The Journey

In Oliver’s free verse poem “The Journey,” the speaker uses only the second person and is a reflection using past tense. The pronouns “I” and “my” do not appear; the speaker only uses the pronouns “you” and “your.” The first line, “One day you finally knew” (Line 1), emphasizes how the experience of the journey is not the speaker’s alone, but an experience that everyone can have. It starts with knowing the necessary actions, and beginning to act on that knowledge. Lines 1 through 3 have internal and end rhymes between the words knew and you, the latter appearing three times in the three lines. The end rhyme appears in Lines 1 and 3, with “knew” (Line 1) and “you” (Line 3). The word “you” internally rhymes with itself; you is a word embedded inside these lines, as well as ending a line. Oliver’s repetition and rhyme develop the theme of Following Internal Knowledge. The speaker asserts that every person, every “you,” has a voice worth listening to and their actions should reflect their self-knowledge.

In order to do this, the speaker asserts in Lines 3 through 5, you must shut out negative external influences.