
The transition to adulthood can be trying when surrounded by various outside opinions. One’s own opinion can even get lost in the midst of all the stress of moving to the next stage in life. The poem The Journey, by Mary Oliver, signifies one’s journey to adulthood. The author uses the symbol of voices to explain the molding of character of an individual through their decision to follow their dreams. Through the journey of pursuing their dream, the individual molds themselves into a mature adult due to all the hurdles the individual must face to achieve their goal. The Journey demonstrates one’s adventure to adulthood by using the repetition of the symbol of voices to show the maturing of the character. 

The diction chosen by Oliver gives the poem a sense of negativity. According to Oliver, voices “kept shouting their bad advice,” which make most individuals uneasy (92; lines 4-5).  For most, it is difficult to listen or concentrate when a person is shouting at them. When someone gives advice, the receiver wants to listen in order to use that advice, but shouting would cause the advice to not get processed. Mary Oliver describes that feeling as “though the whole house began to tremble (92; lines 6-7).” The image portrayed during the quote is describing an earthquake since the entire house is trembling. Furthermore, the trembling can be connected to the feeling of anxiety or fear. During an earthquake, houses can shake so bad that they collapse. The symbol of the house in the poem signifies the characters safety and support system. During this scene, the house was shaking so bad that it could collapse on the character, and his/her world would be turned upside down. This is how the character feels when the house is shaking, and all he/ she ever knew as safe, was becoming unsafe.  Although the character is aware of the cruel voices around him/herself, the character is not listening and processing the “advice” being given, and therefore unable to decipher if the voices are genuine. 

When an individual is being shouted at, all they can think about is what they did wrong, and the guilt they feel for angering others. “The voices” crying “Mend my life” symbolize the guilt an individual feels when trying to pursue their own dreams (Oliver 92; line 10).  The use of the word “mend” suggests that “the voices” needed help, as if they were in danger or injured. This also corresponds to the image of the house in the earthquake crashing, when an individual could be stuck under the rubble crying for help. As the character begins to walk away from “the voices”, “the voices” want the character to come back and help them, ultimately preventing the character from moving forward down his/her path. The character is conflicted between helping the voices who are crying to be fixed or to walk away and feel the guilt of not helping what could be a dying person or persons. When pursuing a new life, one would seek for advice and support from others around them. If the people around them do not support their goals, the individual may feel trapped between not having support and being happy. Especially when that lack of support is coming from people who were thought to care about the individual, such as family. Then the individual feels guilty for not living up to the expectations set for him/her. 

When the symbol of “the voices” repeats for a third time, the character begins to understand the cry of the voices. The cry for mercy was not meaningful enough and “their melancholy was terrible (Oliver 92; lines 17-18).” Once “the voices” stopped the shouting, the character was able to listen. When people are crying, especially for help, more people are inclined to listen and present themselves for help. The character starts to process what was being said by “the voices”, and realizes the chaos. The character is not fooled by the voices fake cries and tears which is why they are described as terrible. He/she hears the phoniness in the voices, and realizes they are unreliable. Once the character took the time to listen to “the voices”, rather than hear “the voices”, he could see the truth.  The character starts to feel more confident in him or herself and their decisions to pursue a life that's different than their own.

Only a mature person could walk away unharmed by societal pressures, but it shows the mental strength of the individual. As the confidence builds and the vulnerability subsides, “you left the voices behind” and began a unique journey (Oliver 92; line 24). “The voices” being left behind symbolize the character's decision to leave the past behind, and move on to their own journey. The judgments and pressures of society diminish when the individual is focused on their own dream, and gain the confidence to leave enemies behind.

As the character begins to follow their own road, the character confronts a roadblock. The character describes “the road full of branches and stones (Oliver 92; line 21-22),” which supports the image of the earthquake. If the character has already fled the area of impact, the surrounding will still have some effects of the earthquake, hence the fallen branches and stone that could have blown away from their home. In addition, the branches and stones are a reference to the well-known line “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,” by Mrs.George Cupples in the book Tappy's Chicks: and Other Links Between Nature and Human Nature, by Mrs. George Cupples (78). This connection signifies that the branches and stones are words from “the voices” that stuck with the character, and are affecting his/her ability to move on. Although the words are affecting the progression of the journey forward, the character refuses to move back and “little by little, as you left their voices behind, the stars began to burn through the sheets of the clouds (Oliver 92; line 23-26). When the character realizes that the hurtful words of “the voices” were not in fact hurting him/her, the character experiences a vital transition. The burning stars symbolize a rebirth and the dull star begins to shine bright. When the character left the voices behind, the character was no longer feeling the guilt or getting put down by voices around her. The character now experiences life in a new light. Similarly, the image of the stars beginning to shine “through the sheets of clouds” also signifies the new light (Oliver 92; line 26). The line is imagined as the sun, a star, shining through the clouds that once blocked the light from the characters life. Now the characters own light is brighter than the gloomy clouds that once surrounded him/her, signifying the rebirth and transition to the bliss of freedom. 

Now that the individual has chosen to take his/her own path, they are driven to achieve their goals on their own terms. Perhaps, support of others has dwindled, and the new journey has already begun.  Confidence helps the realization of, “a new voice which you slowly recognize as your own (Oliver 92; lines 27-29).” The voices here symbolize the final transition to maturity, pure independence. The only voice the individual hears, is the one they chose to hear, the voice that will motivate them to achieve their goals. Once the individual realizes that all they need is their own drive to achieve goals, the voice, “that kept you company,” is all they need to thrive (Oliver 92; line 30). The mature adult only depends on themself, especially when society does not support them. Only a true mature adult can walk away from the negative voices, and start their own journey.

The repetition of the symbol of “voices” signifies an individual’s transition to maturity. Throughout the poem the symbol of “the voices” repeats, and each time “the voices” are mentioned, it symbolizes the next step of transitioning. Mary Oliver uses the perception of voices to show the transition to maturity. She explains this by showing how people are pressured into conforming to the majority, and feel guilty if they don’t. . By people following their dreams, Oliver wants to convey that people find their own motivation in their struggle to follow their dreams.
