m. scott peck's book deals primarily human nature, self/spiritual development. I think he used the title to imply that this journey into self understanding and growth is one that few people take seriously. i think he boils it all down to basic human needs and how loving others fills most of them. like the "strait and narrow way" which few travel, mentioned in the bible, linking a loving spirit with those that take it.
i don't mean to say that this challenge should reflect this in some way, but for me this is what comes to mind.
probably a shot of a literal road that appears rarely used will score highest.
I had never heard of the poem (or the book for that matter) and can't say I am particularly impressed by it having read it now! If I enter this one, my entry will be based on the challenge/poem title, and not the poem itself. My voting will follow the same guidelines,
Two roads diverged in a wood
so I went a little way down each of them ...
Raish, the way you posted, it looks like "He Got Home, Right?" is the name of the poem!
I'm pretty sure that is the name of the poem. One by Peter Richards, aka raish. And a fine one it is!
Here's the one by Frost:
Originally posted by Robert Frost:
The Road Not Taken
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
And boy, that Wikipedia article was interesting. I don't much care what academics have to say about it, but even the concept that the last stanza is an ironic musing is very interesting. That it might mean "long into the future, I'm going to look back and congratulate myself for taking the less-travelled road, even though it really didn't matter much."
I like your thoughts on the last stanza. To me though, I think he is saying that in the future he will look back on how he took the road less traveled, and his life turned out the way it did because of it. The last line "and that has made all the difference" just makes me feel that his life definitely wouldn't have been the same had he taken the other path.
I will be looking for both interpretations but yet I have absolutely no idea what to shoot. If I go creative I may be subject to DNMC and low votes, if I literally shoot an old dirt track then my self satisfaction will suffer... But as always I will follow my heart on the day.
I thought it was to do with a road that was abandoned or rarely used. Thats how I took it. Man I am totally off. I guess I will be doing the black and white abstract. lol
Obviously the challenge does not have to do with poetry. That poem is juse ONE interpretation, "food for thought", to inspire ideas.
It can be whatever the Photographer/Artist interprets it to be. It can be taken literally or not.
The poem on wikipedia, “The Road Not Taken” states:
“The poem's last lines, where the narrator declares that taking the road "less traveled by" has "made all the difference," can be seen as a declaration of the importance of independence and personal freedom. "The Road Not Taken" seems to illustrate that once one takes a certain road, there is no turning back. Although one might change paths later on, the past cannot be changed. It can be seen as showing that choice is very important, and is a thing to be considered.”
And boy, that Wikipedia article was interesting. I don't much care what academics have to say about it, but even the concept that the last stanza is an ironic musing is very interesting. That it might mean "long into the future, I'm going to look back and congratulate myself for taking the less-travelled road, even though it really didn't matter much."
I like your thoughts on the last stanza. To me though, I think he is saying that in the future he will look back on how he took the road less traveled, and his life turned out the way it did because of it. The last line "and that has made all the difference" just makes me feel that his life definitely wouldn't have been the same had he taken the other path.
Ah, but that's looking at the last line in isolation. Look at the lines above it, which pretty much say the paths are equal: just as leafy, worn about the same. Then consider the last stanza, which could be read as saying that he'll be telling himself it made a difference, as opposed to it actually making a difference.
I'm not sure which interpretation is more apt, but both are possible.
Edited to add: I'm enjoying this purely as a discussion of the poem. For the challenge, as always, my recommendation to anyone who's going for a high score is to stay as bluntly obvious as possible, not go for obscure interpretations. :)
And boy, that Wikipedia article was interesting. I don't much care what academics have to say about it, but even the concept that the last stanza is an ironic musing is very interesting. That it might mean "long into the future, I'm going to look back and congratulate myself for taking the less-travelled road, even though it really didn't matter much."
I like your thoughts on the last stanza. To me though, I think he is saying that in the future he will look back on how he took the road less traveled, and his life turned out the way it did because of it. The last line "and that has made all the difference" just makes me feel that his life definitely wouldn't have been the same had he taken the other path.
