Talk:The Road Not Taken

message: The speaker only claims that it was the path less traveled in the fourth stanza, when he is looking back upon his choice.  In the second stanza the speaker decides that  "the passing there/Had worn them really about the same", or that there was no path less traveled.  Perhaps the speaker likes to think that he has taken the path less traveled when really, he is just a guy who can't make up his mind.  I will not make any changes to the page as I am not ignorant enough to pretend that my opinion is the only one that matters yet it may be a good idea not to make any kind of attempt of explicating the poem.  The Road Not Taken is far more complicated than many think and perhaps Wikipedia should offer just the concrete facts and no opinions in their pages.  I am not at all an expert on poetry explication, so if you are, please share your ideas as they would be very helpful.
~Owen
: I think that this comment is a mistake - it was _the passing there_ that had worn them really about the same. That is, it was definitely less traveled, but even a less traveled road gets more traveled when the author travels it. I took that part of the comment out, since I think it's (a) wrong, and (b) unsourced. But I think it should be replaced by a sourced description of an alternative explanation, if someone knows one. MikeR613 (talk) 14:59, 6 March 2015 (UTC)
replies: text: What he means by it is that though one path is less travelled, neither path has been used recently, so the leaves have fallen equally on both sides and nobody's steps have disturbed them. That is why they look equal to him that morning when he passes there.--May the Force be with you!  Shreshth91($ |-| r 3 $ |-| t |-|) 10:48, 30 October 2005 (UTC)
replies: text: While the writer of the explication makes a very compelling point, the writer's tone is unbalanced and should probably not be offerred unless he or she can offer an equally compelling argument to the contrary. This explication is far less encyclopedaic than it is editorial.
Rob 04:06, 16 March 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Is it less traveled? 

message: What if Widipedia asked experts to write their ideas and then put them all in, under an opinion section or somthing.  That way we could know what was fact and what was just an idea.
--216.170.244.103 02:03, 21 October 2005 (UTC)
replies: text: I don't follow the logic that adding ideas to the page would help its readers distinguish facts from ideas, but generally I agree that this page in particular would benefit from sources that explicate this poem. -- thither 03:20, 14 June 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  What If? 

message: Are we allowed to have lyrics here?  I asked elsewhere, and it was suggested that we cannot put lyrics on the site because of copyright violations.--Vercalos 05:30, 28 February 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Lyrics are the words in a song. This is a poem. Also, since this poem was published before 1923 it is in the public domain, so there is no copyright violation. --Carlos 23:31, 10 August 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: Lyrics

message: The article has two sets of explanations. Shouldn't we converge them into one?
--Mahendra 03:49, 17 February 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Two sets of explanations 

message: I've removed this 'random edit':"I hate my wife"
from the Explanation. Hopefully no objections... Snowonster 00:53, 2 March 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Removed still more vandalism from this user: "(she sucks)" Snowonster 01:03, 2 March 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Removed Random Edit

message: I believe the final paragraph to the article is out of place, as it is a personal interpretation of the poem (one I strongly disagree with) presented as its true meaning.  It also uses informal voice (second person singular) and is just generally poorly-written.  I do think that, considering the nature of poetry, all interpretations should have some mention, however this particular entry simply doesn't match the rest of the article.  I've just created my wikipedia account, so I'm a bit weary over making any immediate edits right off the bat.  In any case, does anyone agree?
LbCyber 08:59, 23 March 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  "What This Poem Really Means" 

message: It unites with the people of America.  The road less traveled by is the correct road to take of meaning and so on.  
This poem is the best one I've heard in a long time. I love your writing skills Robert Frost!  —Preceding unsigned comment added by Jonas Sister10 (talk • contribs) 19:06, 2 November 2008 (UTC)
thread_title: This poem amazing

message: well, if its a poem, we should have it, no use explaining something if we dont know what it is.Blacksmith2 talk 09:32, 28 June 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Dude, wheres the poem 

message: The narrator is NOT saying he took the road less traveled and that that has made all the difference. He is saying that that is how he will tell the story "somewhere ages and ages hence." Not all interpretations are valid, especially if they are based on misreadings of the text.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.237.239.122 (talk) 21:38, 5 November 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Where is Frost when you need him (He's dead, that's where).24.188.68.134 (talk) 01:12, 29 November 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Interpretations of the poem 

message: This section lacks details...It needs more than just its explanation.
This is the questions that needs to be answered and included in the main article:
What is its poetic form, poetic diction, meter and all the elements of poetry?
You should add this to the article because these details are important especially if you have to write an essay.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by Triadwarfare (talk • contribs) 15:22, 17 January 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  Details...Details...Details... 

