Erben’s ballad Zahoř’s Bed functionalises the high-frequency Romantic motif of the road and being on the road. The pilgrim faces predestination that comes as a result of family ties and line of descent. Moving along the East-West axis and the determined quest for atonement define free will and self-awareness aspiration as key factors in constituting identity. The father–son relationship is alternatively developed in the monk–outlaw or clergyman–novice (student) binaries.