— A series of essays on "Mending Wall" from the University of Illinois. 3And spills the upper boulders in the sun; 4And makes gaps even two can pass abreast. He moves in darkness as it seems to me – If I could put a notion in his head: ‘Why do they make good neighbors? Lines 36 – 41: Tension becomes apparent as soon as the line Good fences make good neighbors appears in line 27, for it is this reply that sparks the speaker's need to know why a wall (a fence) can make somebody good. He became interested in reading and writing poetry during his high school years there, and eventually enrolled at Dartmouth College and later at Harvard University in Boston, though he never earned a formal college degree. As a poet, words are used to build up something solid and hopefully enduring whilst at the same time a poet needs to break down walls that are no longer needed and are in fact obstacles to progress. That sends the frozen-ground-swell under it,  The poem is set in rural New England, where Frost lived at the time—and takes its impetus from the rhythms and rituals of life there. He moves in darkness as it seems to me, Lines 25 – 29: Lines 12 – 15: 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. In these lines, the poet suggests that his neighbor has some kind of kinship with darkness, but not just the darkness that is caused by the shade of trees in the forest. We have to use a spell to make them balance: Bringing a stone grasped firmly by the top  The poem consists of 46 lines in total. To each the boulders that have fallen to each. Essays on "Mending Wall" 17 And some are loaves and some so nearly balls. I could say "Elves" to him, 37But it's not elves exactly, and I'd rather, 38He said it for himself. But here there are no cows. Robert Frost was born on 26th March 1874, in San Francisco After the death of his father from tuberculosis when Frost was eleven years old, he moved with his mother and sister to Lawrence, Massachusetts. This poem narrates the story of a stone wall that is constructed between two properties of two neighbors in the countryside. Robert Frost Reads "Mending Wall" The speaker taunts and teases but it's more an internal mind game - there is no real, open dialogue or debate about the necessity of a wall. 12 I let my neighbour know beyond the hill; 13 And on a day we meet to walk the line. 9To please the yelping dogs. 27He only says, "Good fences make good neighbours. And set the wall between us once again. 18We have to use a spell to make them balance: 19"Stay where you are until our backs are turned!". — The critic Sadie Stein discusses "Mending Wall" for the Paris Review. Where they have left not one stone on a stone. When a wall is built, something is walled in and something is walled out. "We wear our fingers rough with handling them.Oh, just another kind of out-door game,One on a side. Frost uses blank verse for the form of the poem. Frost’s poetry is principally associated with the life and landscape of New England and he was a poet of traditional verse forms and metrics. “Mending Wall” is one of his most well-known and well-appreciated poems. Bringing a stone grasped firmly by the top And eat the cones under his pines, I tell him. It seems like play rather than work because the wall is wholly unnecessary since the two farmers grow a different kind of plants. — A group of scholars and poets debate Frost's "Mending Wall" at the Kelly Writers' House at the University of Pennsylvania. To each the boulders that have fallen to each. I let my neighbor know beyond the hill;  Where there are cows? Lines 42 – 46: There is the talk of rebuilding the wall as well. (read the full definition & explanation with examples). Detailed explanations, analysis, and citation info for every important quote on LitCharts. 7Where they have left not one stone on a stone. But here there are no cows. It seems like play rather than work because the wall is wholly unnecessary since the two farmers grow a different kind of plants. But here there are no cows. However, he is anything but merely a regional poet. And some are loaves and some so nearly balls. He said it for himself. In these lines, the poet says that he and his neighbor each take it upon themselves to restore the boulders that have fallen on his side of the hill. Little wonder President Kennedy used Frost's lines when speaking at the Berlin Wall in the 1960s. Lines 5 – 11: We have to use a spell to make them balance: ‘Stay where you are until our backs are turned!’. That wants it down.’ I could say ‘Elves’ to him,  I could say "Elves" to him,But it's not elves exactly, and I'd ratherHe said it for himself. They tempt the mind and please the voice. It becomes easier to offend someone so it's best to know beforehand just exactly why a wall needs to be constructed. But they would have the rabbit out of hiding, Struggling with distance learning? There where it is we do not need the wall: