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Mending Wall

Thematic Development in “Mending Wall”

Throughout “Mending Wall” the existence of barriers partitions the elements between the cerebral and corporeal worlds of two isolated neighbors. The existence of obstruction, portrayed by the large enclosure separating the neighbors in this poem, is very common on the earth in which we live. The narrator and his neighbor differ in opinion regarding the rationale of maintaining such a wall, but nevertheless both convene each spring to restore the natural abrasions. In his poem “Mending Wall,” Robert Frost employs the use of symbolism, diction, and imagery to convey the thought that humans possess an impulse to become independent from one another, for they often object to change within their lives, fearing what they do not know and what has never been.

Through the context of the poem, symbolism is made apparent through the establishment of the wall and the natural surroundings that encompass it. The wall is an unsolicited agent through the eyes of nature, but it maintains its establishment as the barrier which two neighbors manage in order to isolate themselves from not only society but their inner selves as well. However, nature attempts to uproot the collection of stone by sending

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The rash assertion, “‘Good fences make good neighbors’” (l. The narrator asserts, “He is pine and I am apple orchard” (l. The one neighbor cannot “go behind his father’s saying” (l. Frost uses a copious array of language to depict the separation created by the wall and the natural desires of its removal. The neighbors keep the wall between them as they work together, but ironically they are working together to keep themselves apart, rectifying a boundary during the process. the “frozen-ground-swell under it” (l. Immediately, Frost forms an embodiment of separation with his verbal craftiness. Although the two characters are in fact neighbors, they are found “one on a side” (l. Visibly, discontent is present as tension exists on both sides of the wall with neither willing to adapt to the beliefs of the other, only furthering the distance between the two. 24), voicing naivety and contempt for such a need of severance. However, stubbornness and obstinacy interrupts this basic need, hindering progression and advancement within a society. Repeatedly, nature “spills the upper boulders in the sun” (l. 12), advancing the idea of distance and separation.
Approximate Word count = 836
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

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