“The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost
is
ar stu
ed d
vi y re
aC s
o
ou urc
rs e
eH w
er as
o.
co
m
A. GRAPHOLOGICAL LEVEL
In this level, there were some major punctuation marks and
verse paragraphing used by the writer to foreground some of the
ideas in the poem.
a. The Use of Punctuation Marks
These are used in written or printed matter to indicate the
separation
of
words
into
sentences,
clauses,
and
phrases.
Punctuation marks aid in the better comprehension of meaning and
grammatical relation of the words.
In this poem the following punctuation marks were used:
a1. Colon
A colon introduces an element or series of elements that
illustrates or amplifies the information that preceded the
colon. In the poem of Frost, colon was used to separate two
independent clauses where the second clause is directly
related to the first clause on the last stanza of the poem.
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.
a2. Comma
A comma is used to separate words and group of words in a
simple series of three or more items. It customarily indicates
a brief pause. In this poem, Frost used comma when there are
two independent clauses joined by a connector “and” as
analyzed in some parts of the poem below.
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
Th
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
sh
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
a3. Dash
A dash is a little horizontal line commonly used to
indicate a range or a pause. It is used to separate groups of
words, not to separate parts of words like a hyphen does.
There are three forms of dashes: em, en, and the double
hyphen. In this poem, Frost used em dash in place of a comma,
This study source was downloaded by 100000815551725 from CourseHero.com on 12-04-2021 21:36:04 GMT -06:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/94661451/The-Road-Not-Taken-Stylistic-Analysisdocx/
is
ar stu
ed d
vi y re
aC s
o
ou urc
rs e
eH w
er as
o.
co
m
parenthesis, or colon to emphasize the conclusion of a
sentence as the last stanza.
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
a4. Exclamation point
An exclamation point is used when a person wants to
express a sudden outcry or add emphasis. In this poem, Frost
used exclamation point on the third line of the third stanza
to express a strong feeling.
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.
a5. Full stop/Period
A full stop is the British English term for this
punctuation mark which is known as a period in American
English. It is used to mark the end of a sentence that has a
complete statement. In the same way Frost used full stop in
the poem to signify the end of a complete statement.
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.
sh
Th
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
a6. Semi-colon
A semi-colon is used to connect independent clauses. It
shows a closer relationship between the clauses than a period
would show. In this poem, semi-colon is used to join two ideas
that are closely related in thought which had been given equal
rank.
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,
b. Capitalization
Capitalization is the writing of a word with its first
letter in uppercase and the remaining letters in lowercase
like in writing proper noun and the first letter of a
This study source was downloaded by 100000815551725 from CourseHero.com on 12-04-2021 21:36:04 GMT -06:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/94661451/The-Road-Not-Taken-Stylistic-Analysisdocx/
sentence. In this poem, Frost used capitalization correctly by
capitalizing the first letter in the beginning of each line
and the pronoun “I”.
c. Lowercase letter
Lowercase letters are used most frequently than the
uppercase letters which are reserved for special purposes,
such as capitalizing proper nouns or the first letter of a
sentence. The smaller versions of each letter are developed
for quick writing. To save time and space, letters became
smaller and more rounded as scribes hurried to finish their
work. In this poem, the lowercase letters are used normally by
the author.
is
ar stu
ed d
vi y re
aC s
o
ou urc
rs e
eH w
er as
o.
co
m
In this level, it can be interpreted that the punctuation
marks and verse paragraphing used made the poem be understood
clearly by the readers. It helped the readers to read the poem with
ease. And because of the proper use of punctuation marks and verse
paragraphing it made the flow of the poem smooth and without delay.
sh
Th
B. PHONOLOGICAL LEVEL
In this level, the focus was on the analyses of sound
patterns, utterance of different words and formation of systematic
use of sound in language through phonological devices such as rhyme
scheme, alliteration, consonance, and assonance.
