The poem, The Journey, by Mary Oliver is about the journey one takes in order to become an individual in life. It describes the struggle of determination and perseverance. These two elements are key to success. This claim is supported, constantly, throughout the poem by elements such as diction, repetition and imagery. By analyzing word choice and word usage, it is clear that both emphasize and illustrate the importance of finding yourself and becoming your own success, not someone else’s.

From the initial start of the poem we can see the use of repetition and the importance it plays throughout the duration of the literature. The word “though” is repeated four times. This repetition expresses the importance of determination and continuing along your journey when things become tough. The line, “though the voices around you kept shouting their bad advice,” (line 3), expresses the importance of a clear mind and thinking positively. It is important to stay true to yourself; letting negativity get to you will only hold you back. The voices of others who cry for help will eventually be a setback. The line, “though their melancholy was terrible.” (line 17), describes the emotional stress one can encounter along their journey through life. There are always people in need of care, but the journey requires us to continue on our way despite “their melancholy” cries of help. There are a lot of decisions and obstacles one can face that can be overwhelming. As humans, we have a natural urge to help someone when they're in need, but at the same time, sometimes we need to care for ourselves too. The line, “though the old house began to tremble and you felt the old tug at your ankles. ‘mend my life!’ each voice cried.” (line 6), follows a similar meaning. It is the moral thing to help those in need but sometimes it is the right thing to put yourself first. Your own mental health and stability as well as your success is important as well. This poem is using repetition to tell us that it is okay to put ourselves first and to go after what we want because it is our journey. This journey is all about creating yourself.

The poem, The Journey, also enforce the idea of perseverance. We are constantly reminded throughout the duration of the poem that we are who we wish to become; others can and do not define us. Our journey is what we make it and the end result is what we want it to be. The line, “But you didn't stop. You knew what you had to do,” (line 12), illustrates the importance of your conscious. You, and only you, know what you have to do on your journey. Only you know what you want from life, no one can decide it for you. You have to motivate yourself to keep moving forward; it is no one else’s journey but yours. The line, “as you left their voices behind… there was a new voice, which you slowly recognized as your own,” (line 24), shows how blocking out the input from others allows you to focus on yourself and your own path. It is important to be in touch with yourself when becoming an individual in life. If you allow others to influence your journey, it will not be yours anymore. Your own voice is more important than anyone else’s.

The Journey uses a lot of imagery to engages us more as the reader. Mary Oliver is very descriptive as she writes. The line, “It was already late enough, and a wild night, and the road full of fallen branches and stones.” (line 19), illustrates that the journey, that is life, can be a long and bumpy road. As the poem goes on, we see the individual slowly becomes more and more their own person. The line, “But little by little, as you left their voices behind, the stars began to burn through the sheets of clouds,” (line 23), shows the subject stray away from the house and the voices and the stars start to shine through. They begin to follow their dreams as they embark on the journey of life. The farther along the path you enter the deeper you get into the world “determined to do the only thing you could do— determined to save the only life you could save.” (line 34). You are the only person in charge of your life and only you can decide your fate. The layout of the poem illustrates the journey in which someone takes throughout life. The imagery throughout allows us to see this clearly with the use of diction.

Word usage, along with diction, allows us to see this more clearly throughout the poem. Repetition allows for emphasis to prove the importance of a line or phrase as well as the significance. The Journey, by Mary Oliver, is about the path one takes to discover themselves and who they wish to become. It illustrates the journey one takes in order to become an individual in life. This is the major theme of the poem, staying true to yourself and your goals despite the negativity of others. Perseverance and determination are also key elements throughout this poem. We are constantly reminded to keep moving forward on the path to success. The obstacles encountered are just bumps in the road and they can’t distract you from the main goal.
