The Irony of Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken”

Robert Frost was a celebrated American poet who was born in the latter part of the 1800s and died in the 1960s. He became the most celebrated poet of his time. The Academy of American Poets summarized Frost’s work: “The author of searching and often dark meditations on universal themes, he is a quintessentially modern poet in his adherence to language as it is actually spoken, in the psychological complexity of his portraits, and in the degree to which his work is infused with layers of ambiguity and irony” (para. 4). The most famous of his works is “The Road Not Taken” and has provided future generations with flawless use of irony as a literary instrument. As the poem describes a poet at a fork in the road, the poem itself can be interpreted in two equally strong manners. However, it is the irony in the last stanza that leads to the true interpretation of the poem. This essay examines Frost's "The Road Not Taken," providing supporting evidence from the poem to prove it is not about taking a "less traveled by" road in life but rather choosing a road and living with the decision, and explaining the irony in the last stanza.   

Frost was known for his masterful use of irony in his works. “The Road Not Taken” is a demonstration of the use of irony in the last stanza. But first, in order to understand Frost’s use of irony, one must first define irony. Following the definition of irony will be a stanza by stanza analysis of the poem; the poem will be interpreted in terms of the life events in Frost’s life. Following this analysis is an explanation of how each point expresses the true sentiment of the poem - choosing a road and living with the decision. The discussion will then focus upon the irony in the last stanza and how the irony supports the points made in the first stanzas. 

According to Oxford Dictionaries, irony is defined as “the expression of one’s meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect.” In other words, the underlying meaning, the hidden meaning, is the heart of the use of irony in poetry. It is not plainly stated. The following analysis of the last stanza will reveal Frost’s use of irony, followed by a discussion of how the poem is about making a choice and living with that decision.

To understand the use of irony in the last paragraph and how the poem really is about making a choice and living by that choice, the poem must be appraised in its entirety.  The poem, “The Road Not Taken”, is reproduced below for ease of reference, and will be used for the rest of this analysis:

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference (Frost 1).

The poem is a reflection of one of life’s many sources of conflict, the time when a decision will alter the outcome of one’s life forever. Frost is relaying this conflict through the symbolism of a fork in a path leading through the woods. The poem’s meaning is often misunderstood as taking the road “less traveled by”, as the last stanza expresses. However, if one examines the poem in its entirety, the poem is about making a decision and living by that decision. 

The poet is describing himself at a crossroads, considering two courses, one seeming just as attractive as another. He does not have any way of knowing which of the two roads will be better or worse. He regrets having to leave one choice one behind, as he expressed in stanza one, “and sorry I could not travel both”. 

The poet examines each road. One is overgrown, and the other, although not yet trampled upon, is described as grassier, more open, and less arduous, almost as if it was created for travel, as expressed in stanza two: “Because it was grassy and wanted wear”. 

It might seem as if the two roads are different in the eyes of the poet. Rather, the poet goes through efforts to express that the roads are the same to him. While the description of the two roads is divergent, one leading into the undergrowth of the yellow forest, and one path beckoning for travelers because of its ease of passage, the feelings of the author is what establishes these two roads as equivalent. The author expresses sorrow that he cannot travel both roads, indicating that both seem equally attractive to him – “And sorry I could not travel both”. The passage conveys that one was equally attractive as the other. He peers down the road with the overgrowth, but then travels down the clearer road with fewer obstacles in it, as he stated “Then took the other, as just as fair”. 

One could be tricked into thinking that the grassier path with fewer obstacles is then more attractive to the poet, but one has to analyze the second stanza critically in order to realize that one path is still no more attractive than the other. When the poet states, “And having perhaps the better claim, / Because it was grassy and wanted wear”, the poet expressed that the path does seem inviting because of its clear path, and it could be considered the more attractive to some. However, when the poet stated, “Though as for that the passing there / Had worn them really about the same,” in stanza two, and in stanza three, stated “And both that morning equally lay / In leaves no step had trodden black”, the poet is expressing that the two have not been traveled upon by him yet, and both laid before him, equally. His path to him was not clear. Both were equal in his eyes, and he had to choose which path to follow. 

In stanza three, the poet acknowledges that if he took one path, his life circumstances would probably not lead him back to where he started. He seems to be able to appreciate the poignancy of this moment and the fact that his choice in which direction he will take will change his life forever; or would it? 

The misinterpretation of the poem usually stems from the following verse: “I took the one less traveled by, / And that has made all the difference.” Upon examining the poem in its entirety, the poet’s true intention for the poem becomes obvious. This is also where the irony lies in the poem. 

To this point, the reader has an idea of the attitude of the poet. What the poet so painstakingly established in the previous stanzas cannot be bypassed. The poet is faced with a decision. One is equally attractive as the other, yet making a decision to follow one or the other will affect the rest of his life. Yet, one cannot ignore the differentiation of the description of the two paths. One might at first think of this divergence as one path being more attractive over the other or one path being easier over the other, with fewer obstacles and a clearer path. The poet even made a statement in the last stanza that he took the path less traveled, and it has made all the difference. 

