Mending Wall-IOC

Set-up (1914)
1.Like many poems in North of Boston collection this poem takes the readers to
the delightful experience of the rural part of England.
2.Loosely contains autobiographical elements because, Robert Frost was himself a
farmer in New England.
Context
The basic context of the poem is the conflict of interests between two rural farmers
in England due to differing ideologies and the way they perceive and imagine
things in and around them. One, that is the Narrator is against the idea of a wall
because he possesses a different set of beliefs and values than what the neighbor
does who is in favor of the creation of the wall.
Overarching Themes.
COMPARISON BETWEEN TRADITION AND COMMON SENSE
THEME OF DESTRUCTION AND CREATION
THEME OF ISOLATION
Structure:
1.Written in blank verse with an unrhymed structure
2.Robert Frost himself says that, writing a poem in blank verse is like playing
tennis without a net and him having achieved this in a successful manner is an
appreciable achievement.
3.Iambic Pentameter with 5 iambs in each line.
Purpose:
Through this poem Robert Frost questions, the requirement of a wall through pure
logic and common sense and is mocking the effect of tradition on people’s
perception as, it a common practice to mend the wall during spring in England. He
is questioning the purpose of walls which prevent the cultivation of relationships,
in a figurative language the walls allude to the barriers between human beings such
as, race, class, color, differing ideologies etc.
Commentary:
1.THEME OF DESTRUCTION AND CREATION
“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.”
 Directly cuts to the chase in the first line by expressing that there is something amiss in
the world of walls which causes it to break apart.
 Starts off on a mysterious note, as, the narrator describes the mysterious force behind
the destruction of the wall, this could bring about another important theme of the
“Mysteriousness of Nature”. Also, as the nature which comprises of “sun”, “ice” which
leads to the destruction of the wall alludes to the fact that, even nature is against the barriers
created by human beings.
 In the second line the caesura in the middle of the line creates a dramatic pause which is
aids in imagining the ideas by the readers of the poem.
 The comma at the end of the line gives the readers to perceive and imagine the ideas the
poet is trying to convey, this is an appreciable quality of Robert Frost and is noticed in
many of his poems.
 The five iambs in each line gives a structural tone to the poem.
 As the poem is written in free verse we can observe a repetition of the word “And” in lines
3 and 4.
 The active verbs “send”, “spills” and “makes” shows that, the force ‘Something” is the
reason behind the destruction of the wall.
 The 4th line expresses the scale of the destruction caused due to the breakage of the wall
as, 2 people can pass through the broken wall.
 The phrase “spills the upper boulders” displays Frost’s ear for sound play. The words are
rich in rhyme, containing both assonance and consonance, not to mention the internal end
rhyme in “upper boulders. These dense sound effects make the language more tangible,
strengthening the image of boulders spilling down from the wall, this contributes to the
synesthesia which is another commendable quality of Robert Frost. This brings about the
theme of destruction in the poem.

“But at spring mending-time we find them there.”

 It is interesting that the poet brings about the tradition of “Spring-mending” which is a
common practice of mending the wall in New England during spring time.
 Also, spring is the time of regeneration as, new plants are regenerated and this marks the
beginning of a new life cycle this is a clear example of creation after destruction.
 The dash at the middle of the sentence gives a pause effect, this Is mainly employed in
many poems in order to give the reader a breath and keep the readers interested in the
poem.
 Through this the poet could also be trying to convey that, “Good can come out of evil”
as, despite the drawbacks of the wall it has advantages too as, both the narrator and the
neighbor collectively take the decision of mending the wall which brings them closer.

“The work of hunters in another thing:

I have come after them and made repair
Where they have not left one stone on a stone”
 Hunters are the people who destroy the wall due to their destructive nature.
 The semicolon expresses a change in idea or narration of an incident as, we can see in the
lines.
 Usage of the word “I” which is seen throughout the poem shows
 This line is also a clear example of irony because, the narrator who is against the idea of
the barrier which separates both of their farms which prevents the cultivation of their
relationship is the one who initiates the mending of the wall, as seen in the line above.
 The enjambment between Lines 6 and 7 gives a sense of continuation of the narrator’s
ideas and the capitalization of the alphabet ‘W’ could signify the frustration that the
narrator is going through due to erroneous doings of the hunters.

“I let my neighbor know beyond the hill;

And on a day we meet to walk the line
And set the wall between us once again.
We keep the wall between us as we go.”

 The first idea is a clear example of hyperbole, as the poet considers the wall as a hill, this
signifies of the degree to which the narrator considers the wall to be a barrier between
him and his neighbor, this alludes to how much the narrator despises the wall and
considers it to be a hindrance between both of them.
 The caesura signifies the steps that are taken after the narrator lets the neighbor know
about the breakage of the wall, this caesura contributes to the effective narration by the
poet and contributes to the meaning which is perceived by the readers.
 This is another example of clear irony because, the narrator is the one who initiates the
act of mending by letting his neighbor know about the destructed wall.
 The 4th line signifies that, the neighbor and the narrator do not have any communication
after the mending of the wall is carried out, this could allude to the selfishness of human
beings.