Could be that, but there's nothing in the text that indicates a second voice (Frost's) commenting ironically behind the first. Without that textual foundation, I'm not inclined to impose that reading on the poem.Originally Posted by MikeK
Could be that, but there's nothing in the text that indicates a second voice (Frost's) commenting ironically behind the first. Without that textual foundation, I'm not inclined to impose that reading on the poem.Originally Posted by MikeK
I tend to agree with Mike K textual criticism notwithstanding. It was exactly that hidden voice Frost was so famous for in the first place. It was set him apart reminiscent of the Road Less Traveled By itself.
tri, I agree, there's nothing within the text that indicates a second voice (Frost's). The poem is certainly delivered by one speaker and in one voice. But the ironic commentary directed toward the speaker is contained in the tone and style, not in a competing voice. And elpidi is right, Frost was fond of using such a technique. He often wrote poems whereby the speaker voiced something with which Frost himself disagreed; either for the purposes of irony, or simply to straightforwardly present another viewpoint.
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As i read the lines:
"And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;"
I can't help but think that he is differentiating the two by saying one has the better claim. Even though in the next two lines he says that the passing had worn them the same-but I take that to mean that the passing on them had worn them the same, not because they had the same amount of passing, but because they were different, and it so happened that they also received a different amount of traffic, but because they were inherently different to start with, they now looked the same. So, it seems to me that everyone is taking the one that has the better claim and is grassy and wants wear, so now they look the same, and the speaker takes the other one, the more obvious one, which has ironically become the less traveled one, because everyone wants to be their own man.
In the last three lines, when he is talking about what he will say in the future, he does say that he takes the one less traveled by, once again pushing the point that there is a difference between the two. I take this to mean that something made him make a choice, and we can infer that the choice will have been good, but maybe it's not.
sorry about the run on sentences and the over analysis.
I've read this poem and some other poems of his, and I think he was a wonderful poet.
P.G.7.
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