Another point becomes obvious in examining the first three stanzas. While one can observe that the poem is about describing a common conflict in life, one can see from the language and expression of the poet that a conflict does not lie within him. He expressed regret about not being able to take both paths. Yet, the poet also expresses knowledge, and within the expression of knowledge lays the attitude of the poet. While he was sorry he could not travel both, and he examined both paths, he acknowledges both are equal. Moreover, he stated definitively in the third stanza, with exclamation and all, “Oh, I kept the first for another day! / Yet knowing how way leads to way, I doubted if I should ever come back”. He knows that he will never be able to revisit that moment and do it over again. 

In the last stanza, the first two lines convey a certain attitude: “I shall be telling this with a sigh / Somewhere ages and ages hence: / Two roads diverged in a wood”. The poet is sighing, for the reasoning is unknown. Maybe he’s wistful that he didn’t take the other path, as so many interpret, because of his regret for not being able to take both paths in the first few stanzas. Maybe he’s belittling the fact that he made such a big deal and wrestled with himself over the decision. He seems to be criticizing his own behavior, going on and on about this big decision he made, where it really wasn’t a big deal at all, when he stated, “two roads diverged in a wood” as if he were saying, yes, so what? I was faced with a decision and I made a decision to try something new. It could be that he felt someone else’s behavior was tiresome, always wondering ‘what if’ when he took that path, always looking backward and regretting having to give up one path for the other.

However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that the poet is stating that he didn’t take the road less traveled just because he wanted to forge ahead into uncharted territory for the sake of taking a more arduous path, or taking a path of independence, as it is so often misinterpreted by those who only take the poem at face value. For instance, one could easily interpret the difference having a positive connotation to it, but it doesn’t necessarily have to be. The “difference” the poet refers to in the poem is just choosing one choice over the other. If he chose the first choice, the path with grass upon it and easier to walk upon, the more established path is it would have still made a difference, which is the impact upon his life. This would be appropriate if one were to take the poem at face value without examining the underlying intricacies of the poem.

The irony in the last line in the last verse is what conveys the true meaning of the poem. When Frost stated “I took the one less traveled by, / And that has made all the difference”, it is apparent from the pains the poet took to establish both paths being equal that they were no different. It could easily be taken at face value, interpreting that the road less traveled means striking out independently, and that is the central theme of the poem. But if one considers what Frost first establishes in the stanza and in the poem, that two equal roads diverged in the woods, and he made his decision to go down one of the paths, two equal roads are not different. Therein lies the irony of the poem.

Even while interpreting this irony, some still feel the poem is about pursuing independence because of the sigh. Or some could interpret the sigh as regret. However, there are hints as to the poet’s intention to convey that one should not be obsessed over which path to take in life. If both paths are equal, it actually makes no difference which path one takes. It might alter the journey slightly and provide different experiences in life, but in the end, it’s all the same. Perhaps the sigh does reflect an expression of weariness of people’s tendencies to worry over the ‘what ifs’ in life, instead of going forward with one path and being satisfied, rather than always looking back with a twinge of regret.

It is easy to see why Frost was considered “The American Bard” (The Academy of American Poets, para. 5). His poetry can be appreciated on many levels. “The Road Not Taken” can be taken for its lyrical qualities on face value. Yet, if one is to interpret the poem and go deeper, the poem can easily be interpreted in two different ways. Not only are there the two paths described by Frost, but also the two paths for interpretation for the poem, both equally as strong. However, it’s the irony at the end, “that makes all the difference,” which truly reflects the poet’s intentions on how to interpret the poem. 

If one is to examine the events of Frost’s life alone, the irony that he had to move to England to be a well-loved American poet is under-appreciated. Also, the irony in the last verse is not lost when one considers the importance of this poem to American literature. Most likely, it was unknown to Frost at the time that he would hold such an important place in the history of American literature. The irony in the last stanza, “I shall be telling this with a sigh / Somewhere ages and ages hence”, is ironic only in hindsight. For ages, Robert Frost’s poems have been shared with every single student, so in a way, his poem is speaking to children for ages and ages, describing the fork in the road in the middle of the woods and his choice to travel the road “less traveled by”. 

Perhaps this is why Robert Frost was so good at irony. He was able to appreciate it in his own life first before writing upon it. This is the reason why Robert Frost will continue to be an important and indispensable part of American literature. One can appreciate his work at face value, and perhaps it really does have meaning at face value, championing the independent, American spirit. 

What makes this poem so well-loved is its many ways of interpretation, each equally as virulent, just like the two wooded paths in the poem. Making choices is part of life. One can sigh, wistfully longing for paths not taken, or one can make a choice and live by that choice with a clear conscience. It is apparent within this interpretation that Frost determines to live by his decisions without regret.

Works Cited

The Academy of American Poets. Robert Frost. Poets.org, 2013. Web. 29 August 2013.

Frost, Robert. Mountain Interval. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1920. Print. 

Oxford Dictionaries. Definition of Irony in English. 2013. Web. 29 August 2013.