'Mending Wall' by Robert Frost is a light-hearted poem that examines the ideas of barriers amongst people and the sense of protection that people can gain from them. "Something there is that doesn"t love a wall', (line 1) implies that someone, whether it is another human being or something else continues to knock the wall down. Imagery and personification is employed to make "something" appear animated and even human like. Living qualities have been offered to "something" through the use of words such as "love, sends, spills and makes gaps" demonstrates a vivid impression of the degradation of the wall. The line is used again later in the poem with the narrator being the "something" given that he does not love the wall and would rather that it was destroyed.
The topic of the poem is about two neighbours who differ over the need of a wall to divide their properties. Not only does the wall operate as a partition in dividing domains; it also works as a barrier in the neighbour's companionship, separating them. For the neighbour the wall is of immense importance and it offers a sense of safety and seclusion. He believes that although two people can still be pleasant to one another, some type of blockade is required to divide them and "wall in" the individual space and solitude. This is revealed through his recurring saying "good fences make good neighbours". The neighbour's property is a symbol of his privacy and the wall operates as a barrier against any disturbance.
Behind the straightforward idea of constructing walls there is a deeper metaphoric significance which reveals peoples feelings towards others. It reflects the common barriers that people use to provide a sense of individual security and reassurance in the belief that barriers are a source of protection which will make people less exposed to their fears. The narrator questions the need for barriers.
Imagery is used when the two men gather on terms of politeness and friendliness to construct a barrier between them out of tradition and habit. Yet the Earth schemes against them and makes their task difficult. The men thrust boulders back on top of the wall however the boulders fall back down once more. Still the neighbours persevere even though the narrator doesn't comprehend why the wall is required in spite of the neighbour's reiteration that "Good fences make good neighbours" since it provides no useful purpose. "Where there are cows" suggest that the narrator believes a wall would be better erected to keep cows in "but here there are no cows". By implying that "he is all pine and I am apple orchard" would suggest that the narrator believes that it is worthless to erect a wall solely to "wall in" their shrubs.
The two neighbours appear to enjoy building the wall; it brings them closer together and improves relations. Yet the narrator believes that his neighbour is like an aged man who is set in his ways "like an old stone savage." "Who moves in darkness" he is unlikely to alter his point of view on building the wall. A generally optimistic quality has been achieved throughout the poem. One of the main techniques utilised to accomplish this is an inclusion of dialogue. "Stay where you are until our backs are turned" and the metaphor "spring is mischief in me" show the neighbours in an amusing way which forms a cheerful atmosphere.
The structure of "Mending Wall" is a lengthy one stanza poem which contains a narrative-like style. Poetic technique such as imagery, irony and using the construction of a wall as a symbolic representation of barriers have been utilised to express these messages through a cheerful tone, and at the same time to expose a serious side of the poem.
