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Jessie German

TCP #2

Essay on Man by Alexander Pope

Alexander Pope’s Essay on Man was written in 1734. It has been considered “to be the masterpiece of his time for it discussed the psychology on humankind in detail.” (Nunez) It was written in couplets of iambic pentameter. It is said to have been a small piece of an even bigger one that Pope never did finish. (www.britannica.com) Pope wrote his essay in four pieces called epistles. The first addressed the connection(s) between humans and the universe. The second approaches humans as individuals. The third takes a look at “the relationship between the individual and society.” The fourth epistle looks at the individual’s potential for achieving happiness and questions this potential. (www.britannica.com) At this time-the Glorious Revolution, the Church of England was even viewed by some as a political institution. Both the Church and Parliament were run largely by the same class of people, the gentry and the aristocracy. (www.historyhome.co.uk) Much of the air created by these groups and their influence on events in this time affected the way in which Pope’s Essay on Man was accepted. Alexander Pope’s Essay on Man was a work of epistolary couplet genius that needs to be preserved in an effort to share with this generation and the next this genius, to encourage them to think of and for themselves, and for them to question the world’s connections just as he did. What is ISN’T always truth.

Pope created quite the controversial work in a time when the church ruled all. Members of the churches hierarchy were angered by Pope’s allegations of mankind’s ability to question the church. (Nunez) Alexander Pope wrote Essay on Man in a time of political and religious turmoil within England and the church. In 1688, Pope was born to two Catholic parents. The country at the time of his birth was one filled with and intense anti-Catholic point of view. It was because of this that the Pope family was forced to move due to a law that forbade Catholics from living anywhere within ten miles of London or Westminster. Catholic schools were even declared illegal. (www.people.umass.edu) This all came after Henry VII split from the Catholic church and began the Anglican Church of England of which he declared himself head.

During the time of the Glorious Revolution of 1688, it was a common belief that everything was directed by some sort of rational order. This included but was not limited to human behavior. Alexander Pope’s works, not just Essay on Man, showed these values like many of his colleagues. It was thought that “order and happiness in human affairs were attainable if excesses were eschewed and rational dictates heeded.” (www.infoplease.com) Pope “typified the spirit of the age of reason; his Essay on Man advanced an optimistic view of human beings as the enlightened inhabitants of an orderly and harmonious universe.” (Fiero) Journalists such as Joseph Addison and novelists such as Daniel Defoe showed the ability of the middle class to rise with their adventure within their works. (www.infoplease.com) The letter became a popular form of literature. Pope was quite accomplished in this. Samuel Richardson wrote novels in a form similar to that of Pope in that it was in epistolary form—sections like those in Essay on Man. The four epistles addressed the relationship between humans and the universe, humans as individuals, the relationship between the individual and society, and the potential of the individual for happiness. (www.britannica.com) One such work was Clarissa written in 1747. Despite being confident in the human ability to achieve greatness and happiness with focus, Pope was very critical of the weaknesses and eccentricities within an individual’s character. (www.infoplease.com) Pope’s use of couplets stood out amongst his peers some of which used prose. (Magill Book Reviews, www.enotes.com) He wrote his piece in “the Horatian sense that would offer a moral critique of human behavior.” (readkaplan.com)

At the time of its conception, Alexander Pope’s Essay on Man got mixed reviews from its readers. Colleagues/critiques such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Voltaire, and Immanuel Kant gave rave reviews of Pope’s work listing “his marvelous observation and sharp insight about humanity”. (Nunez) Despite the acclaim of his colleagues, Pope received an equal amount of criticism from members of the clergy who seemed to be challenging the central idea of the poem. The central idea of Pope’s work was believed to have a distinct philosophical basis/nature to it. These critical members of the clergy held the view that there was no philosophy behind it but only a poetic nature. Members of the church’s authority also held that he was not a good writer based on the fact that he drove people to question not only the world around them but also the existence of God. (Nunez) At the time of conception, members of the clergy challenged its philosophical value giving it more of a poetic value. Also, various members of the church found fault in Pope’s encouragement for individuals to question not only the world around them but also the very existence of God. While this is a topic for discussion that doesn’t sit at the forefront any longer, it is still the view point of many members of the church. It is also one deemed important enough by scholars that it is continuously mentioned it critical essays regarding Essay on Man.

