“Mending Wall” is one of those poems that are not particularly difficult to decipher. Written by Robert Frost, the poem addresses a metaphorical wall that people build around themselves, excluding others from their lives. However, while the topic and theme of the poem are quite clear, its message might not be. At first glance, Frost warns his readers against building a wall that would isolate them from others: “Where there are cows? But here, there are no cows.” (Frost, n.d.). However, the specified interpretation appears to be far too straightforward and simplistic to represent the core of the poem. Moreover, Frost does not stalk the audience directly, nor does he make a statement about the barriers that people build to prevent others from entering into their lives: “Good fences make good neighbors” (Frost, n.d.). Therefore, the exact message of the poem could be seen as quite difficult to identify. Arguably, Frost encourages his readers to define the boundaries of their walls carefully, not to exclude the people that are essential to them.
The question of the poem’s purpose, or the lack thereof, brings one to the question of why writing a poem without one. Indeed, from a rational perspective, creating a poetic piece that does not have a distinctive goal seems pointless. However, the described assumption represents a general misunderstanding of the very concept of a poem. Unlike other literary genres, which are typically built to convey a rational thought, a poem usually represents an amalgamation of emotions and strives to evoke similar feelings in a reader. Similarly, Frost’s “Mending Wall” is expected to evoke an emotional response as opposed to introducing a rational solution. Therefore, the lack of purpose does not devalue the specified art piece.
Reference
Frost, R. (n.d.). Mending wall. Web.