Introduction
Literary works are a direct reflection of the trends of the time in which they were written. In the twentieth century, modernist poems that reflected society’s desire for change became particularly widespread. This circumstance has caused a significant shift in the poetic works of many authors. The poem “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost is an example of twentieth-century modernist literature and reflects that time’s cultural and social trends.
Discussion
The first hallmark trait in the style of writing this poem, which makes it modernist, is the sufficient simplicity of the language. In the poems of the twentieth century, there are often works that do not have excessive literary language and multiple figures of speech (Czerniawska and Szydło 703). This is due to the tendency to simplify for a more transparent transmission of the central message of the author. In addition, regarding the main idea, “The Road Not Taken” is an excellent example of a poem from which several themes can be traced. Therefore, it may seem that a literary work speaks of a desire for individualism; however, it implies a much deeper meaning.
Consequently, the leading inspiration for this poem was to draw attention to people’s addiction to self-deception. The author talks about a crossroad of two paths and a choice on which of them to continue the path. He made a choice in favor of the path that was “less traveled” and says that the choice he made “made all the difference” (Frost 4). At the same time, in the second stanza, he states that “though as for that the passing there/ Had worn them really about the same” (Frost 2). It follows from these words that Frost focuses on how people deceive themselves by attaching a specific value to their choices.
The social movement flourishing at the beginning of the twentieth century became the leading cultural aspect that made the time suitable for this poem to be written. This is due to the fact that Frost’s work at that time was perceived as a call to move to a new choice of “the one less traveled” road (Frost 4). Consequently, it was well received by the public due to the maintenance of modernist views on promotion and uniqueness and raised the author to a new level of popularity. At the same time, not many people saw in it the real deep meaning that was embedded by Frost.
Of particular importance for the poet’s perspective in this poem was his relationship with Edward Thomas. It was a direct description of the case when men had to make a choice between two roads. Later, Thomas often recalled this situation, which influenced the writing of the literary work (Thamarai and Malar 2). However, the poem made too great an impression on Frost’s friend, after which Thomas went to war. This event can be called precisely the circumstance that influenced the formation of the author’s perspective that people resort to self-deception regarding their decisions in life.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the poem “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost is an example of modernist literature. This is due to the presence of this trend’s characteristics, including the language’s simplicity and the ambiguity of the main message. In this work, the author examines what importance people attach to their own life choices and how they relate to the decisions that have already been made. Due to the cultural context, this poem gave Frost fame among American poets of modernism.
Works Cited
Czerniawska, Mirosława, and Joanna Szydło. “Traditionalism, Modernism, Postmodernism-Worldview Analysis in the Context of Values.” WSEAS Transactions on Business and Economics, vol. 19, 2022, pp. 701-713.
Frost, Robert. “A Road Not Taken.” Poetry Foundation, no date, Web.
Selvi, MD Thamarai, and Aruna Arputha Malar. “A Critical Analysis of Robert Frost Poems.” Journal of Language and Linguistics in Society, vol. 1, no. 2, 2021, pp. 1-6.