The Road Not Taken 《未选择的路》罗伯特•弗罗斯特（RobertFrost）生于1874年，卒于1963年，可能要算是20世纪美国最受欢迎和爱戴的一位诗人了。
1912年，他弃农从文，从此成为了一名专业诗人。
他曾在1961年时受邀在约翰•F•肯尼迪总统的就职典礼上朗诵他的诗歌——《The Gift Outrigh t》。
而本次我为大家推荐的《The Road Not Taken》则是他最著名的一首诗歌。
Two roads diverge d in a yellowwood 黄色的树林里分出两条路And sorry I could not travel both 可惜我不能同时去涉足And be one travele r, long I stood 我在那路口久久伫立And lookeddown one as far as I could 我向着一条路极目望去To where it bent in the undergrown 直到它消失在丛林深处Then took the other, as just as fair 但我却选了另外一条路And havingperhaps the better claim 它荒草萋萋，十分幽寂Because it was grassyand wantedwear; 显得更诱人、更美丽Thoughas for that the passing there 虽然在这两条小路上Had worn them reallyabout the same 都很少留下旅人的足迹And both that morning equally lay 虽然那天清晨落叶满地In leavesno step had trodden black 两条路都未经脚印污染Oh, I kept the first for another day! 呵，留下一条路等改日再见！Y et knowing how way leads on to way, 但我知道路径延绵无尽头I doubted i f I shouldeven come back.恐怕我难以再回返I shall be telling this with a sigh 也许多少年后在某个地方Somewhe re ages and ages hence: 我将轻声叹息把往事回顾Two roads diverge d in a wood, and I--- 一片树林里分出两条路I took the one less travele d by, 而我选了人迹更少的一条And that has made all the differe nce 从此决定了我一生的道路评论1："The Road Not Taken" is a poem by RobertFrost, publish ed in 1916 in the collect ion Mountai n Interva l, it is the first poem in the volumeand is printed in italics. The title is often mistake nly given as "The Road Less Travele d", from the penulti mate line: "I took the one less travele d by".The poem has two recogni zed interpr etatio ns; one is a more literal interpr etatio n, while the other is more ironic.Readers often see the poem literal ly, as an express ion of individ ualism. Critics typical ly view the poem as ironic.[1] – "'The Road Not Taken,' perhaps the most famousexample of Frost's own claimsto conscio us irony and 'the best example in all of America n poetryof a wolf in sheep's clothin g.'"[2] –and Frost himself warned"You have to be careful of that one; it's a trickypoem – very tricky."[3] Frost intende d the poem as a gentlejab at his great friendand fellowpoet EdwardThomaswith whom he used to take walks through the forest(Thomasalwayscomplai ned at the end that they shouldhave taken a differe nt path) and seemedamusedat this certain interpr etatio n of the poem as inspira tional.Literal interpr etatio nAccordi ng to the literal(and more common)interpr etatio n, the poem is inspira tional, a paean to individ ualism and non-conform ism.The poem consist s of four stanzas. In the first stanza,the speaker describ es his positio n. He has been out walking in the woods and comes to two roads, and he standslooking as far down each one as he can see. He would like to try out both, but doubtshe could do that, so therefo re he continu es to look down the roads for a long time tryingto make his decisio n about which road to take.Ironicinterpr etatio nThe ironicinterpr etatio n, widelyheld by critics,[1][5] is that the poem is instead about regretand persona l myth-making,rationa lizing our decisio ns.In this interpr etatio n, the final two lines:I took the one less travele d by,And that has made all the differe nce.are ironic: the choicemade littleor no differe nce at all, the speaker's protest ations to the contrar y. The speaker admitsin the secondand third stanzas that both paths may be equally worn and equally leaf-covered, and it is only in his futurerecolle ctionthat he will call one road "less travele d by".The sigh, widelyinterpr eted as a sigh of regret,might also be interpr eted ironica lly: in a 1925 letterto Cristin e Yates of Dickson, Tenness ee, askingabout the sigh, Frost replied: "It was my ratherprivate jest at the expense of those who might think I would yet live to be sorry for the way I had taken in life."Everyon e is a travele r, choosin g the roads to followon the map of their continu ous journey, life. There is never a straigh t path that leavesone with but a sole directi on in which to head. Regardl ess of the origina l message that RobertFrost had intende d to convey, his poem, "The Road Not Taken", has left its readers with many differe nt interpr etatio ns. It is one's past, present and the attitud e with which he looks upon his futurethat determi nes the shade of the light that he will see the poem in. In any case however, this poem clearly demonst ratesFrost's beliefthat it is the road that one chooses that makes him the man who he is. "And sorry I could not travelboth..." It is alwaysdifficu lt to make a decisio n because it is impossi ble not to wonderabout the opportu nity cost, what will be missedout on. There is a strongsense of regretbeforethe choiceis even made and it