Many scholars of today find Pope to be a literary genius. What has been dubbed his heroic use of couplets and his division of the work into epistles created a work of great literary value. It has been said that Pope’s “unity of structure and theme” attributed to the greatness of the work. (Magill Book Review) From a literary point of view, Pope’s Essay on Man has been held in a position of being better than even the finest prose. Some also hold that it is a work of great philosophical value due to Pope’s examination of the human foible and eccentricities.

With all honesty, I was quite confused by this work in the beginning and chastised myself for picking it. A big part of this was because of the language as well as the time period. However, upon further research I gained a much better understanding due largely to the fact that I was able to come across critical works and “translations” that-for lack of a better term-put it into laymen’s terms. I was rather taken by Pope’s hierarchy of life, the order of importance in which he placed beings of this world from God all the way down to mere insects. I, personally, have always questioned things. Most specifically the existence of God and the ability for some higher, unseen being to rule all. It has always been a little hard for me to swallow the entire concept of classical religion as it has been forced upon us. I found a decent amount of enjoyment in Pope’s work.

I was also a little intrigued by his idea that two principles, self-love and reason, more or less rule human nature and are often at odds with each other. (Masterplots) Also interesting to me was that Pope suggested that social and divine love tie all of creation together. I think that maybe what struck me by this was that he encouraged everyone to question and question all. However, he allots the concept of continuity to this tie.

Published in 1729, A Modest Proposal by Johnathan Swift was a satirical pamphlet of sorts with a sense of political motivation. Swift had reached his end trying to understand why the Irish people couldn’t seem to come up with a solution for the problems of famine and overpopulation. Clearly his solution to fatten and eat the children was far from being serious. (www.scholarsbank.uoregon.edu) However, he did something Pope was also able to accomplish. He made people think. He went to the drastic end. Pope on the other hand appealed to people’s intellectual and philosophical sides. However, they both addressed the psychology of mankind and human behavior. (Nunez)

Their writing styles, while of the same era, were different. Swift wrote Proposal as an appeal, as a pamphlet. It is much like reading a short story. While written in the language of the time with an intellectualism, its humorous and satirical air is hard to ignore. Pope wrote Essay as a long poem divided into four epistles-the equivalent of chapters in a book. It is quite obvious even to someone with little literary knowledge that Swift’s work presents the easier read.

Alexander Pope was brought up in a Catholic household at a time when it was illegal to be. He was a sickly child. Despite this rough beginning to his life, Alexander Pope was able to create a controversial work of art that managed to change literature for centuries to come. He challenged the church and those who followed its teachings. In a time when the church ruled all, he encouraged the masses to look within themselves and question the world around them. This is one of the biggest reasons I personally feel this writing should be preserved. I have always coveted writing, movies, art, etc that force me to think not only about the work itself but outside-to stretch my critical thinking abilities. This was a work created in a time when individualism wasn’t encouraged. Pope did and became a hero among men.

Another very important reason this work should be preserved is because of Pope’s literary genius. He was hailed as the master of the heroic couplet. He wrote Essay on Man in four epistles each of which forced mankind to question themselves, the world around them, and even the existence of God. Colleagues, with good standing and acclaim comparable to that of Pope, raved about his writing citing his observational abilities and insight into humanity.

Pope is hailed as having “typified the spirit of the age of reason; his Essay on Man advanced an optimistic view of human beings as the enlightened inhabitants of an orderly and harmonious universe.” (Fiero) The four epistles of his work encouraged readers to question the connections of humankind, the universe, and society. He wanted the world to enlighten themselves and become the individuals he felt them capable of being. This must be preserved and shared.

