Roland’s quest is marred by alienation.  He does not have the “safe road”, or past, to rely on.  His inspiration to continue onward can be found solely within himself.  However, his total self-reliance creates in him a sense of alienation.  When he meets the miserable horse, he lacks all compassion for it.  He cannot empathize with the creature with whom he shares a similar circumstance; instead, Roland can only feel abhorrence for the horse:  “I never saw a brute I hated so….”  In the end, Roland succeeds through his individuality, yet, his road to success was a miserable one.  The fact that the poem ends with Roland continuing on indicates that Browning had believed the negative by-products of individual freedom are less consequential than the success of social progress.