is the road not taken a narrative poem
``The Road Not Taken'' is a narrative poem. It reads naturally or conversationally, and begins as a kind of photographic depiction of a quiet moment in woods. It consists of four stanzas of 5 lines each. The first line rhymes with the third and fourth, and the second line rhymes with the fifth (ABAAB). The meter is basically iambic tetrameter, with each line having four two-syllable feet. Though in almost every line, in different positions, an iamb is replaced with an anapest. The variation of the rhythm gives naturalness, a feeling of thought occurring spontaneously, and it also affects the reader's sense of expectation. In the only line that contains strictly iambs, the more regular rhythm supports the idea of a turning towards an acceptance of a kind of reality: ``Though as for that the passing there ... '' In the final line, the way the rhyme and rhythm work together is significantly different, and catches the reader off guard.
The Road Not Taken