Discussion Questions for “Mending Wall” by Robert Frost
1. What is the “Something that doesn’t love a wall?” What does it do in the poem?
2. The speaker says that “Something” is not “the work of hunters” or “Elves.” What do
you think he means? How are hunters and elves different from the Something?
3. How is the event of repairing the stone wall/fence with his neighbor like a game?
4. The speaker says that the wall is not needed. Why not?
5. According to the speaker, why won’t his neighbor “go behind” (question the reasons
for) his father’s saying, “Good fences make good neighbors”?
6. The speaker in the poem uses the term “wall;” the neighbor uses the term “fence.”
What’s the difference between these two words?
7. What is Frost implying when he says that his neighbor “moves in darkness as it
seems to me / Not of woods only and the shade of trees”? What might light and
darkness represent (symbolize) in this poem?
8. How would you summarize (describe) the speaker’s attitude toward his neighbor?
9. Does the poem give any clues as to the relative ages of the speaker and the
neighbor? Support your opinion.
10. How does Frost order the ideas in this poem? What effect does this have on the
poem?
Journal topics
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Think about the neighbor’s saying in the poem, “Good fences make good
neighbors.” Do you find yourself agreeing more with the neighbor or with the
speaker? Did the poem make you re-think this saying? Explain your reaction.