lies in the knowled ge that in one lifetim e, it is impossi ble to traveldown every path. In an attempt to make a decisio n, the travele r "looks down one as far as I could". The road that will be chosenleads to the unknown, as does any choicein life. As much he may strainhis eyes to see as far the road stretch es, eventua lly it surpass es his visionand he can never see where it is going to lead. It is the way that he chooses here that sets him off on his journey and decides where he is going. "Then took the other, just as fair, and havingperhaps the betterclaim." What made it have the betterclaim is that "it was grassla nd wantedwear." It was somethi ng that was obvious ly not for everyon e because it seemedthat the majorit y of peopletook the other path therefo re he calls it "the road less travele d by". The fact that the travele r took this path over the more popular, secureone indicat es the type of persona lity he has, one that does not want to necessa rily followthe crowd but do more of what has never been done, what is new and differe nt. "And both that morning equally lay in leavesno step had trodden black." The leaveshad covered the groundand since the time they had fallenno one had yet to pass by on this road. Perhaps Frost does this because each time a personcomes to the point where they have to make a choice, it is new to them, somewhe re they have never been and they tend to feel as thoughno one else had ever been there either. "I kept the first for another day!" The desireto traveldown both paths is express ed and is not unusual, but "knowing how way leads on to way", the speaker of this poem realize s that the decisio n is not just a tempora ry one and he "doubted if I shouldever come back." This is his commonsense speakin g and acknowl edging that what he chooses now will affectevery other choicehe makes afterwa rd. Once you have perform ed an act or spokena word that crystal lizeswho you are, there is no turning back and it cannotbe undone. Once again at the end of the poem the regrethangs over the travele r like a heavy cloud about to burst. He realize s that at the end of his life, "somewhe re ages and ages hence", he will have regrets about havingnever gone back and traveli ng down the roads he did not take. Yet he remains proud of his decisio n and he recogni zes that it was this path that he chose that made him turn out the way and he did and live his life the way in which he lived. "I took the road less travele d by and that had made all the differe nce." To this man, what was most importa nt, what reallymade the differe nce, is that he did what he wanted, even if it meant takingthe road less travele d. If he hadn't, he wouldn't be the same man he is now. There are many equally valid meaning s to this poem and RobertFrost may have intende d this. He may have been tryingto achieve a univers al underst anding. In other words, there is no judgmen t, no specifi city, no moral. There is simplya narrato r who makes a decisio n in his life that had changed the directi on of his life from what it may have otherwi se been. It allowsall readers from all differe nt experie nces to relateto the poem.RobertFrost is one of the finestof rural New England’s20th century pastora l poets. His poems are great combina tion of wisdom, harmony and serenit y. They are simpleat first sight, but demandreaders for deep reading to grasp further meaning beyondsurface.The famouspoem of Frost The Road Not Taken is my favorit e. This poem consist s of four stanzas of five lines. The rhyme schemeis ABAAB. the rhymesare strictand masculi ne, with notable excepti on of the last line. There are four stresse d syllabl es each line, varying on iambictetrame ter base.The Road Not Taken tells about life choice.Man’slifeismetapho ricall y related to a journey filledwith twistsand turns. One has to conside r a lot beforemakinga wise choice. Thoughthe diverge d roads seem identic al, they actuall y lead to differe nt directi ons, which symboli ze differe nt fates.A less than rigorou s look at the poem may lead one to believethatFrost’smoralisembodie d in those lines. The poem is taken as a call to indepen dence,preachi ng origina lity and Emerson ian self-relianc e. The poem deconst ructsits conclus ion stanzaby stanza.At the beginni ng of this poem, the poet shows the inabili ty of human beingsto foresee the future, especia lly the results of choices. At the split in the road, the speaker looks far down both the two paths to see what each of the paths will bring. However, his sight is limited; his eyes can only see the path until it bendsinto―theundergr