Ah, but that's looking at the last line in isolation. Look at the lines above it, which pretty much say the paths are equal: just as leafy, worn about the same. Then consider the last stanza, which could be read as saying that he'll be telling himself it made a difference, as opposed to it actually making a difference.
I'm not sure which interpretation is more apt, but both are possible.
Edited to add: I'm enjoying this purely as a discussion of the poem. For the challenge, as always, my recommendation to anyone who's going for a high score is to stay as bluntly obvious as possible, not go for obscure interpretations. :)
I have been going crazy trying to think of interpretations for this challenge. I think I'll take your advice and just stick with an obvious shot. It won't make me feel very creative though.
I was going to shoot something for b/w abstract, but I did something this evening that I think fits this one well. Not totally sure exactly HOW it fits, but I look at it and it does. Perhaps with a Posthumous-like interpretation on a couple of levels. I'm ready to take my 4, however.
BTW, when I saw the challenge topic, the first thing I thought of was Robert Frost's poem. I'm not big on poetry, but I have always liked that one ever since reading it in high school.
This will either help you or hinder you, To me the road less traveled encompasses all the things that are created in the road of life, Love, Truth, Compassion, responsibility, etc.
The Road Less Traveled
The Road Less Traveled, published in 1978, is Peck's best-known work, and the one that made his reputation. It is, in short, a description of the attributes that make for a fulfilled human being, based largely on his experiences as a psychiatrist and a person.
In the first section of the work Peck talks about discipline, which he considers essential for emotional, spiritual and psychological health, and which he describes as "the means of spiritual evolution". The elements of discipline that make for such health include the ability to delay gratification, accepting responsibility for oneself and one's actions, a dedication to truth and balancing.
In the second section, Peck considers the nature of love, which he considers the driving force behind spiritual growth. The section mainly attacks a number of misconceptions about love: that romantic love exists (he considers it a very destructive myth), that it is about dependency, that true love is not "falling in love". That type of love is cathexis, it is a feeling. Instead "true" love is about the extending of one's ego boundaries to include another, and about the spiritual nurturing of another, in short, love is effort.
The final section describes Grace, the powerful force originating outside human consciousness that nurtures spiritual growth in human beings. To do so he describes the miracles of health, the unconscious, and serendipity—phenomena which Peck says:
* nurture human life and spiritual growth
* are incompletely understood by scientific thinking
* are commonplace among humanity
* originate outside conscious human will
He concludes that "the miracles described indicate that our growth as human beings is being assisted by a force other than our conscious will".
Random House, where the little-known psychiatrist first tried to publish his original manuscript, turned him down, saying the final section was "too Christ-y." Simon & Schuster published the work for $7,500 and printed a modest hardback run of 5,000 copies. The book took off only after Mr. Peck hit the lecture circuit and personally sought reviews in key publications. Reprinted in paperback in 1980, The Road first made best-seller lists in 1983 — five years after its initial publication.
This will either help you or hinder you, To me the road less traveled encompasses all the things that are created in the road of life, Love, Truth, Compassion, responsibility, etc.
The Road Less Traveled...
Thanks for that info. I am now certain my entry fits, though I also believe many will not understand how it relates to to the topic. I think that anything which does not feature a slightly overgrown road or path is subject to DNMC.
I will be making efforts to look for deeper meaning when I vote.
Sure seems like there is a lot of over thought going into this one.
I tend to think that the litteralists will sink the crowd that is all twisted up over Frost's The Road Not Taken. Challenge is The Road Less Traveled.
At the same time, it still does leave a lot of room for metaphore.
Safe Predictions: IreneM will find a way to do it indoors and finish well. At least five people will say that the voters did not get their image. My final score will be less than 6.0.
At least five people will say that the voters did not get their image.
The voters don't get my image, and it's not even started yet.
I think anything related to physical or metaphoric roads is fair game for this. I'm actually hoping to see more of the metaphoric ones, which I think will take more creative thinking.
I took a shot for this but it's unoriginal and doesn't look that great... hard to tell if i should enter it. Am I allowed to show it to others and ask for their opinion?
