Context
'Mending Wall' was written and published by Robert Frost in 1914 in an influential collection of poems titled
'North of Boston'. Throughout much of his career, a time when many Americans felt alienated by
increasingly innovative poetry, Frost was an unusually popular poet. This is due in part to the fact that, while
other writers tended to abandon the qualities of poetry of the previous century, Frost's work maintained
many of poetry's more traditional conventions. Frost famously insisted, for example, that poetry should be
written with formal meter, while many contemporary writers had already abandoned this convention. This
doesn't mean, however, that Frost's poetry was straightforward or traditional in content or perspective, as
'Mending Wall' illustrates.
Frost was an unusually popular poet throughout much of his career and even read one of his poems at the
presidential inauguration of John F. Kennedy.
Robert Frost
Overview
'Mending Wall' is loosely written in blank verse, meaning unrhymed lines consisting of five iambs in each
line. Iambs are metrical feet that have two syllables, one unstressed syllable followed by one stressed
syllable, as in 'belong' or 'along' or 'away'. As we'll see, in addition to creating an overall sound and feeling
to the poem, the blank verse form also contributes to the poem's meaning.
'Mending Wall' opens with a speaker explaining that his property is separated from his neighbor's by a stone
wall that is constantly being dismantled by 'something that doesn't love a wall'. Just what this something is
that disrupts the wall remains somewhat vague, but the speaker illustrates that it cannot be animals or
hunters. The task of mending the wall is difficult, and, because nothing in their respective properties poses a
threat to the other's, the speaker tries to convince his neighbor that there is no need to continue to fix the
wall.
The neighbor, however, is unconvinced by the speaker's reasoning and in response simply utters his father's
saying that 'good fences make good neighbors'. The speaker again presses his neighbor, pointing out that
rational people should know exactly what they are keeping in and keeping out when they build a wall, yet
again the neighbor resists the speaker's reasoning. The poem ultimately ends symbolically with the
neighbor's repetition of the adage that 'good fences make good neighbors
The main theme in Robert Frosts poem Mending Wall is a comparison between two lifestyles: traditions and
a common sense. The author gives us a picture, illustrating two neighbors, two distinct characters with
different ideas about what precisely means to be a good neighbor. So they build and repair the wall
between them each spring after destructions, made by nature and hunters. They do it every time, over and
over again, so the speaker puts the question if they need this wall at all. Frost is drawing habit and traditions
on one side and logics and reasoning on another. The speaker thinks that even nature itself does not want
this wall to exist, referring all the destructions they find each time to nature’s will to get rid of this wall as
nature “sends the frozen-ground-swell under it, / And spills the upper boulders in the sun.” Narrator is more
open and flexible, than his “old-fashioned” neighbor, and sees things in a different way. The speaker seems
to us as a friendly person, who would want much more communication and friendship with his neighbor,
than a separation and estrangement, caused by blind following the traditions without even thinking of if it
still takes place in their situation. As their property is all trees, so there is nothing that could cross one’s
board. The narrator sees a need for a wall “where there are cows,” or somewhere else, but not in their
households.
This essay is an example of a student's work
Disclaimer
This essay has been submitted to us by a student in order to help you with your studies. This is not an
example of the work written by our professional essay writers.
Essay Writing Service
Essay Marking Service
Example Essays
Who wrote this essay
Become a Freelance Writer
Place an Order
The meaning of the poem is how people literally and figuratively build walls and barriers between each
other. Frost shows that sometimes it is absolutely unnecessary to put so many efforts and work in building
of something, which is actually useless. And maybe not “Good fences make good neighbors,” but some
other important things as respect and kindness do. All neighbors’ work that they do each time, reminds us
of Sisyphean task, who had to push a boulder up the mountain and before reaching the very top of it, the
massive stone would roll back down, and Sisyphus had to start over. We clearly see almost the same
situation in the poem: the wall, which separates two neighbors, make them meet each year for mending it
after destructions, and they both do a great job in repairing it. What seems very interesting and subtle to
the readers is that the same wall that separates the neighbors unites them in the same time.
Poem Mending Wall does not have a rhyme and written in blank verse and has no stanzas, even though it
has a very interesting structure. The author’s intention is to give this poem a conversational form, making it
sound as natural speech. He is not using any fancy words here. Frost makes it on purpose, giving this poem a
look of a very common story, so each reader may refer it to his own life situation.
Mending the Wall has forty five lines of first-person narrative. Poem is written in an iambic pentameter
form and, mostly, there are ten syllables per line, but we also can find lines with eleven syllables. There are
ten of such lines in this poem. Even though it has no rhyme, the reader can notice that Robert Frost is using
a subtle internal rhyme and the assonance in some ending terms like “wall”, “hill”, “balls”, “well” and
others. Robert Frost demonstrates here his mastery in irony, metaphors and figurative language, and
symbolism.
The poem starts with “Something there is that doesn’t love a wall,” making readers to concentrate their
attention on the one of two arguments, taken place in the poem. This first argument belongs to the
narrator, and he sticks with it till the end of the poem. The first four lines tell us about how nature itself
doesn’t like a wall and sends disasters and push upper boulders down. So we see, that the wall itself is not
natural, that’s why the nature is against wall’s existence.
