This particular poem by Robert Frost is certainly one of my favorites. Frost is an interesting writer in my opinion. His poetry seems to pull from reality and real, tangible items and ideas, nature mostly. While it is realistic, he gives the reader a sense of imaginary, lyrical grace,. Quite often, I've noticed, regardless of the topic. A great example of this would be one of his most famous poems, "The Road Not Taken".
Mending Wall
This poem regards, mostly, community vs. isolation. The speaker of the poem is walking along a stone wall with his neighbor, each on their respective sides. While the neighbor is all for keeping the partition where it stands, often saying "Good fences make good neighbors", the speaker, on the other hand, is more in favor of tearing down the fence. According to the speaker, since the fence serves no foreseeable purpose (there are no crops, animals, or the like to keep separated), therefore, there is no need for it. As they walk along the fence beneath the apple trees (on the speaker's side) and pine trees (on the neighbor's side), they fix the wall together.
This poem in a sense talks about the idea of community vs. isolation. While on the one hand, the speaker expresses his favor of community and the idea of no 'recognizable' barriers. I interpreted his view on the fence as being somewhat like mine. While I'm not quite speaking in regards to physical fences (I don't have any beef with fences), I do tend to think that the idea of fences can lead to the separation of people. Also, in my own opinion, I think the idea of fences can lead to isolation and closed mindedness. However, I can also see the point of the neighbor. "Good fences make good neighbors" can refer to people knowing the boundaries/personal space/property.
Overall, this was an interesting read and left me thinking about the chain-links in my world. (chain-links seeing as there are very few stone wall fences left.)
