good fences make good neighbors
Separation maintains harmony
A proverb meaning that clear boundaries prevent conflict between people.
The idea is that respecting limits—physical or otherwise—preserves relationships by preventing encroachment and resentment.
The saying gained fame through Robert Frost's poem "Mending Wall," though Frost's speaker questions rather than endorses it: He will not go behind his father's saying.
- communityCollective of connected people
- ownershipLegal right of possession
- privacyFreedom from observation
- personal spaceComfort distance around oneself
- boundaryLine marking a limit
individualism · mutual respect · coexistence · cooperation · autonomy · keep to yourself · harmony · limit · land · Robert Frost · New England · rural life · compromise · avoidance · demarcation · white picket fence · barrier · possession
good fences make good neighborsno man is an island
People need community
open-door policy · share and share alike · love thy neighbor · the more the merrier · open arms
good fences make good neighborstragedy of the commons
Shared resources ruined by self-interest
common ownership · communalism · collectivism · shared spaces · public access
good fences make good neighborsubuntu
Shared humanity ethic
commune · collectivism · kibbutz · sharing economy · commons
fences, neighbors, fenced, neighbour, neighbours, neighborhood, neighbourhood, neighboring, neighbouring