The narrator of "Mending Wall" is a man who enjoys the social benefits of maintaining a healthy community life, and he is the first to communicate his desire to interact socially. He is able to realize that the act of repairing the wall is futile, however, he is willing to "meet to walk the line / and set the wall" again. When trying to explain his position on maintaining the unnecessary barrier, the narrator learns of the neighbor's opposing view. Trachtenberg believes the neighbor's opinion of the wall "serves to define the sort of relationship he wishes to have with those who surround him: his slogan expresses an ideology of human separation. In the neighbor's eyes, apparently, all that makes a neighbor is the mere fact of owning an adjacent farm, hence what makes a good neighbor is his separateness" (Trachtenberg 5). The wall for the neighbor, serves as a boundary that shuts off social interaction (Barry 6). We are yet to examine whether of not this attitude is the desired or divergent.
Our narrator takes offense to the neighbor's wish to wall himself in and wall the community out. He finds the opportunity to connect with his fellow farmer worthwhile even if it means fixing the gaps in the wall. The narrator is able to step back from the situation and accept that the mending of the wall is an expression of community service. "For the narrator, then, the truth of the neighbor's slogan is in its dialectical opposite: in reality, it is good neighbors who make good fences" (Trachtenberg 7). The disagreement between characters in "Mending Wall" is realistic in that people hold differing beliefs concerning community and property. Similarly, the paradoxical nature found in many of life's activities can be traced to the differing opinions of the parties involved. The irony found in the title "Mending Wall" is evidence that Frost encourages meditation on this subject. With combined efforts, the two farmers are sharing together an activity that in turn will divide them (Trachtenberg 8).