owth‖. Man is free to choose, but doesn’tknowbeforeh and the results of his choice.Both roads divergeintoa―yellowwood‖andappeartobe―aboutthesame‖intheirpurpose s. The first path is a more commonroute. The other is less travele d, which―wasgrassandwantedwear‖. The poet present s a conflic t here—the decisio n between the commoneasy path and excepti onal challen ging path. The two differe nt paths signify two differe nt kinds of lives. Choosin g the commoneasy path, peoplewill feel at ease and live in safety,because the outcome is predict able. However, that kind of life may be less excitin g and lack of novelty. While choosin gthe―lesstravele d‖roadreprese nts the gambleof facinga more difficu lt path in lives. This forms contras t with familia r lives of most people. Peoplehope to achieve r a satisfa ctoryand interes ting life on this road. The wish is good, but reality is full of challen ges and uncerta inties. Nobodycan be sure of the outcome. After vacilla ting between the two roads, the poet finally decidestotaketheroad―lesstravele dby‖and leads a differe nt life from commonpeople.This may indicat e his choiceto be a poet, other than other jobs. The poet makes up his mind to dedicat e himself to poem writing, which is regarde d as a less commoncareer.Once the decisio n is made, there will be no way to returnto the origina l choiceto experie nce the other route. So the poet utters―Yetknowing how way leads on to way,I doubted if I shouldever come back.‖Themadechoiceis irrevoc able, so man must be careful and rationa l beforemakingdecisio ns. At the same time, he must be courage ous enoughto shoulde r the resultof his choice, whether it is good or not.Frost present sman’slimitat ion to explorelife’sdiffere nt possibi lities. Thepoet―sighs‖attheendofthepoem. For at the time ofone’schoice, he must give up other choices and miss some other things. At the same time, he―sighs‖withlamenta tion, ponderi ng what he may have missedontheotherpathandthathedoesn’thaveopportu nities to experie nce another kind of life.The Road Not Taken is interpr eted univers ally as a represe ntatio n of two similar choices. At the beginni ng, man may face two identic al forks, which symboli ze the nexus of free choiceand fate. They contras t increas inglywith each other as they diverge in their separat e directi ons. Man is free to choose,butit’sbeyondhis ability to foretel l the consequ ences. Man can choosea commonroute which guarant ees a safe and reliabl e life. He can also choosea less commonone which is unknown, uniqueand standsoutaboveotherelse’s. All in all, man must be respons ible for his choiceand has courage to shoulde r the result. He can never go back to the past and experie nce other possibi lities. It is impossi ble to predict the outcome of decisio ns, so it is essenti al for him to make wise decisio ns after conside ring, selecti ng and questio ning which selecti on will provide him with fulfill ment.The Road Not Taken is full of philoso phical overton es. This poem shouldbe read as a warning. Man shouldconside r a lot beforemakingchoices and reflect over the choices he has made to discove r―allthediffere nces‖.RobertFrost’s―TheRoadNotTaken‖hasbeenoneofthemostanalyze d, quoted, antholo gizedpoems in America n poetry. A wide-spreadinterpr etatio n claimsthat the speaker in the poem is promoti ng individ ualism and non-conform ity.A TrickyPoemFrost claimsthat he wrote this poem about his friendEdwardThomas, with whom he had walkedmany times in the woods near London. Frost has said that while walking they would come to differe nt paths and after choosin g one, Thomaswould alwaysfret wonderi ng what they might have missedby not takingthe other path.About the poem, Frost asserte d, "You have to be careful of that one; it's a trickypoem - very tricky." And he is, of course, correct. The poem has been and continu es to be used as an inspira tional poem, one that to the undisce rningeye seems to be encoura ging self-relianc e, not followi ng where othershave led.But a close reading of the poem provesotherwi se. It does not moraliz e about choice; it simplysays that choiceis inevita ble, but you never know what your choicewill mean until you have lived it.First Stanza– Describ es Situati onThe poem consist s of four stanzas. In the first stanza, the speaker describ es his positio n. He has been out walking the woods and comes to two roads, and he standslooking as far down each one as he can see. He would like to try out both, but doubtshe could to that, so therefo re he continu es to look down the roads for a long time tryingto make his decisio n about which road to take.SecondStanza– Decides to Take Less-Travele d RoadThe speaker had lookeddownthefirstone―towhereitbentintheundergr owth,‖andinthesecon dstanza, he reports that he decided to take the other path, because it seemedto have less traffic than the first. But then he goes on to say that they actuall y were very similar ly worn. The secondone that he took seems less travele d, but as he thinksabout it, he realize s that theywere―reallyabout the same.‖Notexactlythatsamebutonly―aboutthesame.‖Third Stanza– Continu es Descrip tion of RoadsThe third stanzacontinu es with the cogitat ion about the possibl e differe nces between the two roads. He had noticed that the leaveswere both fresh fallenon them both and had not been walkedon, but then again claimsthat maybe he would come back and also walk the first one sometim e, but he doubted he would be able to, because in life one thing leads to another and time is short.Also on Suite101Frost's Snow and WoodsRobertFrost's "Stoppin g by Woods on a Snowy Evening" seems simple, but its nuanced phrase, "And miles to go beforeI sleep," offersmuch about which to specula te.FourthStanza– Two TrickyWordsThe fourthstanzaholds the key to the trickin ess of the poem:I shall be telling this with a sighSomewhe re ages and ages hence:Two roads diverge d in a wood, and I—I took the one less travele d by,And that has made all the differe nce.Those who interpr et this poem as suggest ing non-conform itytaketheword―differe nce‖tobeapositiv e differe nce. But there is nothing in the poem that suggest s that this differe nce signals a positiv e outcome. The speaker could not offer such informa tion, becausehehasnotlivedthe―differe nce‖yet.The other word that leads readers astrayistheword―sigh.‖Bytaking―differe nce‖tomeanapositiv e differe nce, they think that the sigh is one of nostalg ic relief; however, a sigh can also mean regret.Thereisthe―oh, dear‖kindofsigh, but also the ―whatarelief‖kindofsigh.Whichoneisit?If it is the reliefsigh, then the differe nce means the speaker is glad he took the road he did; if it is the regretsigh, then the differe nce would not be good, and the speaker would be sighing in regret. But the plain fact is that the poem does not identif ythe natureof that sigh. The speaker of the poem does not even know the natureof that sigh, because that sigh and his evaluat ion of the differe nce his choicewill make are still in the future. It is a truismthat any choicean indiviu al make is goingtomake―allthediffere nce‖inhowourfutureturns out.Careful ReadersWon’tBeTrickedSo Frost was absolut ely correct; his poem is tricky—very tricky. In this poem, it is importa nt to be careful with the time frame. When the speaker says he will be reporti ng sometim e in the futurehow his road choiceturnedout, he clearly statesthat he cannotassignmeaningto―sigh‖and―differe nce‖yet, because he cannotknow how his choicewill affecthis future, until after he has lived it.评论4：1．Introdu ctionAs is well known to people, RobertFrost is one of the most famousnationa l poets of America. Thoughcontemp orarywith moderni sts like T.S. Eliot and Ezra Pound, RobertFrost is often regarde d as a traditi onal poet of nature.He rejecte d the revolut ionary poeticprincip les of his contemp orary. On the contrar y, hechose―theold- fashion ed way to be new and urged poets to use the idiomsof spokenEnglish and, when possibl e, to rely on commonp lace and even rusticimagery. And he saw natureas a storeho use of analogy and symbol.However, unlikeother poets of nature, he depicte d natureas somethi ng in constan t conflic ts with human beingsand bring a deep sense of uncerta inty and even tragedy to them. Simpleas they seem, his poems are often profoun d in meaning between the lines. Most of his poems are charact erized with an unusual sense of tragedy and reflect weaknes s of human beingsin the face of vast, imperso nal force.Additio nally,the poem reflect sFrost’sownpersona l tragedy and his miserab le, sorrowf ul inner feeling s exactly. When it comes to this, his persona l life experie nce has to be taken into conside ration. Famousand popular as he became, but he suffera lot duringall his life. He lost his fatheras a young boy, and he was bereave d of his beloved wife in his middleage. What is worse, all of his childre n ended up dying young or sufferi ng from mentaldisease. For him, life seemedto keep playing trickson him and made his life miserab le. As a result, many poems compose d by him, not only this one, are feature d with an exoticsense of tragicbeauty.2. Analysi sIn this poem, the speaker, a travele r in the wood faced with the choiceof two roads. The roads bear two connota tions: the materia l roads and the roads of life. Now, let me give some specifi c analysi s.2.1 See over one roadIn part one, the speaker faced with two roads in the autumna l wood and feel puzzled over which one to choose.