Throughout the years, most people have lacked a mindset of individuality because of the constant turmoil of distractions. The common individual has been in constant turmoil with the mental aspect of finding oneself and how to accomplish this. Mary Oliver, in her poem, “The Journey,” uses diction that makes the reader feel involved and chaotic imagery to show that in order to become an individual, one must overcome the obstacles of being lost that the outside voices cause in the world and suffer the hardships that life brings. 

For an individual to achieve true selfhood, one major obstacle he or she must overcome is the ability to block out the voices from society. Oliver states that the sounds of voices that “kept shouting” (4) caused the narrator to “tremble” (7) from confusion due to the noise around him or her. Shortly after this the narrator begins to experience multiple voices screaming “Mend my life!” (10) and has to constantly ignore the “melancholy” (17) that surrounds the subject of the poem. “Mend my life!” is evidence from the text showing the narrator being harassed by the outside voices and “melancholy” exemplifies the effects on the reader internally to show how the narrator must overcome the obstacles to become a true individual.  The true meaning behind the idea of an individual becoming his or her own self is shown with the narrator having to move past the constant turbulence of society’s outside voices. By line 12 in the poem, the narrator is nowhere near being an individual, so he or she is still pushing past the outside voices. 

Later in the poem, the narrator continues to exemplify discomfort and continues to encounter outside voices when he or she feels a “tug on….” the ankles (8). The author uses “you” and “your” to engage the reader and make them feel as if he or she is in the position of the narrator. Oliver uses this to be instructive to show the reader how he or she can achieve individuality. Along with the tug of the narrator’s ankles, he or she begins to feel how the “wind pried/ with its stiff fingers” (14-15). Again, the author uses “you” to exemplify the interpretation of the wind trying to tug on the reader. The author also personifies the wind in order to show the outside environment as an opposing character in individuals’ lives. As the narrator is being tugged on by his or her ankles and pried upon by the wind’s stiff fingers and influenced by the outside voices, the most obvious interpretation is how powerful people’s opinions can be on someone’s individuality. The examples in lines 8-9 and 14-15 specifically expose how physical voices can affect an individual’s mind. Most characteristics are integrated into people’s mindset as they mature. For example, if people are raised on a farm with farmers, they are most likely going to know more about farm animals and have similar interests as other farmers. Instinctively, most people would come to believe that it’s fine to be like others because that’s just where and how they were raised, but Mary Oliver opposes that concept. Oliver shows that the outside voices around a person distract and divert them from finding his or her true individuality.

Just as life’s hardships are thrown at individuals who are forced to deal with them, the narrator must deal with the outside voices. The narrator explains how he or she has to handle “the road full of fallen/ branches and stones” (21-22) in order to stride “deeper and deeper/ into the world” (31-32). The author uses “you” and “your” again to make the reader feel as if he or she is in the position of the narrator and is having to deal with becoming an individual. Oliver also uses repetitive commas in these lines to let the reader follow the poem continuously. The line integrity allows the reader to read each line as if it were its own line. This detail allows the reader to follow the poem as an instructive list of the process in becoming an individual. Along the lines of handling the hardships of others, the narrator then has to abandon the idea of selflessness and realize that, in order to become a true individual, he or she has “to save/ the only life” he or she can, which is oneself (36-37). Again, the poem demonstrates that in order for someone to firmly grasp the idea of individuality by stating how he or she must blow away the stressful hardships and criticism that are presented on an everyday basis. The narrator then begins to use the word “determination” for the subject of the poem to follow when feeling in doubt down the road of selfhood. Doubt is accompanied by regret and low self-esteem, two qualities that most people, including Mary Oliver, strive to eliminate throughout their lives. Although the concept of throwing out this mindset may seem easy on paper, the concept of ignoring all feelings influenced by society is a tough challenge. Mary Oliver wholeheartedly believes that the obstacle of ignoring the hardship is difficult, but she encourages the audience to accept the challenge. Near the end of the poem, the narrator begins to realize how, through all obstacles, he or she is “slowly” recognizing his or her own voice (28). The author uses this mindset and “you” to make the reader feel as if he or she is in a position to become his or her own individual. Mary Oliver influences the reader to have determination to accomplish the transformation of becoming oneself.  

Mary Oliver pushes this idea of overcoming the hardships of life to accomplish individuality.  Most people that read this poem begin to realize that the road to becoming an individual is long and tedious, making them lose interest in even making an attempt. Despite most people giving up, strong individuals ignore the troubles that may come, and are determined to reach their destination. These strong individuals exemplify that through hard work and determination, any goal or mindset can be achieved.  Oliver is presenting the idea that the trail to individuality may be long, challenging, and gruesome, but the outcome is truly promising. As an individual passes through the hardship, “the stars begin to burn/through the sheets of clouds,” meaning that there is always a light at the end of the tunnel (25-26). The author uses this to show the reader that once they move past the fallen branches and stones and the tug on the ankles, they can finally accomplish true individuality. 

In “The Journey,” the author shows through second-person diction relating to the reader and through turbulent imagery that the true journey of becoming an individual can only be reached after encountering the troubles of life and the never-ending outside voices. The author shows that in life, an individual has to be able to experience anything thrown at him or her at any given moment. One major obstacle of becoming an individual is the ability to navigate through other opinions in the world. Mary Oliver shows the audience that the task of becoming an individual may be tedious, but it is worth it. The idea of individualism in today’s world may seem like an undertaking that many people choose to ignore, but “The Journey” offers a better outlook on how it can be done. 