CBSE Class 9 English Chapter 7 The Road Not Taken Summary, Explanation and Question Answers from Literature Reader (Communicative) Book
The Road Not Taken Class 9 – CBSE Class 9 English Literature Reader (Communicative) Book Chapter 7 The Road Not Taken Summary and Detailed explanation of the lesson along with the meanings of difficult words. Also, the explanation is followed by a Summary of the lesson. All the exercises and The Road Not Taken Question Answers given at the back of the lesson have been covered.
The Road Not Taken Class 9 English Chapter 7
by Robert Frost
- The Road Not Taken Introduction
- The Road Not Taken Summary
- Video Explanation of The Road Not Taken
- The Road Not Taken Lesson Explanation
- The Road Not Taken Question Answers
The Road Not Taken Introduction
In this poem the poet talks about a choice he has to make between two roads. The road is compared to the different career options we face in our life and have to choose any one.
The poet wants to convey an important message to us – Our future depends on our present. The career option we choose today will determine what we become tomorrow. We must be careful as we do not get the privilege to go back on the option once left.
Top
The Road Not Taken Summary
The poet was walking down the woods when he faced the option of two different paths. He could not walk down both. He inspected the path till where it was visible under the dense trees to determine which one was better. Finally, he took the other path which appeared to be greener and less walked upon. Later on, after walking a few steps, he realised that both the paths were similar and this one was also worn out.
He realises that his decision of walking down the other path some other day would never materialise as one path leads to another (more options and further choices) and so on. The privilege of going back to the previously left path would never be available to him.
He thinks of the future, after many years, he will say that he walked down the path which seemed greener and less travelled.
His choices in the past will matter the most and will make him what he becomes in the future.
Top
Related – Class 9 English Literature Reader (Communicative) Lesson Explanation, Summary
Video Explanation of The Road Not Taken
The Road Not Taken Poem Explanation
Poem :
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveller, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Word Meaning :
diverged: go separate ways
yellow wood: the forest is full of yellow coloured leaves in autumn
undergrowth: dense growth of trees
Explanation of the Poem – The poet talks of a time when he was travelling on a single path. Then he saw that the road separated into two roads. He was surrounded by a forest full of yellow coloured leaves, indicating that it was autumn. The poet says that he had to choose to walk on one specific path. However, he stood still and looked down as far as he could, trying to figure out which one was the most suitable path for him to take. He was sad and felt sorry for himself that he could not travel both the paths. He tried to look far while trying to see if the two paths would ever meet in the future. However, he could not tell where the road would go because of the dense growth of the forest. This para tells us about real life and how there comes a certain point in our life when we have to choose one thing out of the given options. We try to predict where it could lead us, but the truth is that no one can fully and correctly predict where it would lead us to. The future is unknown to everyone. Sometimes, we get confused between two or more options because of our varied interests. This is similar to how confused we become when we are interested in two or more careers in different streams. We try different techniques and ultimately, we wish that we could see the future in order to pick the most suitable career. However, this is impossible.
Poem :
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,
Word Meaning :
fair: something which is equal or same
claim: something that one asked to be given to her/him
wear: usage
worn: damaged
Explanation of the Poem – The poet finally chose a path to walk on, even though both the paths looked quite the same. He assured himself that the path he took was the better and more suitable path for him because it looked more grassy, beautiful and was less used by the other people. Often while choosing a career, some people choose a career which is not too popular. However, the poet later discovered that both the paths were equally travelled. This is similar to how students do not do the full research on a particular career and they take up that goal based on their few assumptions.
Poem :
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.
Word Meaning :
trodden: the action of stepping onto something
Explanation of the Poem – The poet tells us that when another morning came and it was broad daylight, he discovered that both the paths had the same amount of footprints on them. Hence, he realised that the path he had not taken was a path that was comparatively better than the path he had taken. He kept that path for another day, meaning that he believed that he could start over again at the fork and he could go back and use the second road. He did not know where the current road would lead him, and even though he wished to go back to the other road, he doubted if he could actually do that. He felt like there was a huge possibility that he would not be able to go back to the other road.
Poem :
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 travelled by,
And that has made all the difference.
