Final answer:
The speaker in "Mending Wall" by Robert Frost grapples with the question of why fences make good neighbors and uses the annual repair of a stone wall as a metaphor for the maintenance of human relationships and societal barriers.
Step-by-step explanation:
The speaker in Robert Frost's poem "Mending Wall" is bothered by the question of why fences make good neighbors. This question emerges as the speaker reflects on the perennial task of repairing the wall between his property and his neighbor's.
The speaker is skeptical of the wall's necessity, noting that his apple trees will never get across and eat the pine cones. Despite this, his neighbor holds fast to the adage that good fences make good neighbors, which the speaker questions, particularly when there are no cows to be contained. The speaker muses on the broader implications of fence building, symbolizing the human propensity for erecting barriers and maintaining traditions without questioning their current relevance or the potential for openness and connection they preclude.
Frost uses the wall as a metaphor for the continual decay and maintenance in human relationships, which, like the physical wall, require attention and rebuilding. This metaphor extends to the larger questions of civilization and how societies use walls both to protect and to isolate themselves. Through this questioning, Frost challenges the reader to consider the underlying reasons and consequences of dividing lines, both literal and figurative, that we create in our lives and societies.