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Garret Alvarez
Ms. Lacey
Eng 112
5 March 2014
Analyzing poetry
Robert Frost’s road not taken was written in 1874. There are many signs of
imagery in this poem. Which include making choices and how describing nature is used
to give the setting. This poem is a great to give examples of imagery and to show how to
use imagery to describe the setting.
During this time period there weren’t many historical events taking place in the
world but there were quite a few in the United States. First on January 1 1874 New York
annexes the Bronx. Then on January 13 1874 U.S. troops land in Honolulu to protect the
king. Next on January 17 armed democrats seize Texas government ending radical
reconstruction. King David Kalakaua from Hawaii is the first king to visit the United
States on February 12. Hawaii signs a treaty with the US granting exclusive trading
rights. New york passes compulsory education law.
There are two main types of imagery in this poem. There is the view based on the
road itself, and then there is the view based on the nature. First, line one illustrates that on
the nature side it gives the setting. “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood” is stating that
the forest has yellowed leaves, suggesting that the time of year is autumn. Now the first
line also symbolizes that the narrator has to make a tough decision in his life. The fourth
through the eighth line shows that on the road view, the narrator can only look into the
future so far and only see his consequences at that particular moment. On the nature side
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it shows that the forest must have lots of vegetation since the narrator could only see a
short distance into the forest. Lines eleven through fifteen shows that the narrator wants
to be able to make both sides of the decisions, but knows that he cant. It also shows that
after he made his decision he knows that he cant change it. These lines also give more
examples to the previous lines suggesting that the forest is really thick. Lines eighteen
through twenty, with the repetition of the first line it illustrates that again the forest is in
autumn. Also it shows that he will choose the decision that most people wouldn’t choose.
This is poem in my opinion is an excellent poem. It shows that you should make
the decision not based on others or their decisions.
I choose the poem the road not traveled by Robert Frost. During this time there
were many historical event at the time, such as… . This poem has two different types of
imagery the road point of view and the nature point of view. I like this poem because it
gives you the lesson to learn to make your own decisions not to listen to others or their
decisions. This poem is a perfect example of a poem that has a deep meaning and loads of
imagery that can truly mean anything.
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Works Cited
1. "Historical Events for Year 1874 - HistoryOrb.com." HistoryOrb.com. N.p., n.d.
Web. 19 Mar. 2015.
2. The Road Not Taken. Frost, Robert. 1920. Mountain Interval." 1. The Road Not
Taken. Frost, Robert. 1920. Mountain Interval. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb. 2015.