Alexander Pope
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In the first epistle of An Essay on Man, Alexander Pope presents a secularized and objective perspective of humanity and nature, which is freed from the bias of specific religions or supernatural beliefs (Kallich 3; Mack 525). According to Pope's image of the universe, God has created a harmonious world consisting of different components, of which man is only a part. Therefore, in God's "great chain" (Pope 1.33), man only occupies a "rank" in the structure (Pope 2.48). Throughout the epistle, Pope highlights the pride of men who aspire to be angels (Pope 4.126) and the ultimately to play the role of "God of God" (Pope 4.122). Through his egocentric perspective of the world, man believes that the world is created only to satisfy his own needs and desires (Pope 5.131-40). However, according to Pope, in reality, God's actions serve a larger purpose that extends beyond the needs and desires of humanity; rather, He ensures the ultimate well-being of all the creatures and entities of the universe (Pope 9.267-80)(Kallich 8). Pope points out that because man possesses a limited perception of the world, he considers tempests and earthquakes to be tragedies. However, in the overall scheme of the universe, they have occurred for a good reason (Pope 5.143-6)(Kallich 10; Cameron 332). Ultimately, man is "as perfect as he ought" to be (Pope 2.70) and placed in a perfect position "in a certain sphere" (Pope 2.73)(Kallich 15). The recurrent word "submit" (Pope 5.164; 10.285) in this epistle
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ovide a structural unity to the poem. One of these motifs is the image of the cosmic circles (Kallich 46). This image occurs immediately within the first few lines of the poem when Pope highlights the universe where "other planets circle other suns" and systems run into other systems (Pope 1.25-6). Following this astrological picture, Pope presents the reader with an image of the cosmic frame with "bearings and the ties," forging "strong connexions, nice dependencies" (Pope 1.29-30). Towards the end of Epistle I, the "ethereal frame" is mentioned again in reference to the universe (Pope 9.270).
Another structural principle that binds the poem tightly is the technique of antithesis. Antithesis can enable the poet to deliver his intent powerfully with sharp and concise lines (Kallich 73). The central antithesis in this poem is the opposition between God and Man (ąof God above, or Man below)(Pope 1.17), along with their corresponding images. God is representative of the Whole, while Man is related only to the Part (Kallich 74). These relationships recur throughout epistle 1: "ą can a part contain the whole?" (Pope 1.32) and "'Tis but a part we see, and not a whole" (Pope 2.60). Furthermore, Man's inferiority is also contrasted with
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Approximate Word count = 2062
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page)
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