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.
Themes
An Orderly Universe
In “Essay on Man,” the speaker has an optimistic view of the universe: Order and purpose characterize everything that exists and happens. The speaker writes: “Order is heaven’s first law” (Epistle 4, Line 49). The speaker believes that the universe appears disorderly only because humans have a limited view. However, by trying to understand themselves, people hope to gain a greater understanding of the universe as well. The speaker uses a variety of images and metaphors to convey this.
The speaker compares the world to a garden (Epistle 1, Line 16). They allude to the Garden of Eden and, in another alliterative moment, reference the “forbidden fruit” (Epistle 1, Line 8), linking their perspective with that of God looking down upon Eden. Their descriptions emphasize the grand scope of their view and convey their large perspective on human nature and the world.
Life is a “mighty maze” (Epistle 1, Line 6). A maze captures the sense of confusion that people feel when they try to understand the universe and their place within it. The speaker says that there is a tendency to wonder, whenever one experiences pain, whether “God has plac’d him wrong” (Epistle 1, Line 50). The speaker argues that all humanity’s pains are for the singular goal of fulfilling God’s vision.
Nature operates harmoniously. The speaker expresses this in the image of a cup filled with champagne, comparing folly to the cup and joy to the "bubble" (Epistle 288). The speaker shows that even in loss, there is something gained. There is a balance. In addition, every living being is made to suit its purpose—“all enjoy the power which suits them best” (Epistle 3, Line 80). The speaker claims that God’s reason functions at all levels of existence and humans, despite their limitations and struggles, are another reflection of this logic.
Human Folly and God’s Wisdom
The poem explores the similarities and differences between God and humans. The speaker contrasts God’s infallible reason with the many errors that humans make.
Humans are below God in the hierarchy of nature. The speaker says that humans are “the glory, jest, and riddle of the world” (Epistle 2, Line 18), emphasizing the contradictions that humans struggle with when they try to understand their place in relation to God and Nature. The line juxtaposes opposites side by side—“glory” and “jest—to highlight the heights of human capability and the lows to which they can sink. Humans are above animals: They have reason and instinct, whereas animals have just instinct.
The speaker uses imagery—lambs being slaughtered by humans—to suggest how humans are above animals in reasoning and comprehension, but inferior to God. Humans are mortal just like animals; in this sense, death equalizes all life. The speaker compares death to “a great teacher” (Epistle 1, Line 92), one that reveals the answers to the questions humans had during life.
The placing of humanity above beasts and below God seems designed to create discomfort. However, the speaker believes that this serves a large purpose in God’s design. People commit errors or follies due to qualities the speaker derides, including pride, vanity, too much self-love, or a desire for fame and fortune. The speaker has sympathy for people: They are destined to make mistakes, and their reason allows them to see this. Human reason is a conduit for God’s divinity; it confers the ability to consider the consequences of actions, and to amend mistakes.
The speaker argues that it is not God who constructed Earth in a flawed manner. Instead, human reasoning is flawed. People cannot see the world’s harmony from God’s viewpoint. The speaker says that God is the “centre” of the universe (Epistle 1, Line 256), that humans occupy but a small part of the larger picture. The poem advocates for humility and prudence, for humanity’s place beneath God. Scientific progress and religion allow humanity to make progress and “soar with Plato” (Epistle 2, Line 23). However, because people believe they can “rule” over God’s “Eternal Wisdom” (Epistle 2, Line 29), they show their innate foolishness.
Morality and Happiness
The speaker calls pleasure-seeking “our greatest evil, or our greatest good” (Epistle 2, Line 92). The speaker acknowledges the importance of happiness, but advocates for a kind based on virtue and contentment, rather than maximum pleasure. The speaker links virtue and happiness, stating that happiness is not about riches or being satisfied, but having a clear conscience.
The speaker goes against conventional wisdom by arguing that happiness and goodness go hand in hand. They clarify that this does not mean that good people never experience misfortune, hunger, or sickness, nor does it mean that bad people always fail or suffer. They ask with sarcasm: “Is the reward of virtue bread?” (Epistle 4, Line 150). This rhetorical question conveys that is it incorrect to believe good people will be rewarded with prosperity on earth. The speaker says that God does not punish good people with unhappiness or woe; it is only the “weak, foolish man” (Epistle 4, Line 173) who believes that the highest good is the attainment of material rewards. The speaker argues that virtue is not meant to be “bought for gold” (Epistle 4, Line 187). They are suggesting that God sees human happiness in a very different light than humans do, that happiness has a deeper, spiritual meaning.
The speaker names several historical figures who achieved greatness in life but felt shame or guilt for immoral acts. Caesar and Cromwell exemplify the disconnect between human conceptions of greatness and true virtue. The speaker says that virtue is a quality that humans are not especially good at judging in their fellow humans, that only God can accurately deem who is virtuous and who is not. Of all the virtues, the speaker esteems honesty as the highest: “A wit’s a feather and a chief’s a rod/An honest man is the noblest work of God” (Epistle 4, Lines 247-248). The speaker is using metaphor: Wit will allow one to write well, the feather referring to the feather that people used to dip in ink to write with. Someone with leadership qualities will be able to command others, but God is not as impressed by these qualities as honesty. The speaker says that honesty is the greatest of all virtues, that virtue leads to true happiness. They argue that happiness is possible for all people, despite differences in talent, status, or wealth.
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By Alexander Pope
