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<p style="text-align: center;" dir="LTR" align="LEFT"><a href="http://jeanatacc.com/2011/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/EssayOnMan.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-1919 aligncenter" title="EssayOnMan" src="http://jeanatacc.com/2011/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/EssayOnMan-188x300.jpg" alt="" width="188" height="300" /></a>http://www.english-e-corner.com/britishliterature/contents/Enlightenment2/EssayOnMan.jpg</p>
<p dir="LTR" align="CENTER">ALEXANDER POPES</p>
<p dir="LTR" align="CENTER">ESSAY ON MAN</p>
<p dir="LTR" align="LEFT"><span style="font-size: large;">Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 – 30 May 1744) was a poet in england during the 18th century. Pope is regarded as one of the brilliant minds of his time. He is most famously attributed with his work on early author Homer. Alexander is also famous for being the “third-most quoted writer behind Shakespeare and the poet Tennyson.” The works of Pope have out lasted the test of time, tho it is true that many people do not recall or identify the works of pope, everyone comes across them at one point. Although <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Essay of Man</span> was a masterpiece that came later in his life, Pope has always been a man of the written word. Whether it was his work on the translation of Homer, Popes <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Essay on Criticism</span>, his <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Twickenham and the Grotto</span>, or even his Editions of Shakespeare works Pope was a true visionary.</span></p>
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<p dir="LTR" align="LEFT">The <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Essay of Man</span> is a historic piece that could not be replaced if lost. That is why it must be preserved for all time for the people of the present to look back on as a ground breaking poem, but also for the people of the future to show them the ideas of ethics of humanity of people in the past. Popes <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Essay of Man</span> “is a philosophical poem, written in heroic couplets and published between 1732 and 1734. Pope intended this poem to be the centerpiece of a proposed system of ethics that was to be put forth in poetic form” (Nuttal,1). The poem is in a close resemblance to Milton’s <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Paradise Lost</span> in both of there ideas of God and Man. Pope “attempts to vindicate the ways of God and man” “it makes an assumption that man has fallen and must seek his own salvation”(Nuttal,2) while Milton attempts to “justify the ways of God to Man” (1.26) which dealt more with the fall of Satan and the temptation of Adam and Eve.</p>
<p dir="LTR" align="LEFT">The <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Essay of Man</span> consists of four epistles which presented his view of the universe, he says that “no matter how imperfect, complex, inscrutable and disturbing the Universe appears to be, it functions in a rational fashion according to the natural laws. The natural laws consider the Universe as a whole a perfect work of God”(Nuttle,1). To humans it appears to be evil and imperfect in many ways but to Pope it is due largely to the minds and the brain power of people and there comprehension of the un-known. Pope goes on to tell about the peoples place in his idea, he describes it as “Great Chain of Being” this being the  “middle stage between the angels and the beasts of the world. If we are able to accomplish this then we potentially could lead happy and virtuous lives” his belief that if people could understand his ideas of the difference between God and Man the people of the world could possible live better lives. As in that man is in the “stage between angels and beasts” Popes belief is that if man better understood they would no longer be living there life’s in the middle of angels and beast, man would be closer to the stage of the angels and no longer be stuck in the middle. The fact that this poet had these ideas and beliefs so long ago is a surprise to many, when people read The <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Essay of Man</span> they are astonished on how well thought out and how fascinating Popes ideas are. This to me is another reason this work should be preserves for all time. People of today and people of the future can look back on this work and learn from it, whether it be a new look on life, an new idea on religion, or just as a poetic masterpiece. Popes essay is one of the poetic pieces that has a deeper meaning, from starting of as a letter to  Lord Bolingbroke and was transformed into a religious/life outlook.</p>
<p dir="LTR" align="CENTER">WORK CITED</p>
<p dir="LTR" align="LEFT">Essay on Man-</p>
<p dir="LTR" align="LEFT">http://www.gutenberg.org/files/2428/2428-h/2428-h.htm</p>
<p dir="LTR" align="LEFT">Alexander Pope-</p>
<p dir="LTR" align="LEFT">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Pope#cite_note-Nuttal_1984-12</p>
<p dir="LTR" align="LEFT">Popes Essay</p>
<p dir="LTR" align="LEFT">- http://theotherpages.org/poems/pope-i.html</p>
<p dir="LTR" align="LEFT">An Essay on Man Poem-</p>
<p dir="LTR" align="LEFT">http://classiclit.about.com/od/essayonmanapope/a/aa_essayonman_e1.htm</p>