Explanation of the Poem – The poet says that from that point onwards, he knew that there would come a time when he would narrate this incident of his life with a sigh after many years had passed away. Sigh here means that he would narrate the story with regret in his voice. The ending of the poem is that the once upon a time, the poet saw that this road once divided into two roads in a forest full of autumn leaves and he took the road which he thought was not as popular as the other road. This decision was life-changing and hence it made all the difference in his life. In the end, he says that we should accept the difference and learn the life lesson that comes with it. We should move on and make the best out of our decisions instead of staying stuck at one spot and thinking about the mistakes of the past.
Related – NCERT Class 9 English Beehive and Moments Book Lesson Explanation, Summary and Question Answers
Literary Devices
Stanza 1
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveller, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Rhyme Scheme: wood, both, stood, could, undergrowth – abaab
Anaphora: In lines 2, 3 and 4 of the stanza
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveller, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
Metaphor: yellow wood symbolises autumn season
Visual imagery: We can imagine a scene where a person is standing on a road. In front of the person, the road is splitting into two parts. The person is standing in a forest-like place and the ground was covered with fallen autumn leaves.
Symbolism: ‘Two roads’ symbolise the different choices in our life
Stanza 2
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,
Rhyme Scheme: fair, claim, wear, there, same – abaab
Alliteration: wanted wear
Simile: as just as fair
Personification: In the third line of the stanza, the road is personified as a human because it ‘wanted’ wear.
Visual Imagery: We can imagine a path looking grassy, new, and pleasant-looking.
Stanza 3
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.
Rhyme Scheme: lay, black, day, way, back – abaab
Onomatopoeia: ‘Oh’ in the third line
Visual imagery: We can imagine a landscape with the sun shining bright and two paths being illuminated by that light.
Stanza 4
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 travelled by,
And that has made all the difference.
Rhyme Scheme: sigh, I, by, hence, difference – abaab
Symbolism: ‘Two roads’ symbolise the different choices in our life
Repetition: “Two roads diverged in a wood” is repeated in Stanza 1 and 4
Top
The Road Not Taken Question Answers
Exercises
Q1. On the basis of your understanding of the poem, answer the following questions by selecting the correct choice.
(a) In the poem, a traveller comes to a fork in the road and needs to decide which way to go to continue his journey. Figuratively the choice of the road denotes
(i) the tough choices people make on the road of life.
(ii) the time wasted on deciding what to do.
(iii) life is like a forest.
(iv) one must travel a lot to realise one’s dreams.
Ans. (i) the tough choices people make on the road of life.
(b) The poet writes, ‘Two roads diverged in a yellow wood.’ The word diverged means
(i) appeared
(ii) curved
(iii) branched off
(iv) continued on
Ans. (iii) branched off
(c) The tone of the speaker in the first stanza is that of
(i) excitement
(ii) anger
(iii) hesitation and thoughtfulness
(iv) sorrow
Ans. (iv) sorrow
(d) Select the quote that captures the central idea of the poem most appropriately.
(i) We often confuse what we wish for with what is.
(ii) I have always been much better at asking questions than knowing what the answers were.
(iii) You are free to make whatever choice you want, but you are not free from the consequences of the choice.
(iv) To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong.
Ans. (iii) You are free to make whatever choice you want, but you are not free from the consequences of the choice.
Related – Class 9 English Important Questions Answers from Beehive Book Poems
Q2. Answer the following questions briefly.
i) Describe the two roads that the poet comes across.
Ans. Though both the roads are equally attractive and lead into the yellow wood, the first one is the beaten path where the grass has been worn down by the passing of feet. The second road is grassy, which shows not many people have walked down that road.
ii) Which road does the speaker choose? Why did he choose that?
Ans. The speaker chooses the road less frequently travelled. He selects the path which is full of green grass and looks to be good. He chooses that path because he believes that that path would result to be the more fruitful path for him.
iii) Which road would you choose? Why? Give reasons for your choice.
Ans. I would choose the path which is less travelled as it would be more beautiful. It will give me an opportunity to have a more unique experience than most people.
iv) Does the speaker seem happy about his decision?
