TO BE WRITTEN IN CLASS WORK

DATE 23 MAY 2020

CLASS 9, ENGLISH
POEM 1
THE ROAD NOT TAKEN – ROBERT FROST
I.Theme of the Poem – Making choices
II.Tone of the Poem - Advising
III.Literary devices: Metaphor
Rhyming scheme - ABAAB
IV.Values: Make unique choices
V.SYNONYMS
 diverged: separated and took a different direction
 yellow wood: a forest with decomposing leaves
 undergrowth: dense growth of plants and bushes means the
forest)
 fair: As good as the other one,
 claim: Better option
 grassy: unused
 wanted wear: had not been used
 trodden- walked over.
 sigh: deep breath

VI.ANTONYMS
1.sightfully x
2.common x
3.ordinary x
4.diverged x
5.trodden x
VII.MAKE SENTENCE OF YOUR OWN
1.wanted wear
2.trodden black
3.yellow wood
4.undergrowth
5.diverged
VIII.SUMMARY OF THE POEM
 The poet was standing at a place where two roads/ paths
‘diverged in a yellow wood’.
 He was sorry that he couldn’t travel both at the same time.
 He looked down one as far as he could till it bent away in the
undergrowth.
 The other road was just as fair and perhaps presented a better
claim.
 The second road was grassy, less frequented by travellers and
‘wanted wear’.
 The poet had to make a choice and he resolved the dilemma.
 He chose the second road and `kept the first for another day’.
 The poet had a doubt that he would never get a chance to
travel on the first road again.
 The choice had been made and it made all the difference in his
life.
  It was very difficult to say whether the choice was right or
wrong on the spur of the moment
 But the poet neither seems to be very happy nor very sad with
his choice and leaves the end open to the readers and their
choices.
IX.QUESTION AND ANSWERS ( 2 MARKS)
1. Where does the traveller find himself? What problem does he
face?
The traveller finds himself standing on a fork in the path. He is in a
problem as he must choose one path and is unable to decide which
one to choose.
2. Discuss what these phrases mean to you.
(i) a yellow wood
‘Yellow wood’ refers to the forest which has withering leaves as in
the season of autumn. It represents a world full of aging people
(ii) it was grassy and wanted wear
It means that the path had a lot of grass on it. This means that it had
not been walked over by many people. It had to be worn out by the
steps of the people who walked on it.
(iii) the passing there
It means that when he walked over the path that he had chosen.
(iv) leaves no step had trodden black
It means that no one had walked over the leaves as they were still
green. If they had been walked over, they would have turned black.
(v) how way leads on to way
It means that as we walk on a path, we come across more options
and make choices further. We keep on walking ahead on that way.
3. Is there any difference between the two roads as the poet
describes them
(i) in stanzas two and three?
The two paths were similar. In the beginning, the poet felt that one
of them was grassy and had not been walked over by many people,
but when he walked on it for some distance, he realized that it was
like the other road.
(ii) in the last two lines of the poem?
Here, again the poet talks of his initial decision when he thought that
the roads were different and chose the one that had been walked
over by a lesser number of people.

X.VALUE BASED QUESTION AND ANSWER ( 8 MARKS )

1.The poet will be telling ‘this with a sigh’ that he took the road ‘less
travelled by’ and ‘that has made all the difference’. What is the
difference that the poet mentions? Do you believe in making choices
that are less ‘risky’ and acceptable or the ones which are
adventurous, ambitious and unconventional? Give reasons for your
choice.
Answer- The poet resolved the dilemma of making a choice. He
chose the road that was less travelled by. Here, the two roads
represent two options, two alternatives, two ways and two
directions of life. The poet left the more acceptable and convenient
road thinking that he would walk on it on another day. Though he
doubted that once followed a path it would become impossible for
him to come back to the one he had left. The poet had options to
follow the road that led to prosperity, fame and money. It could have
been a less risky and acceptable conventional option. But he chose to
be a poet. His choice made all the difference in his life. Perhaps the
road he had not taken would have proved more rewarding. Perhaps
other professions would have proved more fruitful. The poet would
regret it but without any redressal. The choice had been made and it
was irrevocable.I believe in making choices which are adventurous,
ambitious and unconventional. The reason is simple. I am young and
full of vigour I like to come across new challenges in life.
2.The Road not Taken’ symbolises the metaphor of choices made in
life. Describe the theme of the poem justifying its title.
Answer- The Road not Taken’ is a biographical poem of Robert Frost.
In the poem, Frost uses the fork in the road as a metaphor for the
choices we make in life. It tells us about a man (the poet himself)
who climes to a fork in the road he is travelling upon. He can’t travel
both paths and must choose one. This fork represents a point in
man’s life where he has to choose the right direction. He stands and
watches the first alternative that life provides to him. Then he views
the other road or the other option of life. He resolves the dilemma
by choosing the road less travelled by the people. He hopes that his
choice will be more rewarding when he reaches the end of the
journey. The poet leaves the first road for another day. He has a
genuine doubt that one road leads to the other and he will never get
a chance of going back. The title ‘The Road not Taken’ is quite
appropriate and logical. It is very difficult to say whether he has
made the right choice on the spur of the moment. It is possible that
after many years from now he will not be too happy with his choice.
But he had already taken the decision which couldn’t be altered now.