Robert Frost’s poem “The Road Not Taken,” leaves its readers
with many different ways to interpret its meaning. The reader’s life
experiences in the past, present, and outlook on the future will determine how
the reader will interpret this poem. Although the interpretation may vary from
reader to reader, the basic meaning is about life choices. This poem is about a
life struggle: the inability to take two paths at once. In the first stanza, the
emphasis is on the road that was not traveled. Frost wants to travel both roads,
but he cannot ”and be one traveler.” There is a strong sense of regret
before the choice is made because he knows that in one lifetime he cannot travel
down every road. Before making the final decision on which path to take, the
traveler “looked down one as far as I could.” The destination of the road
that is not chosen is unknown. Although he strains his eyes to see as far as he
can, he will never know where that road might have led him. He takes the other
road that is “grassy and wanted wear.” The road he chooses has a “better
claim,” because it is the road that is less traveled on. By taking this road,
a clue to his personality is revealed. He is the type of person that wants to
try something new and different. In the third stanza, the leaves that cover the
ground have not been stepped on and “no step had trodden black,” indicates
that no one has walked down the road since the leaves have fallen, therefore
describing a road not traveled. ”I kept the first for another day,” relates
to his desire to travel down both paths. “knowing how way leads on to way,”
means that he is aware that all future life choices will be affected because of
the road he chooses to travel. In this stanza he realizes that once his decision
is made there is no turning back. At the end of the poem, “I shall be telling
this with a sigh Somewhere ages and somewhere hence,” reveals he knows someday
he will look back and have some regrets that he did not go back and take the
other road. Although it seems that he is unhappy with his decision, he is not.
“I took the road less traveled by, And that has made all the difference,”
means that he does not regret choosing the less traveled road because if he had
not, he would not have had the life experiences that he did. This poem allows
readers with different life experiences to relate to the basic meaning of the
poem. It is a reminder that one decision in life can change everything and that
when we don’t go back and travel down the “other” road, we might have some
regrets later on after it is too late.