The low-frequency Raman study of the chain-straightening process during stress relaxation in melt-crystallized polyethylene with molecular weight 10 5 is presented. The application of tensile stress to low-and mid-drawn films causes the formation of ''short'' (as compared with crystal cores) straight-chain-segments (SCS). During the subsequent stress relaxation, while keeping the strain constant, the amount of SCS in the l ¼ 7 sample (l is the draw ratio) gradually increases, while in the l ¼ 22 sample, a fraction of ''short'' SCS diminishes to zero within 3 days. This difference in the behavior of the low-and mid-drawn samples was ascribed to the difference in the contribution of the chain-breaking process. In the ultimately drawn sample (l ¼ 31), the length of the newly formed SCS is close to the crystal size, and they are situated, mainly, in the axially ordered interfibrillar phase. The formation of taut-tie molecules was not observed.