Topic > Choices in "The Road not Taken" by Robert Frost and...

In the two poems "The Road Not Taken" and "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" by Robert Frost the poems attract the consideration of making choices in life. In both poems the speaker finds himself in a serious position where he must choose between two paths. “The Road Not Taken” the speaker has two roads before him and must choose one. While in “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” the speaker seeks a life without hardship wishing he could simply remain isolated, but ultimately must return to his responsibilities. Our daily lives require decision making, and many of us may find ourselves torn between two choices. Even in the two poems the speakers were torn between two paths, but what made them so uncertain is their hesitation. The speakers in “The Road Not Taken” and “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” had similar uncertainty in moving forward on their journey. The speaker of the “Road Not Taken” found himself faced with the two “different” roads without knowing which path to take. He stands there thinking while wasting time, the reader is able to recognize the speaker's hesitation in making choices. Arguing that the paths are equally similar and that both "are equally in leaves", the author reveals that the two choices are not different but must be taken. The speaker says he “saved the first for another day!”, yet he knows he can't go back. This is another proof that he is hesitant about his choice and is still thinking about the other choice. It doesn't seem like he has a goal as to where he's going. He made a choice and will always wonder where the other choice would have led. Likewise, the speaker in "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" is also torn between doing what he wants and what he needs... middle of paper ...... to keep the promises we have done, and return to our loved ones. The known has always been easy, but the unknown future is what scares many of us the most. While the author paints the picture of the choices made in these two poems, he also paints two different events. “The Road Not Taken” the speaker does not know where his choice will take him. It seems that the speaker does not have an objective. When we fall between choices without an end goal, all the choices simply seem similar. The Road Not Taken…isn't really about choices. It's about the idea of ​​choices, which none of us actually have. Every road, he said, is essentially the same road. So we choose one and can never go back to the other path. It's not about choosing the path not taken... it's not about being original. It's all about life and how choices slowly fade away in the lives we all lead.