Chapter- 3.3                   The Road Not Taken


1. Question: Who is the poet of the poem “The Road Not Taken”?


Answer: The poet of the poem is Robert Frost, an American poet known for exploring themes of nature, life, and human choices.


2. Question: Where does the scene of the poem take place?


Answer: The poem takes place in a yellow wood, which means a forest during autumn when the leaves have turned yellow.


3. Question: What dilemma does the poet face in the poem?


Answer: The poet faces the dilemma of choosing between two diverging roads, symbolizing the important choices we must make in life.


4. Question: Why does the poet feel “sorry”?


Answer: He feels sorry because he cannot travel both roads and must choose only one, meaning he cannot experience both choices in life.


5. Question: What does the poet do before making a decision?


Answer: He stands for a long time and looks down one of the roads as far as possible to see where it leads.


6. Question: Why can’t the poet see the end of the road?


Answer: He cannot see the end because the road bends into the undergrowth, hiding what lies ahead.


7. Question: Why does the poet choose the second road?


Answer: He chooses it because it looks grassy and less worn, which gives it a “better claim.”


8. Question: Were the two roads really different?


Answer: No, both roads were actually worn the same, even though the poet first thought one was less used.


9. Question: How does the poet describe the roads that morning?


Answer: He describes both roads as lying equally covered with leaves, none of which had been blackened by footsteps.


10. Question: What does “wanted wear” mean in the poem?


Answer: It means the road needed to be used more, suggesting fewer people had walked on it.


11. Question: What does the poet decide to do with the first road?


Answer: He decides to keep it for another day, hoping he might return to try it.


12. Question: Why does the poet doubt he will ever come back?


Answer: Because one choice leads to another, and life’s path does not usually allow us to return to earlier decisions.


13. Question: What does the poet say he will tell “with a sigh” in the future?


Answer: He will tell people that he took the road less travelled by, suggesting it greatly affected his life.


14. Question: What does the sigh in the poem suggest?


Answer: The sigh may express regret, nostalgia, or reflection on how his choice shaped his life.


15. Question: Does the poet explain exactly what difference the road made?


Answer: No, he only says it made “all the difference,” leaving the exact impact open to interpretation.


16. Question: What is the central theme of the poem?


Answer: The poem’s central theme is the importance of choices in life and how they shape our future.


17. Question: What do the two roads symbolize?


Answer: They symbolize life’s different choices or paths, each leading to different outcomes.


18. Question: Why is the wood described as “yellow”?


Answer: The wood is yellow because it is autumn, a season of change—symbolizing the change caused by choices.


19. Question: What does “the road less travelled by” mean?


Answer: It means choosing a path in life that few others choose, a unique or unconventional choice.


20. Question: What poetic device is used in the line “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood”?


Answer: The device used is imagery, which helps readers visualize the scene.


21. Question: Which poetic device is used throughout the poem?


Answer: The poem uses an extended metaphor, comparing life’s choices to choosing a road.


22. Question: Why is the poem relatable to many readers?


Answer: Because everyone must make difficult choices, and we often wonder what might have happened if we chose differently.


23. Question: What does the poet realize about choices?


Answer: He realizes that once a choice is made, we cannot go back, and every choice influences our future.


24. Question: What is the tone of the poem?


Answer: The tone is thoughtful, reflective, and contemplative, as the poet looks back on his decision.


25. Question: What does the “undergrowth” represent?


Answer: It represents the unknown future, which we cannot see clearly before choosing a path.


26. Question: What does the poet’s hesitation indicate?


Answer: It indicates the difficulty of making important decisions and fear of the unknown.


27. Question: What does “ages and ages hence” mean?


Answer: It means many years later, far into the future, when the poet reflects on his life.


28. Question: Why is the poem titled “The Road Not Taken”?


Answer: Because the poet keeps thinking about the road he did not choose, reflecting on missed possibilities.


29. Question: What message does the poem give about life?


Answer: The message is that life’s choices are important and unavoidable, and we must accept the consequences of the decisions we make.


30. Question: What kind of decision does the poet believe he made?


Answer: He believes he made a unique and individualistic choice by choosing the less travelled road, which significantly influenced his life.

Answer by Dimpee Bora