THE ROAD NOT TAKEN

"'The Road Not Taken'" is a poem by Robert Frost, published in 1916 in his collection ''Mountain Interval''. It is the first poem in the volume, and the first poem Frost had printed in italics.

Contents

Explanation and interpretations

Popular culture

References

Explanation and interpretations

This poem, especially its last lines, where the narrator declares that taking the road "less traveled by... made all the difference," is often seen as a declaration of the importance of independence and personal freedom. However, Frost likely intended the poem as a gentle jab at his great friend and fellow poet Edward Thomas, and seemed amused at the slightly "mischievous" misinterpretation. "The Road Not Taken" seems to illustrate that once one takes a certain road, there's no turning back, although one might change paths later on, they still can't change the past.^[1]
Although it has been misinterpreted many times, Frost did not imply that the traveler had taken a "less traveled" (meaning less popular) road, and in fact, Frost mentions that neither was traveled more often ("Though as for that the passing there had worn them really about the same"), but the poem is actually the thoughts of the traveler, thinking back on a choice he had made, wondering if it was the right one.

Popular culture

★ The opening line of the poem ("Two roads diverged in a yellow wood") is referenced in the song "Around the World" from the musical Grey Gardens about the lives of Edith Ewing Bouvier Beale and Edith Bouvier Beale.

References

1. On "The Road Not Taken", by William H. Pritchard. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Department of English. [1].