Mending Wall Essay, Research Paper

One way you can read Mending Wall by Robert Frost is that it is about a man who

rebuilds the wall seperating his property from his neighbour?s. This man, this

persona created by Gray doesn?t seem to believe there is a use for the wall as

?he [the neighbour] is all pine and I [the persona] am apple orchard? but

his neighbour believes that ?good fences make good neighbours?. The persona

tries to change his neighbour?s opinion by trying to ?put a notion in his

head? but his neighbour seems to just ignore him. So the persona gets annoyed

and thinks of him as an ?old-stone savage?. This is a very simple situation

which we can all relate to. But, if we read deeper into the poem we may find the

meanings that Robert Frost wanted us to see. Firstly, as we know that this

persona is against the building of walls where not necessary we find that it is

this persona that initiates the re-building of the wall ?I let my neighbour

know beyond the hill?. This gives the reader something to think about ? it

puts questions in the reader?s mind as to why he would initiate this if he

doesn?t think it?s necessary. One reason may be that this persona enjoys the

company of his neighbour ? but he gets frustrated with him. Maybe this persona

is a lonely person and any company is good company ? they ?meet to walk the

line?. Maybe through mending the wall between them they are mending their

friendship. These are all viable options and as we read further into the poem we

may understand to a greater extent why he does this. When the two start building

the wall the reader may notice that words such as ?we? and ?our? are

used giving the feeling of cooperation and companionship. The persona once calls

this task an ?outdoor game? which connotes feelings of enjoyment,

cooperation, competition. The fact that they walk ?the line? ?one on a

side? gives a visual image in the readers mind and may remind them of a tennis

game. I must emphasize that what is being told in the poem is from the

persona?s point of view ? not directly Frost?s ? so the reader must

beware and realise that it is possible that the persona is wrong in some of his

comments. ?There where it is we do not need the wall? ? this comment being

straight to the point makes the reader feel as if the persona is denying the

fact that it is the wall that brings the two men together to cooperate with one

another and to converse with one another (to a certain extent). The line

directly after this comment segregates the two from one another by contrasting

the type of people they are with each other. ?he is all pine and I am all

apple orchard? ? the fact that this statement comes directly after the

comment on the uselessness of the wall suggests that it is these kind of

attitudes that puts a barrier between people thus segregating them from one

another. Personification of the persona?s apple trees is used to explain to

the reader just how much this persona undermines his neighbour. ?my apple

trees will never get across, and eat the cones under his pines?. Even though

this comment is light-hearted and almost humorous it gives the reader the

impression that the persona thinks of himself as a more intelligent person than

his neighbour thus feeling that he needs to explain why the wall is unnecessary.