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"Mending Wall" is a poem, published in 1914, by Robert Frost (1874–1963). The poem appeared in Frost's second collection of poetry, North of Boston.
Summary
While repairing the stone wall between his land and his neighbor's, the narrator considers why the wall was built, the interminable forces that break down such barriers, and questions what purpose it serves now.
- Something there is that doesn't love a wall,
- That sends the frozen-ground-swell under it,
- And spills the upper boulders in the sun;
- And makes gaps even two can pass abreast.
- …
- 'Why do they make good neighbors? Isn't it
- Where there are cows? But here there are no cows.
- Before I built a wall I'd ask to know
- What I was walling in or walling out,
- And to whom I was like to give offense.
- Something there is that doesn't love a wall,
- That wants it down.'
- …
The narrator doesn't understand why the wall is necessary, despite the neighbor's repetition that "Good fences make good neighbors", since it serves no immediate practical purpose.
The proverb "Good fences make good neighbors" is often used in a positive sense in general conversation. Frost's use, here, is ironic: it is clear that he has little sympathy for the sentiment.
An additional irony of the poem is that the only time the narrator sees his neighbor is when they go out to repair the wall that divides them.
External links
"Mending Wall"