An Essay On Man

Quinton Clark

Professor Cain

Int. Lit. 210.08

22 September 2005

Theme in An Essay on Man

An Essay on Man strives to put into perspective man's place in this universe, as well as God's dominion over man.

Man only knows what is possible for him to know. There is a God who has in His infinite wisdom created man and all else in all universes. He has allotted man a time and place in his creation for reasons unknown. In Epistle I, lines 17 -18, Pope writes: "Say first, of God above, or man. Below, what can we reason but from what we know?" (Pope 829). Here, Pope tries to explain how man's perspective is limited to his own mind. Through his five senses he reasons only what those senses tell him. Man knows his station in life, he can only fathom what lies beyond. Man knows of God. God however, is illustrated as knowing not only man but as knowing all.

Pope, in Epistle I, line 24, shows that the universe is not haphazardly composed. He shows that man that God has created not only this world, but all others, "see worlds on worlds compose one universe." These worlds are part of systems. These systems interact with other systems composed of other stars, and worlds. He questions whether man is foolish enough to believe that he is powerful enough to maintain and support all that is.

Man is not as great as we think ourselves to be. We are but a part of a whole. Epistle I, lines 53 - 56 shows man that we are not as productive as we think ourselves to be. Pope explains to his readers that though man accomplishes great tasks; these accomplishments are limited to our given abilities. These abilities are, not only inferior to God's, but they are also given to us by God. This God can in one movement produce the end for which a thousand or a million men labor. Pope illustrates this fact beautifully by comparing man to an Egyptian ox. The "ox" pulls forward inch-by-inch heeding the command of man because this is all the "ox" knows how to do.

God's dominion over man is shown in the concluding section of our reading, Epistle

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