Works Cited

“introduction” Literary Criticism (1400-1800) Ed. Thomas J. Schoenberg. Vol 64. Gale

Cengage. 2001. enotes.com 24 Sep, 2013.

http://www.enotes.com/topics/an-essay-man/critical-essays#critical-essays-an-essay-man-alexander-pope-introduction

***This website produced an analysis and notes on the Essay of Man.

Yadav, Alok. "Historical Outline of Restoration and 18th Century British Literature."

George Mason University, n.d. Web. 22 Sept. 2013. http://www.mason.gmu.edu/~ayadav/historical%20outline/overview.htm

***This was a historical website used to establish a historical context for Pope’s work to understand not only Pope’s writing but also the reception of the work.

“Alexander Pope.” 2013. The Biography Channel website. Sept 23, 2013, 12:09

http://www.biography.com/people/alexander-pope_9444371

***This website was used to attain biographical information on the author. It is important to understand his background to aid in analysis.

Bloy, Dr. Marjorie. "The Church of England in the Eighteenth Century." A Web of English

History. Ed. Dr. Marjorie Bloy. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Sept. 2013. http://www.historyhome.co.uk/peel/religion/anglican.htm

***While a short piece of information, this provided a bit of insight into the Church’s reception of Essay o Man.

Nunez, Diana. "Critical Reception On Alexander Pope Essay On Man." Articlesbase. N.p., 15

Sept. 2010. Web. 23 Sept. 2013. .

***Ms. Nunez is a senior research writer. Her writing aided in understanding the reception of Pope’s writing from both his colleagues as well as the church and others.

"English literature: The Eighteenth Century | Infoplease.com."

© 2000–2013 Pearson Education, publishing as Infoplease.

29 Sep. 2013 .

***This was another website that aided in a comparison to other works of the time and to understanding how these works may or may not have affected the reception of Pope’s writing.

"A very brief biography off Alexander Pope." The Rape of Lock Homepage. University of

Massachusetts Amherst, n.d. Web. 26 Sept. 2013. http://people.umass.edu/sconstan/popebio.html

***This website gave biographical information on Pope that was used largely to understand how his Catholic upbringing in a time of turmoil between England and the Church affected his writing.

“An Essay on Man”. Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia

Britannica Inc., 2013. Web. 23 Sep. 2013

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/192915/An-Essay-on-Man

***The Britannica online encyclopedia gave a brief explanation of the four epistles and

their purposes. It also mentioned the order of the world according to the essay itself.

Pope, Alexander. "Essay on Man ." Pennsylvania State University. Ed. Jim Manis. Pennsylvania

State University, n.d. Web. 22 Sept. 2013. .

***This is a complete digital copy of Alexander Pope’s Essay on Man thus allowing constant convenient access to the essay for reading and reference.

http://readkaplan.com/writing-alexander-pope-essay-on-man-analysis

SparkNotes Editors. “SparkNote on A Modest Proposal.” SparkNotes.com. SparkNotes

LLC. n.d.. Web. 26 Sept. 2013

***This website provided an alternate source of information for comparison.

Swift, Johnathan. "A Modest Proposal." Renascence Editions. University of Oregon, n.d. Web.

30 Sept. 2013. .

***This is the second of two sites used to provide information on A Modest Proposal for a comparison.

Pope, Alexander. Masterplots. 4thth ed. N.p.: Salem Press, n.d. N. pag. Literary Reference

Center - Austin Community College. Ebscohost. Web. 29 Sept. 2013.

***This was used as a “translated” version of Essay in that it made it much easier to

comprehend as well as provided aid in critical analysis.

Brackett, Virginia. The Facts on File Companion to British Poetry, 17th and 18th Centuries.

N.p.: Facts on File, 2008. Bloom's Literature - Austin Community College. Bloom's Literature. Web. 30 Sept. 2013.

***This gave information to better understand Pope, his work, and provided a version of the writing that was easier to comprehend.