”The Road Not Taken”
By Robert Frost
Poem Summary
 In the first stanza the speaker tries to choice between two seemingly equal paths without being
able to see where they lead. In the second stanza, he first chooses the path that is less taken
before realizing they seem to be equal in their use. In the third stanza, the speaker reaffirms
that he will take the path previously chosen and says he make take the other one a different
day; however he then realizes he most likely will never have that opportunity. In the last stanza,
the speaker speaks of how he will tell of this choice and the difference it makes. The
interpretation of the positive or negative consequences is not certain in analyses, however I
have seen it more analyzed as being a regretful decision.
Stanza Break down
 Four stanza’s of five lines each.
 The rhyme scheme is ABAAB
 The poem is mostly in mostly in iambic tetrameter.
 The last line changes the emphasis and difference has the last syllable emphasized.
Themes
 Individuality of taking the road not taken.
 Hard decisions, commitment, and then regret?
 Nature
Symbolism, Imagery, and other Literacy Devices
 Choice of what road to take symbolizes making life decisions or choosing paths in life.
 A path being want of wear means it was less traveled and less traveled means the path in live
less on often taken.
Poet Information
 Robert Frost was born in 1874 in San Francisco, but moved to New England at age 11. He began
writing poetry in high school and took classes at Dartmouth and Harvard. Frost married and
spent several years in England before the beginning of World War 1. He won 4 pulitzer prizes
for poetry and was and is one of the most celebrated and respected American poets ever.
While he wrote vividly about the New England Nature and Culture, he was influenced heavily by
his wife, Europe, as well as by nature around him. His other most famous poem is “Stopping By
Woods On A Snowy Evening.”
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Sarah Stoloff
”The Road Not Taken”
By Robert Frost
Famous Quotes
 The idea of “the road less traveled” comes from this poem and the poem is often incorrectly
referred to with that title.
 This is a very famous poem, here’s perhaps the most famous part.
Opening Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
Sources
 Barnesandnoble.com
 http://www.cummingsstudyguides.net/Guides2/RoadNot.html
 http://www.gradesaver.com/the-poetry-of-robert-frost/study-guide/major-themes/
 http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/192
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Frost
 http://www.shmoop.com/road-not-taken/symbolism-imagery.html
The Poem “The Road Not Taken”
2
Sarah Stoloff