Ans. The speaker has not clearly expressed his feelings for his decision. He has left it up to the reader to judge whether he is happy or sad or normal about the decisions he took in the past. However, he says that whatever decisions we make, they are very important and they make us what we are. He also says that we should not think if the path or the choices we made were beneficial or not. Even if we regret our choices, we should leave the regret behind and move forwards.
v) The poet says “I took the one less travelled by, And that has made all the difference.” What is ‘the difference’ that the poet mentions?
Ans. His life took a different direction suggesting the choices we make often determine our future. The choices we make in life are very important and crucial as they determine our future and what we become later in life. We cannot go back in the past and change our decisions.
vi) Comment on Frost’s use of nature to establish a connection with a human situation.
Ans. In the poem, “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost, nature is used as a metaphor to describe the different phases and experiences a human faces in his or her life. Nature IS a central character in the poem rather than a background. The ‘yellow wood’ indicates the fall or autumn season, which in turn signifies that we sometimes have to make life-changing decisions. It is the phase when our choices really influence our future. The sun in the line, “And both that morning equally lay” signifies enlightenment, wisdom, and realisation.
vii) The poem carries a tinge of regret. Do you agree? Explain with a reason.
Ans. Yes, I agree that the poem carries a tinge of regret. The line “I shall be telling this with a sigh” indicates that he gave out a sigh whenever he thought about the decision he had taken in that phase of his life and its consequences. The sigh signifies that he regrets making that decision. This is also the reason why he kept the other road for later, because he regretted walking on the road he had taken and he wanted to try out the other road.
viii) Establish a connection between the given quote and the poem.
If you want to achieve something you’ve never had, you have to move out of your comfort zone to travel towards it.
Ans. The given quote states that in order to achieve something great in life or to become someone great, one needs to come out of their comfort zone and must face the hardships of life. One such hardship is the difficulty in choosing one option out of many, which is shown in the poem. Decision-making skills and the courage to face the consequences are the two of the many skills which one can acquire only after moving out of their comfort zone.
Q3. Identify the rhyme scheme of the poem, ‘The Road Not Taken’.
Ans. The rhyme scheme of the poem is abaab.
Q4. Fill in the blanks to complete the following paragraph that highlights the theme of the poem. Use the words given in the box below.
| decision sorry foresee choices pleasant direction fork trail rewarding chance wonder both |
The poem “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost is about the ________ that one makes in life. It tells about a man who comes to a _________ in the road he is travelling upon. He feels ___________ that he can not travel __________ paths as he must choose one. Frost uses this fork in the road to represent a point in the man’s life where he has to choose the _________ he wishes to take in life. As he thinks about his __________ he looks down one path, as far as he can see trying to what life will be like if he walks that path. He then gazes at the other and decides that the outcome of going down that path would be just as _________. At this point he concludes that the ___________ that has been less travelled on would be more __________ when he reaches the end of it. The man then decides that he will save the other path for another day, even though he knows that one path leads to another and that he won’t get a __________ to go back. The man then says that he will be telling this story with a sigh, someday in the future suggesting what life would have been like if he had chosen the more walked path even though the path he chose has made all the difference.
Ans. The poem “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost is about the choices that one makes in life. It tells about a man who comes to a fork in the road he is travelling upon. He feels sorry that he can not travel both paths as he must choose one. Frost uses this fork in the road to represent a point in the man’s life where he has to choose the direction he wishes to take in life. As he thinks about his decision he looks down one path, as far as he can see trying to what life will be like if he walks that path. He then gazes at the other and decides that the outcome of going down that path would be just as rewarding. At this point he concludes that the trail that has been less travelled on would be more pleasant when he reaches the end of it. The man then decides that he will save the other path for another day, even though he knows that one path leads to another and that he won’t get a chance to go back. The man then says that he will be telling this story with a sigh, someday in the future suggesting what life would have been like if he had chosen the more walked path even though the path he chose has made all the difference.
Q5. Roads are fascinating as metaphors for life, change, journeys, partings, adventure, etc. or simply as roads. This is probably why they, and all their attendant images, have permeated art, literature and songs. In the poem, Frost uses the fork in the road as a metaphor for the choices we make in life. Thus the roads are, in fact, two alternative ways of life. According to you, what are the other objects that could be used to represent life?
Ans. 1. River
- Sea
- Mountains
- Ants
- Candle