The poem "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost is one of the most famous poems written. It is quoted in speeches, and everyone seems to be familiar with it. However, it is misinterpreted.

I'm not here to deeply analyze this poem. I'm here to help better understand it. But first: you should listen to Robert Frost himself read it.

If you listened to it, I'm sure the way you heard it isn't the way you've heard it before. "The Road Not Taken" is not a motivational poem. It's quite obviously upsetting and holds a meaning much larger than originally seen. For example, the lines "And both that morning equally lay / In leaves no step had trodden black" meaning that neither of the trails are less traveled by, and that there is no correct answer. Both paths represent life and its problems, and not ever knowing which decision one makes will come with a better outcome. This poem does not mean that taking the road less traveled by makes one more of an independent individual than those who take the road more often traveled by.

The poem is more complicated than it is interpreted to be. Frost contemplates the decisions we make and means for the sense of not ever knowing beforehand how the situation will end before we make a final choice. I would strongly suggest listening to the poem at least twice to truly hear what Frost is trying to say.