Robert Frost's Fork in the Road

Upon Mrs.Shabana's request (you can rest at ease now :P), I'm posting my literary interpretation essay :)

     Through his poem "The Road Not Taken", Robert Frost portrays the choices one faces in life by comparing life to a walk in the woods. On the surface, the poem describes a road that divided into two roads and the speaker's frustration at not being able to take both. The speaker then, after observing both roads, chooses the road 'less traveled by'. On a deeper note, though, we see more insight on life by Robert Frost.

     'Two roads diverged'; Frost promptly opens his poem with the conflict: the speaker is faced with two roads, one of which he must choose, and will probably never be able to change. These roads just as easily represent the choices one faces in life. Whether in education, marriage, or simply social relations, the choices one makes are usually always irreversible. The setting of a forest also emphasizes the maze-like characteristic of choices. As Frost aptly puts it, 'way leads on to way', creating a web of choices. This makes it even more crucial to make the right choice at the beginning.

     But how did the speaker make his decision? At first, Frost leads us to believe that both roads seem equally appealing and 'just as fair', but then he goes on to say the second road might have 'the better claim, because it was grassy and wanted wear'. After walking down the second road, though, the speaker again reevaluates his choice and comes to the conclusion that both roads 'that morning lay, in leaves no step had trodden black', but he had only realized that both roads seemed equally trodden after he had made his choice. These identical paths symbolize a combination of free will and fate; one is free to choose, but doesn't truly know beforehand what one is choosing between. It takes both choice and chance to determine one's route in life. Thus, the focus of the poem is not the roads themselves, but what they will lead to in the future.

     'And that has made all the difference'. the difference mentioned could be one of two: either the speaker will experience a nostalgic relief by taking the second road, or regret for the same reason. The speaker himself still doesn't know which it will be since he hasn't lived the difference yet; his evaluation of the difference his choice will make is still in the future. All the speaker is sure of is that his choice will make 'all the difference'.

     Robert Frost's message by "The Road Not Taken" is twofold; first, he tells us to be careful of our choices, since, once made, are irreversible. One's decisions will open up yet more choices, and one can get lost trying to find the right ones. And second, Frost highlights a common dilemma in life; no matter how carefully we make our choices, the outcome still relies partially on chance. The outcome of the speaker's choice is yet to be determined; all we can be sure of, though, is that it 'has made all the difference'.

Why you should feel LUCKY *in a nutshell*

ESPECIALLY WRITTEN FOR NOUR AL-QARRA
Midterms are coming up…










...And to get through them with our sanities intact, we need to focus on the half of the cup that’s FULL .
So here are three things to remind you of what you might have forgotten:


1) 5 projects = variety of skills, one of which (the most crucial one) is TIME-MANAGEMENT !! I’m sure that in our college and future career years, we’ll be GLAD this school is loading us… so that we won’t be crippled under the weight and exhaustion of the responsibilities yet to come.


2) Going back to common sense, colleges will want to accept you even more BECAUSE of what we’re doing !! they’ll see that we’re students who have endured (and hopefully survived :P) a LOT of pressure, which is REALLY saying something...
    so, looking at it this way:
low grades + LOTS of successful and CHALLENGING activities = college acceptance  *insha2alla*
                          keep in mind that colleges want active students, not only brainiacs


3) Have you forgotten WHY we’re learning with projects?? because it’s more MIND-CAPTIVATING which means learning more . We want to learn this way because it STICKS the information in our heads; it’s like a “Guarantee to LEARN the Interesting Way” :)


I only provided you with three scholastic examples; I’m sure if you take a good look, you’ll find lots of other stuff to feel lucky about..


So in the end  I, TOO  feel lucky. AL7MDULILAH :)

Lost Angel 2

AND hello there :)

here is what I've brought to you from Lost Angel Chp 4-10 !!! I'll give you guys more time to answer this time ;) :

-Mabel moved to Clapham, an area as so far untouched by bombs

-they found the farm a relieving change from the bombing in London, though Hilda saw the isolation as oppressive

-though Gertie was happy as a recluse and avoided unnecessary contact with people, Hilda immediately formed connections with the villagers

- Gertie home-schooled Ellen and Ellen's love for nature fueled her eagerness to learn about the different plants and animals

-Doug, Hilda's husband, visited; he was concerned about Gertie's preference to women. but after being assured that Gertie felt only sisterly love for Hilda, he supported Hilda's decision to move and hoped to live in the countryside when the war was over

-Doug’s concern about Gertie made Hilda feel doubtful herself, especially after Doug left

-Gertie, contrary to common belief, had more than sisterly feelings for Hilda; before Doug came, she tried to believe Hilda might feel the same. after Doug's visit disillusioned her, Gertie was glad to see the back of him

-a year and a half after Doug's visit, Ellen reached puberty. instead of enlightening her daughter, though, Hilda left her daughter confused and naively vulnerable

-on Ellen's birthday, Hilda, in a moment of privacy, felt a presence; her initial response of disbelief begins to take on a different form

-with Doug's second visit, Doug and Hilda's suspicions about Gertie's preferences intensify and Gertie's jealousy is rekindled; this time, Hilda is convinced enough to make preparations to move back to London

-Hilda's plan was delayed by Ellen and Gertie's sicknesses; after a week of straining herself to heal them, Hilda found that the cost of their recovery was her own illness

- luckily when Hilda fell ill, a concerned villager came to check up on the family; Hilda was taken to hospital immediately

-Ellen and Gertie were kindly helped by the villagers and Gertie was surprised that their interests were genuine; she found herself confused whether or not she actually wanted to leave her recluse, but humbled by the villagers' concerns despite Gertie's former coldness

Questions: What do you think Hilda will eventually believe about the 'presence' she felt? How will this affect her other beliefs, especially those regarding her crucifix?

What repercussions might come from Hilda’s overprotection of Ellen?