In the next seven lines (5-11) we see another reason, which destroys this wall: it is hunters. But the narrator
refers these destructions to them with understanding, because he sees and understands the reason of their
actions: “But they would have the rabbit out of hiding.” It is a subtle comparison between neighbors work
and work of hunters: neighbors mend and repair the wall each spring just to find it destroyed the next year,
and then they mend it again, what differs from hunters’ work, which destroys the wall, but meanwhile their
work is not pointless, because in the end they get a benefit of it. We see that narrator is being skeptical
towards keeping the wall.
Next nine lines (12-20) are very interesting, because despite of the fact that our narrator is not one of those
neighbors, who wants to keep the wall, surprisingly, he is the first one who let his neighbor know each
spring that it is a time to repair the wall. We see that he is more active than his neighbor, finding evidence in
line 12: “I let my neighbor know beyond the hill.” We also find here, that they are actually good neighbors,
because they both work on this wall very hard: “We wear our fingers rough with handling them” [stones].
Again Frost gives us a very subtle idea how this “separating” wall unites two neighbors and makes them
work together as a team, makes them trust each other and help on their communication.
In lines 21-31 Frost compares mending wall with an outdoor game. And here in line 23 we find the main
concept discussed in poem: “There where it is we do not need the wall,” which points, that narrator is not a
fan of the wall and gives us narrator’s strong argument once again. It is a dead point of the poem. The
author uses irony here, making narrator say to his neighbor that “My apple trees will never get across / And
eat the pines,” underlying, that two neighbors obviously don’t have a real reason to build and keep this wall.
But neighbor only says that “Good fences make good neighbors” (line 27), giving us another strong
argument of the second side (neighbor). We find that both of them are so unconvincing and loyal to their
ideas. Narrator wants to ask his neighbor “Why they [fences] make good neighbors,” as he looks beyond
this folk saying and doesn’t just blindly follow this tradition.
Find out more from UK Essays here:
http://www.ukessays.com/essays/english-literature/mending-wall-by-robert-frost-english-literature-essay.p
hp#ixzz3KUNA43LL
Mending Wall Analysis by Robert Frost
Mending Wall is one of the most popular poems of Robert Frost. The poem was included in the North of
Boston, the second volume of poetry that was published in the year 1914. This particular volume was
catered with dramatic monologue. As such, Mending Wall is a dramatic lyric of a young man, expressing his
views and attitude towards life. The other character is that of the speaker’s neighbor, an old farmer. The old
farmer had a reduced participation in the poem, but his views are important for the development of the
poem. Indeed the old man doesn’t even talk to us directly. His views are conveyed to us by the speaker.
This monologue may seem to be descriptive in the very first instant. However, the readers will soon be
puzzled while extrapolating the theme of the poem, cutting though the vague apprehension of arguments.
Mending Wall is particularly known for its thought content and thus readers should have a clear
comprehension of what the poem actually convey.
Theme of the Mending Wall:
The poem has a profound paradox.
In this narrative monologue the speaker challenges the liberal tradition- repairing or mending a wall when
actually there is no need of any wall.
The speaker who actually is the poet and his neighbor come together to repair the stone wall every spring
time. The speaker who is young, dynamic, vivacious has to confront his neighbor who is old, traditional with
deep rooted belief. The farmer doesn’t even care to justify his belief and quotes to his father’s saying “Good
fences make good neighbors.” On contrary, the speaker holds an opinion which is diametrically opposite.
“There where it is we do not need the wall
He is all pine and I am apple orchard..”
Even the speaker inquires the mindset of his neighbor who adhere’s to his father’s sayings.
“He moves in darkness as it seems to me.
Not of the woods only and the shade of trees…”
These expressive statements doesn’t really make the speaker ‘s view absolute and makes Frost draw a
conclusion in his favor. However, nature seems to be empathetic and denies the formation of barriers,
walls and boundaries. The very starting lines provides sufficient hint,
“…Something there is that doesn’t love a wall
That wants it down. I could say ‘Elves’ to him,
But it’s not elves exactly, and I’d rather
He said it for himself….”
Frost has kept the opening simple yet the thought content is well adjusted. The poem presents a clash of
ideas, but it is represented by playful seriousness. In Mending Wall, the poet actually doesn’t try to offer an
answer. Frost leads us to make a choice- It left for the readers to decide which is right, the speaker or his
neighbor. Should be move beyond the senses of practicality and break the barriers of discrimination and
geography which isolates us, or should be ponder over the traditional human psychology and maintain a
wall for mutual good (if any).
The poet is thoroughly able to convey his message and portrayed Natures’s persistent effort to
wall down.
tear the
Critical Analysis of Mending Wall
The poem, being rich in thought content has led to varied interpretation, and at different levels. The wall
symbolizes all man-made barriers (divisions between nation, social divisions like caste and classes,
economic, racial and religious barriers).
A deeper analysis of the poem unfurl two human sentiments. The young speaker who is dynamic, whimsical,
is determined with the spirit of revolt, which challenges the old fashion tradition. Where as the old man
signifies the spirit of restraint, which insists tradition should be upheld.
The poem is also noteworthy from an artistic level. Though the thought content is tangible and concrete,
this hasn’t let a loose in the style and the drawing of the character-sketch. The poem is a sparking gem! It
vividly portrays Frost’s philosophy of brotherhood, tolerance
fences make good neighbors.”
and his viewpoint of the assertion “Good