After reading the article, Tearing Down the Berlin Wall: Finding Hope in Transition, and the
poem “Mending Wall,” respond to each of the following in an in-depth manner.
1. The poem begins, “Something there is that doesn’t love a wall.” What do you think the
“something” is in Frost’s poem? Is the something a force of nature, suggested by the “frozenground-swell” which breaks the wall? Is the something inside Frost, his neighbor, and all of
us?
2. What does the adage mean, “Good fences make good neighbors”? Do you agree? Can
you think of examples where this adage seems to hold true? How about examples that
contradict the saying?
3. At the end of the poem, why might Frost think it important that his neighbor “said it for
himself” and realized on his own that there was no need for them to be separated by a wall?
How important is it that both sides are ready for a wall – be it actual or literal – to come
down?
4. Can you identify a wall in your own family, community or society? It could be a physical
wall, like the Berlin Wall or the wall in Frost’s poem, made of concrete or metal, stones or
bricks. Or it might be a "wall" in a figurative sense, such as a breakdown in communication
between two groups of people. What are some of the effects that wall has had on your
community or society? What do you think might happen if the wall were to come down?