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.
Speaking task :
The poem can be read, explained, analysed following a reader response approach. The latter is based on the view that the meaning of the poem does not reside in its text, it is not something to be found but rather made or constructed using your personal life experiences, psychological traits, religious background, your understanding of the world around you... Etc. In other words, the poem does not mean much without your interaction, your emotional and intellectual involvement.
Speak about the poem's underlying messages by answering the following questions :
- In the light of Robert Frost's poem, talk about past experiences when you had some difficulty or confusion making decisions and how you think about those particular decisions now.
- What sort of life dilemmas does the poet write about?
- What images, feelings and memories does the poem evoke in you?
- What metaphors can you find in the poem that the writer uses to make an analogy between the trip and life?
- What is more important to the poet? The act of making the decision or its consequences?
- Is the tone of the poem positive or negative? Justify by providing your own arguments.