By Elizakelly Shortsen

Presentation of Elizakelly Shortsen’s poem “The Test Not Taken” and

TWO roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth; First, you should know that this poem has a figurative and a literal meaning. There are like two layers to the poem.

Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear; Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the same, Literally: a guy comes to a fork in the road while he’s walking in the woods. He can’t go both ways, so he looks down both paths. He chooses the one that looks less worn out. He guesses that he will never come back and walk down the first road. And he thinks about telling his grandkids the story of these two roads.

And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back. The figurative meaning of the poem is really cool. Frost is talking about making decisions. No matter how hard you try to figure out what will happen with your choice, you really don’t know what will happen in the future. Frost suggests that you don’t choose the same thing that everyone else has chosen.

I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. Frost tells us, through the analogy of a road in the woods compared to a choice in life, that making a choice that isn’t following the crowd, will make a difference in our whole lives. He’s kind of saying “go your own way.”

Modeled after “The Road Not Taken”

Two tests appeared to me, laid upon my desk And gleeful I could not take them both, And complete them equally well, that task I chose to avoid and with my face a mask Of determination, I took neither, my oath;

I hid them beneath my chair and under a book The teacher thought I was done She chose not to call my name or even look For those tests that had been placed in that nook Not a single question answered, not a one.

And then the bell rang and I left the classroom The lonely paper hidden safely there Under my desk awaiting its eventual doom Destined for the trash I know it was soon For the custodian would find them in the chair.

I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two tests appeared to me and I--- I didn’t take either and why… And another year in 8th grade has made all the difference.

 Robert Frost’s poem is in the public domain.  I included these 3 poetry terms:  Analogy  Figurative  Literal  I think I have earned a B.  Shout outs to: Ginny, Martha, Trigette, Patricia, Vanessa, Phyllis, and Linda and my BFF Ish.  We couldn’t have done it without your support.