Compare how Robert Frost presents nature in ‘The Road Not Taken’ and ‘Stopping by the

Woods on a Snowy Evening’.

Key target: To use quotations from the poems, and to link carefully back to the question.

Introduction: Briefly explain what both poems are about, and who they are written by.

Paragraph one: Use your research to write a paragraph about Robert Frost. Who was he?
What kind of poetry did he write? How did he feel about nature?

Paragraph two: Your first paragraph on ‘The Road not Taken’. Explain how the poem is set
in the woods (“Two roads diverged in a yellow wood”) and is about choice (“sorry I could
not travel both). Try to explore the impact of word choice like “diverged” and “sorry”.

Paragraph three: Your second paragraph on ‘The Road Not Taken’. Explain how the speaker
feels at the end of the poem (“I took the one less travelled…). Highlight how the woods
represent a metaphor for life choices/regrets/paths we take.

Paragraph four: Your first paragraph on ‘Stopping…’. Explain that this poem is also set in the
woods (“whose woods are these…). Highlight how the speaker has stopped to admire then
(“My little horse must think it queer”)

Paragraph five: Your second paragraph on ‘Stopping’. Highlight how the speaker feels the
woods are beautiful (“these woods are lovely, dark and deep), but has to leave as he has to
keep going on his journey (“and miles to go before I sleep). Link to nature as escapism.

Paragraph six: Highlight some of the main similarities and differences between the poems.
Use your notes to help: both set in the woods; nature gives time for reflection; nature is
escapism; calming etc.

Conclusion: How do you think Robert Frost feels about nature? Which poem did you prefer
from the two we have studied, and why?

Key words: nature, escapism, reflection, setting, Frost, poet, quotation, admiration, respect,
choices, decisions, paths, tranquil, serene, first person.