In Mary Oliver’s poem, “The Journey,” she takes us on her journey to self-discovery. Throughout her voyage, she constantly runs into forces trying to hold her back. Ultimately, she chooses to ignore those roadblocks. She listens to her own voice in order to follow the path that fulfills her greatest desires and liberates her from the constraints of society. Oliver uses this poem to highlight the surrounding negativity of society, which she eventually chooses to ignore in order to continue on her journey through life. Oliver recognizes that in order to find her own voice in the world, she must first leave behind the voices of others telling her what to do, and listen only to her own voice. Her realization of this can be seen through her transition from struggling with the external influences, to liberating herself of others’ opinions and advice.

       At the beginning of this poem, Oliver starts on her journey of life with the pull of society’s negativity surrounding her. Similar to Oliver’s experience, we all start out in life innocent and naïve, often listening to the voices around us telling us what to do. Oliver writes, “One day you finally knew what you had to do and began, though the voices around you kept shouting their bad advice” (92). The voices Oliver is referring to symbolize the people and institutions in her life trying to hold her back from her full potential. These institutions can include education, religion, and government, all things that have strict guidelines and restrict her growth. She decides she needs to start on this journey down the path of life, but then immediately feels encapsulated by the things in her life that are trying to restrict her. The voices’ tempting pull entices Oliver, similar to how we are tempted to do things we know are wrong or against our character. Often times we give into those temptations and end up doing things we know are wrong. For example, we might treat a person disrespectfully simply because others are doing the same, or we might make the wrong decisions to follow a path that leads to failure. Oliver, however, acknowledges the restricting voices, yet she perseveres, pushing past the temptation in order to continue on her journey.

       As the poem continues, Oliver voyages on and in an attempt to persevere, she ignores the voices shouting at her. The experiences that Oliver goes through are common. They experiences that test our character, but it is in the times where we stay true to ourselves that our genuine character shines. Oliver’s character is tested along her journey, but instead of giving up and giving in to the voices trying to hold her back, she finds confidence in herself to push on. Oliver’s determination is shown when she writes, “‘Mend my life!’ each voice cried. But you didn’t stop. You knew what you had to do” (92). The voices selfishly ask Oliver for help, but she realizes that in order to stay on her path, she must tune them out, as they will only keep her where she is. Oliver’s determination allows her to surpass the negatives of society, including those trying to hold her back, so that she may continue on her journey.

Through the repetition of the word “voices” and the change in tone throughout the poem, we are able to see Oliver’s transition from giving into those voices, to letting them go. At the beginning of the poem, Oliver’s writing seems restrictive and negative. Oliver writes, “though the whole house began to tremble and you felt the old tug at your ankles…” (92). The trembling of the house gives us insight into the weary state that Oliver was in and the controlling nature of the influences around her. Throughout the rest of her poem, the word is repeated, letting us know that the voices consume her mind and do not allow her to move forward in her life. Eventually, toward the end of the poem, Oliver begins to recognize her own voice as the guiding light. She writes, “and there was a new voice which you slowly recognized as your own, that kept you company as you strode deeper and deeper into the world…” (92). With this new reorganization, the tone changes to a positive and freeing one. Once Oliver discovers that her voice is the one that should be guiding her, she is liberated of the constraints that were formerly holding her back and is able to find herself deeper within the world. The shift and tone from beginning to end and the repetition used allow us to recognize Oliver’s transition. She transitions from being consumed by others’ opinions to being free and in control of her own journey.

By examining Oliver’s journey through this poem, a symbol for her life, we are able to see her transition from a young, naïve child just starting her journey through life, to a mature young woman who is aware and confident. Her transition is evident in the way she responds to the exterior influences that continuously try to restrict her. At the start of her journey, she is hesitant on her path because of all of the voices trying to hold her back. She feels the pull of the negativity around her, yet she doesn’t let them stop her. She acknowledges that she hears the voices and that they made her hesitate, but she does not give in. Eventually, after she decides to ignore the voices and what everyone is trying to tell her to do, she hears her own voice shine through and recognizes it as the guide to  her journey and her fellow journeyer. Through listening to her own voice, she is able to continue down the path that she sets out for herself; the path that she chooses to be on. On her journey of life, Mary Oliver realizes that in order to live the life she intends for herself, she must listen only to what her own voice is telling her.
