a different view and demanded they leave. Frost continued to stand his ground arguing, but his friend Edward Thomas backed off.
It is reported that Thomas had a difficult time with this encounter as he felt it showed cowardice on his part.
This brings me to this inclusion;
It is my belief that this is not Robert Frost writing about himself taking a walk. Research indicates that it could be about Frost writing from the point of view of his friend, poet Edward Thomas. He is writing about his friend making a decision and the subsequent outcome of that decision. And that is where, I believe, the lines below may convey this;
And sorry I could not travel both (Edward’s words as he is alone, walking or in his thoughts).
And be one traveler, long I stood (Edward alone by himself with a decision to make)
And looked down one as far as I could (searching for an answer)
To where it bent in the undergrowth; (the answer is not forthcoming)
He, Edward Thomas, could not travel both, because Frost was not with him in this decision-making process. And it was Edward alone who needed to make this decision. Again, I state Frost is writing from Edward’s point of view. So, he was “one traveller” and contemplated the decision before him alone. (I will explain later what I believe was Edward Thomas’ decision). Thomas considered the decision by thinking as far ahead as he could, but it eluded him as it “bent in the undergrowth”. This, in my opinion, is a metaphor for something to decide but not being able to view the future.
As we move to the second stanza, we are led to believe that Edward Thomas has made his decision after weighing both sides.
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
But then, Frost in the very next two lines writes,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
Why would Frost elude that the decision has been made when he contradicts himself in the same stanza? Perhaps Frost is also conveying the difficulty in making an important decision.
The two ‘roads’ lay before Edward Thomas and it looks like he has made his decision, however he sees that each “road” may be the right decision because there is no difference in them at this point. “the passing there had worn them really about the same”.
So, is Frost saying that there is, or would be no difference in the choice made by his friend Edward, because the last two lines contradict the first three lines? It looks like Frost is not taking a side in the decision-making process, even though he is not the one making the decision.
…
With the 3rd stanza, it still appears there is a decision to be made. In this stanza, Frost has doubled back to the decision that Edward is contemplating by stating;
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
There are two ‘roads’, but only one ‘decision’ that needs to be made and neither present themselves as “In leaves no step had trodden black” (A reference to a walk in the fall during damp conditions). Both “roads” and the ‘decision’ are still equal at this point.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
(Oh, I kept the first for another day!)
By writing that line above Frost indicates that Thomas finally makes his decision. However, Thomas decides to take the second “road”, not the first. “Oh, I kept the first for another day! He chooses the alternate; because he says he keeps the first for another day! But why keep the first for another day? Was the second choice the better one? That would usually not make sense to anyone. The “first” is always the best choice, when we make decisions, be they right or wrong. But Edward decided to choose the “second” one.
In my belief, Edward had struggled with this decision due to his own belief that he appeared as a coward in front of Frost. It may be why he took the ‘second or other road’ or why Frost thought he took the other road. I believe that Frost thought this haunted Edward and it had a great influence on his decision. As stated previously I will explain later what I believe to be Edwards’s decision.
With the last two lines in the stanza, Edward Thomas may or may not have doubts about his choice due to the way Frost writes them;
Yet knowing how way leads on to way, (one thing leads to another, good or bad. The line is ambiguous). This is another example of the genius of Frost.
I doubted if I should ever come back.
To me this is the wonderful double interpretation of the poem. “Way leads on to way” can mean to lead into exquisite things… or not! No wonder he should doubt if he “should ever come back”. As we read this poem for the first time we believe, because of the last lines, that this was a brilliant decision. But perhaps it was not.
The last stanza with the wonderful and triumphant (?) last lines reads below;
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.
One of the most important words in this poem is the word “sigh”
I say that, because when we” sigh” it is usually due to some difficult question asked, or to an event that did not go in our favour and then we ‘sigh’. When you read the poem from start to finish, it seems to end triumphantly because he “took the one less travelled by” and it “made all the difference”.
But my feeling is, Frost wrote, speaking for Edward, “I shall be telling this with a sigh”. If Edward is telling this with a sigh, then perhaps his decision was not the right one or he was not sure it was the right one. So perhaps it was not the best “road” to travel by.
Read the last stanza twice. When you read it for the second time, insert in a longing sigh with your voice when you come to the word “sigh”. Then read the rest of the words. You may notice that your tone and the tone of the poem change to a more sombre setting. I believe that to be Frosts’ intention.
Lastly, it is my belief that Edward Thomas stood before two “roads” (decisions) diverging in a wood and he took the one less travelled by, thereby making his decision “And that has made all the difference”. But was it the right decision?
My interpretation of THE DECISION
This poem was written in 1915 and was published in 1916 by Robert Frost, a good friend of Edward Thomas. It is my opinion that the decision Thomas was battling with was this;
Should he enlist in the British army and fight in France?
The First World War had begun a year earlier, and Thomas was at odds about enlisting. I believe that Thomas may have had some inner demons that he was dealing with (perhaps his thoughts that Frost may have viewed him as a coward), and Thomas may have considered that enlisting may alleviate some of them. There was no conscription at this time.
He did enlist in 1915 and was deployed to France....
Edward Thomas was killed in action at the Battle of Arras on April 9th, 1917.
My final opinion is that although Frost did not know the outcome at the time of writing this, he thought that Thomas enlisting, was the wrong decision and perhaps Thomas should have, literally, taken the other road. It is a poem about a decision that Edward Thomas struggled with and eventually decided upon.
With that said, I believe this is one of the best poems ever written; as it can be, during a first reading, interpreted simply as a wonderful outcome of a decision, yet it can also be interpreted as a poem of great sadness due to that same decision.
That is the brilliance of this poem. Frost was a genius!