message: This article contradicts itself by saying ", The poem admits two common interpretations,"
but in the last line of the first interpretation it is phrased: "He is saying he regrets the choice that he made," which is basically the introduction of the "second interpretation." 
I believe something should be changed for this, to eliminate the contradictory content. Since the second interpretation somewhat switches it's view halfway through, it should be fixed or refreshed literally, so as to remove confusion and contradictions. Rusober (talk) 00:18, 1 October 2008 (UTC)
replies: text: I have great problems with the use of "literal" for one interpretation, which isn't even developed beyond some vague links to general terms. "Literal" seems to me to be claiming a truth based on the text that the text itself doesn't support.  Perhaps a more accurate classification of interpretations would be "popular" and "critical." The poem has taken on a meaning in popular culture that isn't borne out by most close critical readings, so that seems like an accurate division.
--Lee1999 (talk) 18:44, 12 September 2010 (UTC)
thread_title:  Contradiction 

message: It's a shame this poem is being debated in such an obvious manner. Nareek, seemed to be pretty close. Which makes sense based on their comments. There is much more to this poem than a simple issue of conformativity and really it is kind of insulting to even mention that topic in relation to it I think. Hippies and Anarchists should find some new meaningless literature to discuss instead of ruining a great piece that actually has a purpose.
Be gone mindless wikipedian social free thinkers. Your pseudo conclusive reasoning is not accepted in regards to this poem. In my opinion of course. But then again, I am on the World of Warcraft website which makes me pretty credible. I would only think.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by Rukaribe (talk • contribs) 05:20, 20 October 2010 (UTC)
thread_title: Commutativity

message: In Ihe Road Not Taken Frost uses metaphor to describe two choices as roads. Both road are almost equally the same, but one is taken too much and is wear out. That choice is the short and easy road. The other road is longer and difficult and is the one Frost will take. At then end he sighs for taking the longer road, however later saying by taking that road it made a difference.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.4.249.41 (talk) 23:49, 2 February 2012 (UTC)
replies: text: What suggestions do you have to improve the article? --jpgordon::==( o ) 05:35, 3 February 2012 (UTC)
thread_title:  Interpretations 

message: The poem is quoted in Down_by_Law_(film)  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 78.53.45.125 (talk) 07:02, 19 March 2012 (UTC)
thread_title:  Trivia 

message: Forgive an ignorant philistine, but, and I've re-read it three times, the article talks at length about "the sigh"... but... what sigh??? Perhaps the article could be more clear?
86.25.170.118 (talk) 20:22, 2 October 2012 (UTC)
thread_title:  Sigh? What sigh? 

message: It should be mentioned somewhere, like maybe in a "references in popular culture" or something similar, that the poem was mentioned in the documentary Grey Gardens Edith Bouvier Beale recites the poem, incorrectly, but does recite it best to her knowledge. --Matt723star (talk) 14:11, 15 February 2013 (UTC)
thread_title: Grey Gardens

message: Seems to me it's about time for the "analysis" section to go. It still feels like mostly original research. --jpgordon::==( o ) 16:06, 25 November 2014 (UTC)
replies: text: Jpgordon, you just removed the entire section, except for a couple of references at the end? Seems to me that it's uncalled for to ignore what I think is a whole lot of people assuming that the poem is talking about individuality. I've adjusted your edit a little to make it clearer that these suggestions are just suggestions, not facts. But it still needs a clearer reference to what the Christina Sterbenz reference calls the most common misunderstanding. The wikipedia reader is entitled to know about the _standard_ interpretation of the poem; it isn't right to hide it.MikeR613 (talk) 16:01, 6 March 2015 (UTC)
replies: text: Then find a reliable source or three providing such interpretations, rather than what mostly seems to be people inserting something they heard in English class. --jpgordon::==( o ) 19:15, 3 May 2015 (UTC)
thread_title:  Analysis 

message: in the lead, why is "like the road fork itself" linked to the article Meta with zero comment about why? it should be explained or deleted. 98.7.201.234 (talk) 05:39, 17 May 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: Because an editor thought they were being clever about a year ago. Thanks for pointing it out; we discourage fortune cookies like that. --jpgordon𝄢𝄆 𝄐𝄇  15:25, 17 May 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  what is the link to Meta in the lead? 

message: There seems to be at least two editions of this poem, as described in the article. It's not clear which version Wikipedia uses, and it could actually be a non-official one for all I know.
* https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44272/the-road-not-taken#guide
* https://www.gutenberg.org/files/29345/29345-h/29345-h.htm
Both versions seem to be the same, I guess they have the same source (Mountain Interval?).
* https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1915/08/a-group-of-poems/306620/
Uses "marked" instead of "kept".
Wikipedia version, some differences from the Poetry Foundation version as of 2021-06-21:
* adds a comma after "in leaves"
* removes one "as"
It should be made clearer which edition is / should be used, and fix the current text if that's not a proper edition.
Caylane (talk) 13:59, 6 June 2021 (UTC)
thread_title:  How many editions / which one is used in article 

message: Regarding this edit - it's not a misquote, is it? And even if it were, that hardly seems to me a reason to remove this image... W. P. Uzer (talk) 14:19, 19 April 2022 (UTC)
replies: text: Yeah, it might be better if the picture included all three last lines. So I've undone my removal. Still, I don't really think the picture belongs. --jpgordon𝄢𝄆𝄐𝄇 14:39, 19 April 2022 (UTC)
thread_title: Leiden photo

message: Harry Turtledove has a well known science fiction short story using the title and making a deliberate allusion to the Frost poem in his plot.  Should there perhaps be a note in the article citing this, or a disambiguation?  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2603:7000:6A00:32DA:4D0E:1BD6:95C4:CD92 (talk) 17:36, 18 May 2023 (UTC)
thread_title: TITLE USE

message: i have bine panic attacks 2603:6011:E640:14:DF3F:E98D:DCB7:9D9E (talk) 01:01, 21 October 2023 (UTC)
thread_title:  gracie