Robert Frost

The Road Not Taken

• Frost sets the poem on a forest road on an autumn morning. He received inspiration for the poem from the landscape in rural England.

• While living in Great Britain from 1912 to 1915, Frost and his family had rented a cottage. Frost began writing "The Road Not Taken," but he did not finish it until he and his family returned to the United States. In

• "The Road Not Taken," the path through the "yellow wood" could be anywhere, but Frost may have been picturing his life growing up.

Quick write to Introduce "The Road Not Taken"

• Make a list of all the decisions you have to make on a daily basis, no matter how minor. Then list what sorts of things influence you when you make those decisions.

The Road Not Taken" is a lyric poem with four stanzas of five lines each. (A lyric poem presents the feelings and emotions of

the poet rather than telling a story or presenting a witty observation.)

• Lyrical Poetry~ Lyric poetry is a genre of poetry that

expresses personal and emotional feelings. In the ancient world, lyric poems were those which were sung. Lyric poems do not have to rhyme, and today do not need to be set to music or a beat.

• Rhyme~ Correspondence of terminal sounds of words or of

lines of verse. • Meter~ Meter is the rhythm established by a poem, and it

is usually dependent not only on the number of syllables in a

line but also on the way those syllables are accented.

Read the two lines with exaggerated emphasis on the accented syllables, mark the meter in

notes and write down the rhyme scheme

I heard a fly buzz when I died;The stillness round my formWas like the stillness in the airBetween the heaves of storm.

Read Aloud

• What is the Poem literally saying?

• Read the poem a second time, and identify the rhyme scheme and meter and mark it in your notes.

• Rhyme Scheme • .....The rhyme scheme of the poem is as

follows: (1) abaab, (2) cdccd, (3) efeef, (4) ghggh. .....All of the end rhymes are masculine—that is, each consists of a single syllable.

• Read the poem to yourself and underline three words which connote emotion and identify any symbolism in the poem

• Discuss the metaphorical meaning of the poem and find the connection between the qualities of a lyrical poem and the theme of the poem

1st Read poem aloud and determine the Rhyme Scheme

*-Complicated form-different from many poems and poets.-Start with the simple stuff.

-The poem consists of 4 stanzas with 5 lines each~ these are called quintains.

-In each quintain, the rhyme scheme is ABAAB (last word)

*

The rhythm is a bit tricky, it is basically iambic; meaning, that there is one unstressed syllable and then a stressed syllable

(da-DUM)

Read aloud 1st line

There are many variations in THIS poem, which are anapestic, which means there are 2 unstressed syllables followed by a stressed.

(da-da- DUM)

Read aloud (in 3rd)

*

The most common use of iambs in poetry is in pentameter, which means there are 5 feet or units of stressed and unstressed:

But this poem is in IAMBIC TETRAMETER which means there are only 4 feet (tetra=4)

(da DUM da DUM da DUM)

*

Each of the 4 feet in this line is iambic except for the 3rd foot because ‘in’ and ‘a’ are unstressed, making it an anapest.

So, this poem has a rhythm and rhyme scheme but it is a little bit out of the ordinary, just as the speaker chooses to go on his own path.

Rhyme schemes for your poems

Summary• Speaker has come to a fork in the road in a

path in the woods. It is fall so leaves are changing colors and he is unsure which way to go. He looks down one path as far as he can see, then decides to take the other.

• The speaker reflects on how he didn’t take the other road and wondering where that could have lead, but suspects that he probably will not ever be back, so he takes his chances to live with the consequence.

Speaker

• He seems conflicted, doesn’t tell us too much about himself but we know he’s facing a big decision. The road he’s on and the life he’s leading is splitting in two.

• *

Speaker continued

• Obviously looking at decisions he’s made in his past and knows that you cannot go back so we are aware that he is faced with a decision but the decision is unknown.

• We also know that he appreciates nature and looks to natural elements for answers.

• *

Symbols, images/ Lit. Devices

• Roads are symbolic to his descisions and choices in life, reflects how he has felt and/or continues to feel when faced with a life choice while he is literally facing 2 different roads.

• Natural elements and nature symbolic to the answer when the speaker is up against a wall.

• yellow=anxious • *

Connection

• Reading poem aloud makes us feel as though we are on foot, walking through the woods with the speaker. We can tell by this confusing yet repetitive and constant metere that the speaker is conflicted and confused himself. This rhyme scheme also shows that the speaker isnt necessarily speeding ahead, but carefully thinking his descision; slow and steady and just as he thinks to just go for it, (3rd line of anapest) ,.

he slows again thinking about what consequences come with each. He literally cannot see down the path and literally can not look back. However, this figuratively represents learning from his past mistakes and decision making that either way he picks, he risks giving something up.

The repetitive elements of nature alone create the setting for the reader. This also shows the speaker’s respect and trust in nature and his last resort for getting his answers. Figuratively speaking, the two roads are his choices.

The poem centers on the concept of choice and what coming to a decision on one’s one really implies and entails. Dreams, hopes and exploration all are obviously major themes of the poem as well.

• Which Is the Road Not Taken? • .......You may have noticed that the title of the

poem can refer to either road. Here's why: The speaker takes the road "less traveled" (line 19). In other words, he chooses the road not taken by most other travelers. However, when he chooses this less-traveled road, the other road then becomes the road not taken.

Quick Write

• Write a well-organized paragraph explaining a time you chose to take the “road not taken.” Include details and specific reasons you chose to go the road not taken instead of taking the easy way.

• Themes • Individualism • .......The speaker chooses to go his own way, taking the “road less traveled”

(line 19). • Caution • .......Before deciding to take the "road less traveled" (line 19), the speaker takes

time to consider the other road. He says, "[L]ong I stood / And looked down one as far as I could" (lines 3-4).

• Commitment • .......The speaker does not have second thoughts after making his decision. • Accepting a Challenge • .......It may be that the road the speaker chooses is less traveled because it

presents trials or perils. Such challenges seem to appeal to the speaker.