―Tworoadsdiverge d in a yellowwood‖, He stood there for a long time and mused on one of them, which was taken by many people. Unfortu nately, he was unableto find out which place the，road would take him to, for it is far beyondhis ability to know where the road would lead. However, he must chooseto take.2.2. The other oneIn part two, he stepped on the other road, ―Thentooktheother, asjustasfair‖, It was grassyand not taken. His choicewould affectevery other subsequ ent choice, and there was no turning back. From his choicefor the less trodden road, it could be conclud ed that he did not like to followthe steps of other people, he wantedhis own life choired by himself.2.3 Helples sIn part three, he decided to choosethe less travele d one, but he was aware that he could never have a chanceto returnto the first road. ―Idoubted if I shouldnevercomeback‖showedhe is helples s.2.4 Chose the less travele d roadIn part four, ―Ishallbetellingthiswithasign‖, he articul ated why he chose the less travele d road, for he expecte d his life to be unusual and differe nt. But there was no way to foretel l the consequ encesof his choice.All in all, for the speaker, the road of life was acciden t and mystica l, and his very choicewas crucial in determi ning the consequ encesof his life. The ordinar y peoplefollowother’schoice, while the excepti onal ones choosetheir uniqueroads oflife.3. Conclus ion3.1 Everyon e is a travele rEveryon e is a travele r, choosin g the roads to followon the map of their continu ous journey. There is never a straigh t path but a sole directi on in which to head. It is one's past, present and the attitud e with which he looks upon his futurethat determi nes the shade of the light.In any case however, this poem clearly explain ed Frost's beliefthat it is the road that one chooses that makes him the man who he is. It is alwaysdifficu lt to make a decisio n because it is impossi ble not to wonderabout the opportu nity cost, what will be missedout on. It is impossi ble to traveldown every path. The road that will be chosenleads to the unknown, as does any choicein life. As much he may strainhis eyes to see as far the road stretch es, eventua lly it surpass es his visionand he can never see where it is going to lead.It is the way that he chooses here that sets him off on his journey and decides where he is going. It was somethi ng that was obvious ly not for everyon e because it seemedthat the majorit y of peopletook the other path. There is simplya narrato r who makes a decisio n in his life that had changed the directi on of his life from what it may have otherwi se been. It allowsall readers from all differe nt experie nces to relateto the poem.3.2 Human beingsare so weakIn a word, the poem The Road Not Taken is a very beautif ul and excelle nt poem. It is set in a rural natural environ ment where alwaysinspire the speaker to think of life. It is based on a metapho r in which the journey through life is compare d to a journey on a road. And the speaker of the poem has to chooseone path instead of another. Even thoughthe two paths look equally attract ive, the speaker knows that his choiceat this momentmay have a signifi cant influen ce on his future. He does make a decisio n, hopingthat he may be able to visit this place again, yet realizi ng that such an opportu nity is impossi ble. He imagine s himself in the futuretelling the story of his life, and claimin g that his decisio n to take the road less travele d by, the road few other peoplehave taken, has made all the differe nce.This thesisintends to exploreFrost’sownviewoflife. He told us that human beingsare so weak when compare d with natureand the destiny. Thoughhuman beingshave made great progres s in the past several centuri es, there will forever exist somethi ng that is far beyondtheir control. For human, it is unableto do anythin g usefulwhen he is in conflic t with the imperso nal force. Andit’salsounableto control his own destiny; on the contrar y, his fate and destiny are in the chargeof somethi ng mysteri ous beyondhim. In this sense, life is a tragedy to human. So it could be said that Frost conveye d his sense of tragedy commonto human through this simplebut beautif ul poem. It is simplein form but profoun d in meaning.