Essay Comparing The Road Not Taken And A Worn Path

The Journey: Symbolism of “The Road Not Taken” and “A Worn Path” From their titles, we realize these short stories will take us on a literary journey but what we do not realize are the choices and obstacles the protagonists encounter that adds dimension to the story. The readers’ perceptions about the events are changed by the symbolism surrounding the characters and the conflicts that are presented. “A Worn Path” is a character story told in a third-person point of view about an elderly, colored woman and her journey along a path she has taken many time before. Throughout the story Phoenix is involved in conflict by struggling against nature, social conditions and against her own physical circumstances. From the characters name alone we instantly envision a strong individual, the name implies a mythological creature that it said to be as large as an eagle, with brilliant scarlet and gold plumage. It was said that only one phoenix existed at any one time with a life expectancy of at least 500 years. As the phoenix approached the end of life, it would build a nest, set fire to it and would die in fire
“The Road Not Taken” is filled with symbolism. The literal setting of the poem is at a separation of the path in a yellow wood, not sure of which path to take and knowing that they will probably never be able to come back and take the other. Much of the difficulty in choosing which path lies in the fact that both paths are equally attractive. “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both”. A persons life can be compared to a journey, the two roads are used as symbols of choices that are made in life and the options that one has to choose from in making their life journey. A person’s life can be compared to a journey, they may know where they want to go but there is usually more than one way to get