The Symbolism Of Walls In Robert Frost's Mending Wall

Throughout time humans have constructed several different forms of walls. The Great Wall of China is the longest wall known to man. The wall was initially constructed to keep northern invaders out of china. Similar to the Great Wall of China all walls, barriers and enclosures, generally serve the same purpose, to protect and keep the unwanted out. In “Mending Wall” by Robert Frost, the wall he constantly refers to is a symbolic representation of emotional barriers that humans put up, even though they inherently want to be emotionally accessible. Emotional walls just like physical walls obstruct people from getting in and getting too close. Despite this, with time all walls will deteriorate and need to be rebuilt before intruders can get through. It’s often hard to

The narrator yearns, like all other humans for openness and emotional freedom and this is why he is questioning his neighbor about their unnecessary fence. Not all people are willing to open up of fear, “Good fences make good neighbors.” This is the neighbor’s only reply whenever the narrator inquires about the purpose of the fence. This is because he himself is not fully aware and is more comfortable regurgitating his father’s words “He will not go behind his father’s saying”. “Mending Wall” introduces the readers’ two very different people. The narrator is aware of his instinctual desire for openness, while the other neighbor is comforted by walls and will never forget his father’s words of wisdom. Despite this, both neighbors are similar in how they both continue to rebuild their fence, stone, by stone concealing their humanity once again and going back to their divided lives. Perhaps even though emotional freedom is inherent, humans are just too stubborn and afraid to live a life free of