The Way Through the Woods Analysis

They shut the road through the woods

Seventy years ago.

Weather and rain have undone it again,

And now you would never know

There was once a road through the woods

Before they planted the trees.

It is underneath the coppice and heath,

And the thin anemones.

Only the keeper sees

That, where the ring-dove broods,

And the badgers roll at ease,

There was once a road through the woods.



Yet, if you enter the woods

Of a summer evening late,

When the night-air cools on the trout-ringed pools

Where the otter whistles his mate.

(They fear not men in the woods,

Because they see so few)

You will hear the beat of a horse's feet,

And the swish of a skirt in the dew,

Steadily cantering through

The misty solitudes,

As though they perfectly knew

The old lost road through the woods. . . .

But there is no road through the woods.

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this poem depicts the about the road throug which men used to go but now trees aregrown on it
posted by
silica cymore

| Posted on 2009-08-24 | by a guest

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its a wonderful poem. in the 1st stanza the poet tells about the condition of the road. how it is deserted with thin anemones.etc.and then about the animals in the next few lines.and then the lines make us feel unique and haunted.the swish of a skirt iin the dew is the line very mysterious. on the whole it is very different and soulful poem.
By
Susmitha

| Posted on 2009-07-06 | by a guest

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one of the readers commented about Kipling having written this after his son died. If you research a little you can see it was written before that. So mentioning that in analysis for those who study it at school would be wrong :)

| Posted on 2009-05-18 | by a guest

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as someone else pointed out, you have to make sure you don't confuse the 'skirt in the dew' referring to a woman.a skirt is a part of a horse saddle kind of and so STOP thinking it's about love and wha tnot

| Posted on 2009-03-14 | by a guest

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In the first stanza Kipling sets the scene. The road that 70 years ago existed has now disappeared "Weather and rain have undone it again." The natural life of the woods is set against the old vanished road: "where the ring-dove broods, And the badgers roll at ease, There was once a road through the woods.”
In the second verse the poem becomes a ghost story and with beautiful imagery conjurs an idyllic way of life now lost. If you go now into the woods, which people seldom do, "You will hear the beat of a horse's feet, And the swish of a skirt in the dew, Steadily cantering through / The misty solitudes"
The reader is left with impressions of peaceful natural beauty and the impermanence of manmade things, remembered only by the “keeper” and the ghostly horse and rider.

| Posted on 2009-03-13 | by a guest

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This poem is about an individual's (the keeper) reflection on life's path through seventy years, the memories - visual and audio. The heartbeat (beat of horse's feet cantering), tears (misty solitudes), and sighs (swish of a skirt), all emotionally synchronized (as if though they perfectly knew)

| Posted on 2009-03-01 | by a guest

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There is too much over analysing here; something that can spoil the enjoyment of the best of poems. This is a simple, haunting ghost story. The 70 years, IMO, relates to the time the trees have grown not the age of man or the time back to Darwin (?). Skirts are a reference to horse accoutrements not mysterious women. I see no basis for "the way" being any reference to any religous theme. The Keeper sees because he has better woodcraft and is able to spot the discrepancies of growth. To me the overwhelming theme is the natural beauty of the woods and the wildlife offset against the haunting of the old road by the ghostly horse setting up the last line which is a kicker. Enjoy and don't overcomplicate.

| Posted on 2008-12-31 | by a guest

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To me the road through the woods was symbolic of the individual's journey through life. It existed for a time, but in the end there is no road through the woods, at least not in this life. I thought the 70 year reference was to the human life span? The ghostly imagery and references to things hidden refers to the uncertainty of life's journey, with all sorts of influences which are often unseen.

| Posted on 2008-09-01 | by a guest

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I liked this poem. Very mysterious. A history hidden by mother nature. Her power to reclaim whats Hers.
Funny thing is. when I was a teenager my brother and I would spend our weekends clearing some land that had been in our family for generations. When we dug a little maybe a foot deep we discovered an old road my grandfather had built probably 70 years back haha.
What a feeling I had, to kind of connect to a grandfather i never new. I will keep this land and hopefully my children or grandchildren will discover this aswell.

| Posted on 2008-07-08 | by a guest

.: Review :.

This poem to me has several parallel meanings. It describes how humans have given back this road to nature. However not even the most distant place will forget the human invasion.

| Posted on 2008-06-08 | by a guest

.: Review :.

This poem to me has several parallel meanings. It describes how humans have given back this road to nature. However not even the most distant place will forget the human invasion.

| Posted on 2008-06-08 | by a guest

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This poem represents his internal turmoil over what to believe - he doubts his own faith as science is now contradicting former beliefs, which are hard for him to believe in now anyway after the death of his son in the war.
religion and faith still exists, but it has been covered up and forgotten, and the former way through life by following god are no longer there [the loss of the road]
the natural imagery used links to the power of god, and suggests that he does still have religious beliefs, however difficult it is for him to still fully trust in them.

| Posted on 2008-05-20 | by a guest

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Rudyard Kipling lost his son in WW1. Before, Kipling had been patriotic and for war, but the death of his son changed everything. He felt partly responsible for his sons death. The road he talks about is the journey through life, which he believes is given by faith. However after his son died he lost all faith in the world. The "seventy years ago" is a reference to Charles Darwin and the Theory of Evolution, from the 1850's which he felt destroyed faith. The manmade pathway is obscured man trees that man planted, he is saying that the loss of faith is man's own fault. The last line is almost parallel to the first, showing there has been no movement through the poem. It is written in 2nd Person, showing how he feels detached, and although he talks about humans and human nature he does not express his personal view.

| Posted on 2008-05-04 | by a guest

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I reckon the road represents an alternative future or destiny which was closed off to the writer seventy years ago. The "swish of a skirt in the dew" phrase suggests that this destiny was one with a woman, a woman whom he could not be with. The writer is the "keeper", the only person who knows of the road. He is now nearing the end of his life (i assume, as his "road" was closed seventy years ago..) and is reminescing on what could have been, had this path not been closed off to him. However, he comes to realise that this future no longer exists, "there is no road through the woods" and his past cannot be changed...
anyone agree?

| Posted on 2008-05-04 | by a guest

.: analysis :.

in the way through the woods the internal rhyme such as line 3 "Weather and rain have undone it again" the internal rhyme of rain and again sounds prohesive because the memory in the woods does not break the harmony of nature.
THe "yet" beginning the second stanza turns the poem around and creates a pause creating tension and suspense
This poem is trying to show how nature has it's way over man, it's nostalgic but shows that the power of nature overalls man even though they can work together in harmony (which is showed as the ghostlike memories near the end because it does not bother the nature around it...
hope this helps....

| Posted on 2008-03-27 | by a guest

.: the way through the woods :.

I see this poem as a mystery story. There clearly used to be a road through the woods, but it has been deliberately unmade - "before they planted the trees". Now no casual observer can spot it. "The thin anenomes" suggests that the topsoil where the road once was is only a thin layer and the plants do not grow so well there. Local people apparently never venture into these woods as the animals are no longer afraid of human contact - "they fear not men in the woods because they see so few". I wonder whether "the keeper" is some sort of gamekeeper for the wildlife, or whether he is there to dissuade, possibly by forceful means, anyone from exploring these woods. I get the impression that the whole community is somehow involved in a cover up of some sort - but what happened "seventy years ago"? We are not given many clues, but it involved one or more women - "the swish of a skirt in the dew" - and someone on horseback. The final line sounds like the community insisting that the road never existed, almost shouting a denial at the casual interest expressed by a stranger - perhaps the road is still marked on a map and someone was asking where it was? Yes, definitely a mystery.
Lady Anne.

| Posted on 2008-03-02 | by a guest

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The last line "But there is no road through the woods" this gives me the impression that this is the view of another person that only the main charachter can see any trace as if it is an imaginationa personal vision/ halucination of some kind. It is only visible from the memorys that are held within this place. The remenisant views of childhood and a place that to all those who have come after is nonexistant.

| Posted on 2008-01-08 | by a guest

.: a thought... :.

ok so im studying this at school and one of the evaluations was that this was like a ghost story of a girl riding through the woods perhaps as she was elloping. it is an echo if the past as you can hear the things ceing talked about in the poem because of the onomatopeia. the fact that you can hear the horse running seems strange as there is no path for it to run on...hmm...making it seem like a mystical tale! ps im sorry if i spelled anything wrong :(

| Posted on 2007-12-15 | by a guest

.: Exploring :.

