Question

Read this excerpt from robert frost's poem "mending wall": there where it is we do not need the wall: he is all pine and i am apple orchard. my apple trees will never get across and eat the cones under his pines, i tell him. he only says, "good fences make good neighbours." what effect does frost's use of figurative language have on the overall meaning of this excerpt?

a. frost uses personification to give the wall human qualities to show that the neighbor is being stubborn.
b. frost uses personification to give the apple tree animal-like qualities to show that the wall is necessary.
c. frost uses a metaphor to compare apple trees to pine trees to show that the neighbors feel differently about the wall.
d. frost uses a metaphor to compare apple trees to grazing animals in order to show that the wall is unnecessary.

Answer 1

Robert Frost's figurative language in the given excerpt from "Mending Wall" illustrates the unnecessary nature of a wall between neighbors, using metaphor to compare apple trees to animals, suggesting boundaries are often imposed without practical necessity.option d is the correct answer.

Step-by-step explanation:

Robert Frost's use of figurative language in the excerpt from "Mending Wall" serves to convey a deeper meaning about the nature of boundaries and relationships. When the speaker in the poem declares 'My apple trees will never get across and eat the cones under his pines,' this use of personification and the metaphor implies the unnecessary division imposed by the wall. Frost's neighbor insists that 'good fences make good neighbours,' reinforcing the idea of separation and containment without acknowledging a shared understanding or need.

Frost's works often reveal tensions between the individual's instinct for freedom and the barriers imposed by social norms. The apple trees and pine trees symbolize different personal territories and perspectives. The wall represents the physical and metaphorical barriers humans construct, which can be both divisive and protective.

The correct answer to the question about Frost's use of figurative language in the poem is option D. Frost uses a metaphor to compare apple trees to grazing animals to show the wall's superfluity. The absurdity of apple trees 'eating' pinecones humorously underlines the argument that there are no practical reasons for the wall, reflecting on the often unnecessary barriers we maintain in our relationships.