评论5：SummaryThe speaker standsin the woods, conside ring a fork in the road. Both ways are equally worn and equally overlai d withun-trodden leaves. The speaker chooses one, telling himself that he will take the other another day. Yet he knows it is unlikel y that he will have the opportu nity to do so. And he admitsthat someday in the futurehe will recreat e the scene with a slighttwist: He will claim that he took the less-travele d road.From“TheRoadNotTaken‖consist s of four stanzas of five lines. The rhyme schemeis ABAAB; the rhymesare strictand masculi ne, with the notable excepti on of the last line (we do not usually stressthe -ence of differe nce). There are four stresse d syllabl es per line, varying on an iambictetrame ter base.Comment aryThis has got to be among the best-known, most-often-misunde rstood poems on the planet.Several generat ions of careles s readers have turnedit into a piece of Hallmar k happy-graduat ion-son, seize-the-futurepuffery. Cursedwith a perfect marriag e of form and content, arresti ng phrasewrought from simplewords, and resonan t metapho r, itseemsasif―TheRoadNotTaken‖getsmemoriz ed without reallybeing read. For this it has died the cliché’sun-death of trivial immorta lity.But you yoursel f can resurre ct it from zombie-hood by reading it—not with imagina tion, even, but simplywith accurac y. Of the two roads the speakersays―thepassing there / Had worn them reallyaboutthesame.‖Infact, bothroads―thatmorning lay / In leavesno step had trodden black.‖Meaning: Neither of the roads is less travele d by. These are the facts; we cannotjustifi ably ignorethe reverbe ration s they send through the easy aphoris ms of the last two stanzas.One of the attract ions of the poem is its archety pal dilemma, one that we instant ly recogni ze because each of us encount ers it innumer able times, both literal ly and figurat ively.Paths in the woods and forks in roads are ancient and deep-seatedmetapho rs for the lifelin e, its crisesand decisio ns. Identic al forks, in particu lar, symboli ze for us the nexus of free will and fate: We are free to choose,but we do not reallyknow beforeh and what we are choosin g between. Our route is, thus, determi ned by an accreti on of choiceand chance, and it is impossi ble to separat e the two.This poem does not advise. It does not say, ―Whenyoucometoaforkintheroad, study the footpri nts and take the road less travele dby‖ (or even, as Yogi Berra enigmat ically quipped, ―Whenyoucometoaforkintheroad, takeit‖). Frost’sfocusismore complic ated. First, there is no less-travele d road in this poem; itisn’tevenanoption.Next, the poem seems more concern ed with the questio n of how the concret e present (yellowwoods, grassyroads covered in fallenleaves) will look from a futurevantage point.The ironictone is inescap able: ―Ishallbetelling this with a sigh / Somewhe reagesandageshence.‖The speaker anticip ates his own futureinsince rity—his need, later on in life, to rearran ge the facts and injecta dose of Lone Rangerinto the account. He knows that he will be inaccur ate, at best, or hypocri tical, at worst, when he holds his life up as an example. In fact, he predict s that his futureself will betraythis momentof decisio n as if the betraya l were inevita ble. This realiza tion is ironicand poignan tly patheti c. Butthe―sigh‖iscritica l. The speaker will not, in his old age, merelygatherthe youth about him and say, ―DowhatIdid, kiddies. I stuck to my guns, took the road less travele d by, and that has made all the differe nce.‖Rather, he may say this, but he will sigh first; forhewon’tbelieve it himself. Somewhe re in the back of his mind will remainthe image of yellowwoods and two equally leafy paths.Ironicas it is, this is also a poem infused with the anticip ationof remorse. Itstitleisnot―TheRoadLessTravele d‖but―TheRoad Not Taken.‖Evenashemakesachoice(a choicehe is forcedto make if does not want to stand forever in the woods, one for which he has no real guide or definit ive basis for decisio n-making), the speaker knows that he will second-guess himself somewhe re down the line—or at the very least he will wonderat what is irrevoc ably lost: the impossi ble, unknowa ble Other Path. But the natureof the decisio n is such that there is no Right Path—just the chosenpath and the other path. What are sighedfor ages and ages hence are not so much the wrong decisio ns as the moments of decisio n themsel ves—moments that, one atop the other, mark the passing of a life. This is the more primalstrainof remorse.Thus, to add a further level of irony, the theme of the poem may, after all, be―seizetheday.‖Butamorenuanced carpe diem, if you please.。
