Bringing Down the Mending Wall

Traditions have always had a substantial effect on the lives of human beings, and always will. Robert Frost uses many unique poetic devices in his poem “Mending Wall,” as well as many shifts in the speaker’s tone to develop his thoughts on traditions. The three predominant tones used are those of questioning, irony and humor. The speaker questions many things in relation to the wall that is being rebuilt. For example, “Something there is …

…questions and finds flaws with the tradition of mending, and another who believes strongly in the tradition and is appreciative of the wall’s presence without really looking at the pointless effect. The contrasting neighbor’s thoughts can be related to society during Frost’s time of writing as well as during the modern society of today in that many people would believe in the speaker’s perception of traditions while others would support traditions.