The Way Through the Woods, uses amazing examples of imagery,`the badgers role a ease`... However, I can't see how the road represents anything in particular, there are no hints as to what it may be representing, some interpretaions suggest religion `being` the road. I think the underlying theme is just that nature is all powerful and nothing, not even man, can overcome it.

| Posted on 2007-11-25 | by a guest

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I believe the way through the woods descibes a past landscape: seventy years ago there was once an enigmatic path through the woods. The poem emphatises the variety and power of nature, but moreover the lose of something, this something would not return unless you really now how to find it

| Posted on 2007-09-23 | by a guest

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I believe the way through the woods descibes a past landscape: seventy years ago there was once an enigmatic path through the woods. The poem emphatises the variety and power of nature, but moreover the lose of something, this something would not return unless you really now how to find it

| Posted on 2007-09-23 | by a guest

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The way through the woods is a really terrifying poem with lots of intrest. For one the way the woods are hidden and now there is no path for the woods. Also, How oit explains at the end of the poem how when you step into the woods it is as if they knew. Finally when it says there was a lost road when there was never a road to the woods.The way through the woods is a really terrifying poem with lots of intrest. For one the way the woods are hidden and now there is no path for the woods. Also, How oit explains at the end of the poem how when you step into the woods it is as if they knew. Finally when it says there was a lost road when there was never a road to the woods.

| Posted on 2006-05-25 | by Approved Guest

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The way through the woods is a poem that talks about a path that once existed in a particular area. and with this particular path, that has been shut down.. it has been replaced over the years with the beauty of nature and the effects of the weather. so the particular path is hidden by trees. so as an individul presently walking in the wooded area, you would be unaware that a path existed. the only sign given to you that a path existed is the sound and the feel of the environment.

| Posted on 2006-05-18 | by Approved Guest

.: help :.

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The way through the woods is a really terrifying poem with lots of intrest. For one the way the woods are hidden and now there is no path for the woods. Also, How oit explains at the end of the poem how when you step into the woods it is as if they knew. Finally when it says there was a lost road when there was never a road to the woods.The way through the woods is a really terrifying poem with lots of intrest. For one the way the woods are hidden and now there is no path for the woods. Also, How oit explains at the end of the poem how when you step into the woods it is as if they knew. Finally when it says there was a lost road when there was never a road to the woods.

this is all good but...

im lost! whts it about? what is he tryin to portray? help me!

| Posted on 2006-05-02 | by Approved Guest

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oh right.. the way through the woods.
I never knew there woz one... ;0 anyone esle laughing at my lam-o joke?

*snort snort*

ok, to make this longer to be posted... um

this poem is lotsa larfs :D

this is such an emotionally evoking poem. I don't know why i did the above actually. I am a good student really, just in a weird mood.
I liked this poem because it is almost as if someone is strirring the memory of the way through the woods which is a relic obiously for someone.

I like this poem because it has captured the power of nature.

| Posted on 2006-02-06 | by Approved Guest

.: :.

The way through the woods is a really terrifying poem with lots of intrest. For one the way the woods are hidden and now there is no path for the woods. Also, How oit explains at the end of the poem how when you step into the woods it is as if they knew. Finally when it says there was a lost road when there was never a road to the woods.The way through the woods is a really terrifying poem with lots of intrest. For one the way the woods are hidden and now there is no path for the woods. Also, How oit explains at the end of the poem how when you step into the woods it is as if they knew. Finally when it says there was a lost road when there was never a road to the woods.

| Posted on 2005-11-26 | by Approved Guest

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The way through the woods is an extreamly brain teasing poem that gets your mind wandering i am working on it at school and i find it extreamly amazing how rudyard kipling has expressed all this in just 2 stanzas of the poem. i liked the second stanza the best as i got caught in reading i actually felt like i was there i liked the way he was showing and describibg what you could feel and you could hear the swish of her skirt i found it easy to get into.

| Posted on 2005-11-13 | by Approved Guest

.: the way through the woods :.

this poem is written at a time when most people are turning away from religion as there has been an increase in scientific activity. Kipling is using the example of a closed road to represent the closure of a time when everybody is religious and believes in God.the fact that kipling uses the line that says that nobody would know that the road had ever been there is showing that he believes that religion will no longer be part of society and it will just be something that has happened in the past. this is because science has become so advanced and there are so many theories such as how the world began that nobody knows what to believe anymore. thsi poem represents the fear that many people have over religion become increasingly less important and the hope that science may bring

| Posted on 2005-11-13 | by Approved Guest

.: :.

The way through the woods is a really terrifying poem with lots of intrest. For one the way the woods are hidden and now there is no path for the woods. Also, How oit explains at the end of the poem how when you step into the woods it is as if they knew. Finally when it says there was a lost road when there was never a road to the woods.The way through the woods is a really terrifying poem with lots of intrest. For one the way the woods are hidden and now there is no path for the woods. Also, How oit explains at the end of the poem how when you step into the woods it is as if they knew. Finally when it says there was a lost road when there was never a road to the woods.

| Posted on 2005-04-28 | by Approved Guest