In the poem “The Road Not Taken” the following phonological
devices are used by the author:
a. Rhyme Element
The poem comprises of four stanzas with five lines in
each. The rhymes are end rhymes which are perfect rhymes
(wood, both, stood, could, growth). Each stanza of “The Road
Not Taken” has the pattern of the rhyme scheme: ABAAB, CDCCD,
EFEEF, and GHGGH pattern. The same rhyme pattern was repeated
in all the four stanzas. The rhyming words used in the poem
are:
wood, stood, could
both, undergrowth
fair, wear, there
claim, same
lay, day, way
black, back
sigh, I, by
hence, difference
b. Alliteration
It is the use of same consonant sounds at the beginning
of words in a line. In this poem, alliteration is the
following:
was, wanted, wear
though, that, the, there
This study source was downloaded by 100000815551725 from CourseHero.com on 12-04-2021 21:36:04 GMT -06:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/94661451/The-Road-Not-Taken-Stylistic-Analysisdocx/
is
ar stu
ed d
vi y re
aC s
o
ou urc
rs e
eH w
er as
o.
co
m
first, for
way, way
c. Assonance
It is the repetition of vowel sounds inside the words in
a line. In this poem, assonace is the following:
as, far, as, I
where, bent, undergrowth
as, just, as
perhaps, better
was, grassy, wanted
morning, equally
be, telling, this, with
somewhere, ages, and, ages, hence
that, has
d. Consonance
It is the repetition of consonant sounds occurs within or
at the end of words in a line. In this poem, consonance is the
following:
as, just, as
because, was, grassy
knowing, how
e. Onomatopoeia
It is the formation of words with that imitates the sound
of the words it refers for poetic or rhetorical effect. In
this poem, onomatopoeia is observed in first line of the forth
stanza, “I shall be telling this with a sigh”.
In this level, it can be interpreted that Frost used the sound
devices greatly that made the poem more aesthetic and meaningful.
The repetition of consonant and vowel sounds in the lines of the
poem and the observable end rhymes helped the readers to gain more
interest in the poem and read the poem with enjoyment.
sh
Th
C. MORPHOLOGICAL LEVEL
In this level of stylistic analysis, the focus was the
formation of words, as Mark and Krishen (2005) define morphology as
the mental system which is used in the formation of words and it
deals with the inner structure of words. Morphological devices used
in this poem are affixes and compounding. It consisted of free
morphemes and bound morphemes
a. Affixes
It is the formation of new words through prefixes and
suffixes. In this poem the suffixes used are the following:
Roads
road + s
This study source was downloaded by 100000815551725 from CourseHero.com on 12-04-2021 21:36:04 GMT -06:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/94661451/The-Road-Not-Taken-Stylistic-Analysisdocx/
Diverged diverge + d
Traveller travel + er
Looked - look + ed
Having - have + ing
Grassy - grass + y
Wanted - want + ed
Passing - pass + ing
Really
real + ly
Morning - morn
b. Compounding
The compounding used by Robert Frost in this poem is:
Undergrowth under + growth
Somewhere some + where
is
ar stu
ed d
vi y re
aC s
o
ou urc
rs e
eH w
er as
o.
co
m
In this level, it can be interpreted that the words used and
its formations were used purposefully, for those were the words
necessary to present the completeness of the meaning of the poem.
It was chosen by Frost for those were the words he taught will be
best in describing his poem and maintaining its beauty through
sounds by the help of words used.
sh
Th
D. LEXICO-SYNTAX LEVEL
It is the combination of two different terms ‘lexis’ means
vocabulary and ‘syntax’ means sentence construction. The following
stylistic devices were used by Frost in this poem.
a. Anaphoric
The anaphoric was observed in this poem as Frost used the
“road” referring to “it” in the poem.
b. Cataphoric
The cataphoric was observed consistently in this poem as
Frost used “I” referring to the “traveller”.
c. Metaphor
This poem of Frost was metaphoric as it used the roads to
be compared on the choices in life of man.
d. Personification
Frost used personification in this poem as observed in
stanza 1 and 3. In line 1 of stanza 1, the road was given the
ability to depart. And in line 1 of stanza 3, the morning was
given the ability to lie.
Stanza 1, Line 1. Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
Stanza 3, Line 1. And both that morning equally lay
e. Simile
The simile was used by the author in the first line of
stanza two “Then took the other, as just as fair”. It was
This study source was downloaded by 100000815551725 from CourseHero.com on 12-04-2021 21:36:04 GMT -06:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/94661451/The-Road-Not-Taken-Stylistic-Analysisdocx/
sh
Th
is
ar stu
ed d
vi y re
aC s
o
ou urc
rs e
eH w
er as
o.
co
m
telling that the road he chose to take was marked by
impartiality and honesty, and free from self-interest.
In this level, it was interpreted that the devices used in the
poem created an impact to the readers because it gave the readers
reason to think and read again the poem. The devices in this level
added meaning to the poem.
This study source was downloaded by 100000815551725 from CourseHero.com on 12-04-2021 21:36:04 GMT -06:00
https://www.coursehero.com/file/94661451/The-Road-Not-Taken-Stylistic-Analysisdocx/
Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)