Life is an ongoing journey; to achieve and prosper in life, one must find their individuality first. In today’s day and age, to be able to fit in with society, people must follow the standards that have been set. By taking a step back from reality and questioning these standards, a person may then be able to view the world differently. Through the relationship between nature and the idea of finding one’s self, Mary Oliver’s The Journey shows what it takes to become a truly individual human in today’s society.

Mary Oliver’s message is evident even at the beginning of this poem. In the beginning lines, the speaker explains that people can listen to their inner voice yet still excel in the larger society.  Oliver uses natures many different aspects to illustrate how someone can truly belong. She opens the poem with, “One day you finally knew what you had to do, and begun, though the voices around you kept shouting their bad advice” (Oliver 92). This line is talking about the journey one will take to not be lost anymore, to find themselves. Throughout her poem, Oliver relates the hardship one goes through and links it back to the idea of nature. She uses the idea that nature is pulling people back, that society is stopping people, from finding their own voice. 

Oliver uses the structure of the poem to further communicate her message. By not breaking the poem up into stanzas, the reader feels “pulled” though the story, creating the feeling of urgency and the need to reach life’s journey. The feeling that the reader is rushed throughout the poem, due to the lack of stanza breaks, can be compared to the idea that life moves by quickly. Many people never realize how fast life goes until it is over. Oliver rushes the reader to the end of the poem because the end indicates the “journey” or the desired goal. The length of the lines adeptly illustrates the ups and downs of life. The longer lines discuss the good things and the shorter lines discuss the bad things in life. People never realize how fast life goes until it is over. Oliver rushes the reader to the end of the poem because the end indicates the “journey” or the desired goal.  For example, line five says, “their bad advice” (Oliver line 5). This line is rather short, consisting of three words, and has a bad connotation. On the other hand, line thirteen states, “you knew what you had to do” (Oliver line 13). This line contains seven words, and is far more positive than line five. These two quotes are just a few examples of how the shorter lines illustrate the downs and the longer lines represent the ups in the journey. Through not only the structure of the poem, but also the content in each line, the reader can see why Oliver put specific ideas in certain places, and relate those ideas make to the theme of the poem. 

Oliver conveys the notion that everyone has their challenges, but through nature everyone has the ability to overcome their obstacles. She writes, “But you didn’t stop. You knew what you had to do, though the wind pried with its stiff fingers at the very foundation, though their melancholy was terrible” (Oliver 92). This use of personification illustrates what can happen when one allows society to pry at their individuality. When she talks about how the wind pried with stiff fingers, she is exemplifying the tight grip that societal norms have on an individual’s thoughts and actions; if it is not stopped, people may unconsciously let society direct them. Near the end of the poem, Oliver uses repetition to make her point. She writes, “Determined to do the only thing you could do- determined to save the only life you could save” (Oliver 92). Although this is not direct repetition, the repeating of “determine to” and “the only” emphasize the idea that in the end people need to block out the bad voices and go after their goals. 

 As the poem continues, the use of imagery shows the reader that the journey is becoming more difficult. Oliver says, “It was already late enough, and a wild night, and the road full of fallen branches and stones” (Oliver 92). Along the journey to find individuality, there will be obstacles. The branches and stones are used to represent the problems and the hardship that will inevitably be encountered. But then Oliver writes, “But little by little…the stars began to burn through the sheets of clouds…” (Oliver 92), and the reader begins to see that at this point in the poem, the obstacles give way and they can begin to find their own voice. This is the turning point of the poem, the climax of the journey; conforming to society is not necessary to finding individuality. If people listen to their own voice and thoughts, not thoughts from others, and overcome the obstacles, they will figure out who they truly are. 

Once people begin to realize that they can speak for themselves, finding their true individuality will follow. In lines twenty-seven through thirty, Oliver states, “And there was a new voice which you slowly recognized as your own, that kept you company…” (Oliver 92). Here the reader is fully aware that all the suffering and confusion that took place before is gone. Those previously uncertain thoughts are diminished and the only voice remaining is their own true voice. Once this has occurred, the surrounding nature has suddenly become pleasant and smooth; the previous obstacles are gone. This transformation of nature corresponds to the fact that people have now overcome the difficulties of finding their voice and are now free to think, act, and be themselves.

In The Journey by Mary Oliver, the speaker leads the reader through the journey of finding themselves while being part of a society that would originally speak for them. In this poem, the journey begins with a stormy, wild night where the speaker is unsure of their unique voice. As the story continues, however, the path around begins to clear up, to get better, and the speaker begins to find themselves. Mary Oliver’s poem helps the reader learn to recognize their own voice, the voice that guides them through the journey of their life. This poem allows the reader to ignore society’s messages and listen to their inner voice in forging their journey through life. With the example of nature, the poem explains that even if it is hard, and the end might not be in sight, once people get through those obstacles, they journey is right there.  
