![]() The narrator’s choice about which road to take represents the different decisions we sometimes must make and how those decisions will affect the future. The two roads diverged in a yellow wood forest symbolizing a person’s life. ‘The Road Not Taken’ is more than a poem about someone trying to decide which road he’s going to take on a stroll through the woods. The poet beautifully leaves this to the imagination of the readers Ambiguity is one of the striking features of Frost in poetry. However, the line “… And that has made all the difference” is not clear. It can lead to a great discovery, success, prosperity, or happiness. A small courageous step makes a big difference. Here “sigh” should not be taken as regret. The phrase “some were ages and age hence” refers to a distant future. The chief theme of his poetry is an ambiguous relationship with nature. The poem inspires us to face the challenging realities in life. The poem makes us think about choice we must make in life.Īll of us reach a crucial point in life when we must make the right choice. We should always have the courage to choose the right way even if it is rough and thorny. Here conflict is between the right choice and wrong choice. The striking feature of Frosts’ poems is the presentation of conflicts. It seems to be a characteristic of Robert Frost to express doubt while making revolutionary decisions. He says that perhaps he may use the more conventional path sometime in future, but it is not possible to start the journey afresh. The poet realizes that he can’t travel on both roads, so he keeps it for another day. ![]() The other road is more conventional, risk free and well-traveled. He chooses the grassy and less travelled path. Robert Frost finds himself at a point where the road splits into two. ![]() His poems begin in delight and in wisdom. Let’s all strive to do the right things.The best loved of the American poets Robert Frost (1874-1963) was born in USA. Maybe, I will just end by saying that I (and perhaps you) should consider if this was to be our last day on earth, is it better to look back on our time here and feel good that we did things right or that we did the right things. “The strive to gain, the push for power, and this will fail you in your final hour”. I was struck by a line written by Edward Crawford during a Ted Talk. I do not know if there is a summary for my ramblings. Is the conflict today – what is in it for me versus the greater good? They encourage looking beyond the present moment to a future worth striving for (described about Lincoln in the book by Doris Kearns Goodwin – “Leadership”). Transformational leaders inspire followers to believe in something larger than themselves. Peter Drucker and others have talked about the difference in doing things right (more transactional) as opposed to doing the right things for your organization, people, etc. Bass, in 1990, said transactional leadership is grounded in reciprocity. In the business & political world transactional leaders look to motivate by understanding the self-interest of their followers using carrot and stick. That might have rung true in 1900 but are we buying it in 2020? Are we not in conflict, as a society, between what is in it for me and my people versus what is best for people at large? Conflict – 2020 has brought out the best in us and the worst in us.Ĭonflict – Transactional leadership and transformational leadership. Teddy Roosevelt is credited with saying – “People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care”. I suppose the real question is could more people go back to work while less people are losing their lives from the virus? How are decisions being made and what is the motivation for those decisions? Conflict – if a vast majority of the scientific community are telling us that wearing a mask is saving lives, why would anyone say it is a personal choice to not wear a mask? Then again, if people are not working, they could lose everything. Think of it as wiping out every man, women, in child in the city of Providence, Rhode Island. COVID-19 has wiped out over 180,000 people in the USA. Not to be so profound, but where are we heading as a human race? What we do or don’t do is amplified due to the 2020 environment. ![]() Today, we are all sitting at a crossroad. If I extend this thought it seems to me this could be about right and wrong and good and evil. It also represents conflicts all of us have regarding the decisions we each make. I don’t presume to have any special expertise to interpret the deepest meaning of this Robert Frost poem, but since I have the power of the pen, for me today, it speaks volumes about the choices that we make in life and the resulting impact of those choices.
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