The Road Not Taken
By Robert Frost
THEME : ‘The Road Not Taken‟ deals with the dilemma that man faces in life. There are many alternatives. Man being an individual cannot take up all the choices. The impact our choices will make on our lives can‟t be foreseen too. Thus, our choices or decisions mark our future. If the decision is incorrect, we have to face the consequences for life as the steps once taken can‟t be retraced.
MESSAGE : Robert frost‟s poem, „ The Road Not Taken‟ throws light on the fact that life is a continuous journey full of divergence every now and then. The important thing is to move on without turning back whether the choice made was right or wrong. We cannot get everything in life and have to make choices. The right or wrong are relative terms. We cannot come back to travel the „roads‟ not taken earlier, in this journey of life. Whatever direction our life takes is determined by the choices made by us. We must strive to make our choice a success.
TITLE : „The Road‟ is the symbol of the choice made by us in life. We at times, regret the choice made but what is done once cannot be undone. Man longs for what he has denied himself in life, rather than focusing on what he has chosen. Hence, the poet has given the title, „The Road Not Taken.‟
POETIC DEVICES : Symbolism –The two roads described by the poet are the symbols of challenges and choices that life has to offer. The beaten-track symbolizes the easier path and the less travelled road, the more challenging path. The choice made by the poet, in taking the difficult road symbolizes man‟s urge to live life boldly. Alliteration - Eg. grassy and wanted wear („w‟ sound is repeated) it gives a musical effect and enhances the poet‟s humour too.
Rhyme Scheme –The rhyme scheme of the poem is abab
I. Read the extracts below and answer the questions that follow:
A.
“Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveller, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;”
a) What does the poet mean by „yellow wood‟?
b) Why did he feel like travelling both the roads?
c) „….long I stood‟. What did the speaker do while standing for a long time?
d) Explain: „And be one traveller‟
B.
“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 travelled by,
And that has made all the difference”
a) What will the narrator tell „with a sigh‟?
b) Why does the narrator say, ‟And that has made all the difference‟?
c) What did the poet wish to do when he takes the road that he hasn‟t been able to tread on?
d) As a symbol, what does „road‟ signify in the poem?
C.
„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.‟
a) What does „both‟ refer to ?
b) Explain the line, „In leaves no step had trodden black‟.
c) Why is the poet doubtful if „he should ever come back‟?
d) Which poetic device defines the roads in the wood?
II.
Answer the following questions in not more than two or three sentences.
1. What does the divergence in the road signify in real life?
2. Why has the poet‟s choice ‟made all the difference‟ in his life?
3. Bring out the symbolism in the poem, ‟The Road Not Taken‟.
4. Describe the two roads that the poet comes across in the wood.
III.
„The Road not Taken‟ symbolizes the metaphor of choices made in life. Describe the theme of the poem justifying its title.
Please click on below link to downloadCBSE Class 9 English The Road not Taken Worksheet Set B
