30 pages • 1 hour read
Alexander PopeAn Essay on Man
Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1734A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Symbols & Motifs
The Chain of Being
The speaker uses the chain of being to help readers understand how society works. People’s relationships to each other as well as to the rest of the universe are conveyed by an infinite chain that includes both sentient living things and the rest of Nature. The speaker uses the phrase “plastic Nature” (Epistle 3, Line 9). They mean Nature as a sculptor or artist who molded the chain with the infinite wisdom of God, knowing where each being belongs. The speaker also mentions atoms and the forces of repulsion and attraction (Epistle 3, Lines 11-12). This illustrates the way that the chain of being works, from the smallest and simplest life forms to larger and more complex organisms, like humans. The chain of being exemplifies the sense of symmetry and balance that the speaker believes characterizes the universe. They state that God would not be cruel “to man alone” (Epistle 1, Line 186) and make him ill-suited for the world. Every single chain in the link is essential: one broken link will break the entire chain, regardless of the place it occupies in the hierarchy.
Nature
The beauty of the natural world reflects God’s reason. The speaker connects reason and beauty, stating that the harmony humans see in nature indicates a divine touch. The imagery in lines 271-273 of Epistle 1 describes the stars, the flower blossoms in a tree, the sun, and the cool breeze that all play an equally important role in serving God’s purposes and fulfilling his vision. The anaphora at the end of Epistle 1 highlights the unity of nature, the word “all” being repeated four times (Lines 289-294). However, Nature is not always pleasant. The speaker acknowledges that this is also a part of a grand design. Even Nature’s destruction exists for a purpose. The speaker personifies Nature: “[W]hen earthquakes swallow, or when tempests sweep,” (Epistle 1, Line 143), this is for a greater purpose that humans do not have the ability to understand.
Love
In the poem, passion is important to human happiness and shouldn’t be rejected completely in favor of reason. Though the poem prioritizes reason, the speaker still views love as an important aspect of being human, one that we experience for a purpose that serves God’s vision. The speaker criticizes the Greek Stoics, whose philosophy advocated equanimity above all else. They compare their lack of passion for life to a “frost” (Epistle 2, Line 102).
The speaker defines two types of love: Self-love and social love. They use imagery to capture the importance of both types of love and the balance that should be achieved between them. The speaker compares self-love to an activating force, a “meteor-like” fire that is “lawless” (Epistle 2, Line 65). This destructive image symbolizes the power of self-love unlimited by human reason.
However, an overabundance of reason with little self-love is also bad. It makes one passive, like a plant that only eats and dies. Self-love should be regulated. Social love, on the other hand, is a completely beneficial force, as it allows people to connect with one another. The speaker states that social love makes people feel happiness: “Happier is kinder, in whate’er degree/And height of bliss is height of charity” (Epistle 4, Lines 359-360). They also acknowledge the care that people have for animals. They say that a falcon will never have mercy on a dove, but humans can care for animal life: “Man cares for all: to birds he gives his woods/To beasts his pastures, and to fish his floods” (Epistle 3, Lines 57-58). Self-love and social love contribute to the formation of families, communities, and large societies.
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By Alexander Pope
