A Considerable Speck Poem Summary, Theme, Critical Analysis by Robert Frost
A Considerable Speck Summary
The poem of Robert Frost “A Considerable Speck” is a simple poem that does not deal with any serious themes directly. The situation of the poem is such that the writer happens to see a mite on a white sheet of paper on which he was writing. He observes the movement of that tiny microscopic creature and reflects back on the modern life of regimentation and leaves the mite there to act in its own way.
Through this he intended to show the display of his own mind when he encountered the speck. The mite here is said to be a speck. He felt that though tiny, it was considerable because that little mite made him think of its effect on his mind.
In this poem the poet says that he saw a speck. It would have been out of his sight, if it would not have appeared on a blank white sheet of paper. The white background of the paper made the speck visible to his eyes. It was the paper or the manuscript on which the poet was writing. When he saw the speck, he wished to stop it by a drop of ink from his pen.
But then something strange about the speck made him think over. He was comprehending as to what the speck was of. He thought that it was not a speck of dust that could have blown by his breathing. Then he saw that it was unmistakably a mite which was also a living creature like him. It had certain inclinations of its own as it was also living in its self-engrossed world. The poet took a pause and very gracefully waited for the mite to move.
The poet says that the mite paused, possibly it thought that the poet would do something to it. After the pause it suddenly raced again and came to a place where the poet had just written. We feel very surprised when we see how the poet says that even a little creature like the mite reacted and paused. It either tasted or smelt the ink which was probably wet on his manuscript. It showed its distaste and then again turned to fly away and escape. Then the poet says that it did nothing but used reason like the poet.
It had no desire to die so it ran with fear. Then again the poet describes the mite to be cunning. It crept and again hesitated. We find here that it had no intention to face death, therefore it ran down on the sheet of paper with terror and cunningness. Like this the mite came in the middle of the sheet or the speaker’s manuscript.
As it reached the middle of the sheet of paper it bent down, as if waiting for the judgement of the poet, possibly with the thought of accepting what the poet would do to it or accepting its own fate. Now we can see how the poet feels about it. The poet was not like the modem men who were swept away by the sense of purpose and selfishness.
So he didn’t want to kill the mite. The poet refrained from killing it not because he believed in “collectivistic regimenting love” but because he believed the mite to be an intelligent creature which should be given an opportunity to live. The microscopic item looked “considerable” to the poet. So he let it lie there as it was. The poet says that he was not so insensible as he also had a mind.
Having a mind himself, the poet recognized mind which he found it in any shape. Indeed he found it glad to find on any sheet of paper “the least display of mind.” He was glad that a small creature like the mite could rouse in the poet the display of mind. So here in this poem we find how Robert Frost intended to show the display of his mind when he encountered the speck.
A Considerable Speck About the Author Robert Frost
Robert Lee Frost was born on March 26, 1874 in San Francisco. Frost’s father was an editor of San Francisco evening BULLETINGAfter his father’s death, his family moved in Lawrence. He graduated from the Lawrence High School in the year 1892.
After that he went to the Darmouth College. He was a celebrated American poet. His work was initially published in England before it was published in the United States. He had a great mastery of American colloquial speech and made realistic depictions of the early rural life.
His great work in poetry mostly included settings from the rural life in New England in early 20th century. He sold his first poem in the year 1894, MY BUTTERFLY: AN ELEGY which appeared in the New York Independent in November 1894 edition. In 1915 he had his first poetry book,” A Boy’s Will” published.
Some famous and best poems of Robert Frost are Mending Wall, Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening, Birches, The Road Not Taken, Fire And Ice etc Robert Frost was nominated for the Nobel Prize in literature 31 times. He won Pulitzer Prizes many times and Bollingen Prize in 1963. He died in January 29, 1963 at the age of 88.
A Considerable Speck Theme
The poem “A Considerable Speck” deals with actually the importance of the human proficiencies of the mind and feelings. The poet has appreciated the mind in a straight forward manner in this poem. The theme of this poem is more specifically the importance of the ‘display of mind’ on any ‘sheet of paper.’
A Considerable Speck Critical Analysis
“A Considerable Speck” of Robert Frost is a meditation on the importance of the human capability of imagination and thought. The speaker is the writer who, before completing his writing, saw “a speck that would have been beneath his sight,” but it was visible to him because of the white background of his sheet of paper. He introduces the poem in a captivating manner, indicating the reader, that something was about to occur. The writer (poet) poised his pen in the air to stop the mite with a drop of ink on the paper.
But this microscopic mite grabbed the attention of the poet (writer) and made him think deeply. He was wonder struck and fascinated with the minute creature as it raced across the white sheet of paper. We find how Robert Frost has used over statement to emphasize the actions of the speck on his manuscript paper, revealing his ironic sympathy and appreciation for its efforts despite its minuscule size. We find that first the speaker thought the speck to be blown dust due to his breath but then he saw that it was unmistakably a living mite.
The word “living” is used to compare the mite with himself or other living creatures. “With inclination it could call its own” the speaker here we find how carefully examined the actions of the mite in details, as if it was a complex being with emotions and intelligence. He says that the mite also had an inclination of its own.
The imagery used by the speaker is vivid in description, describing the mite in details. Although it is presumed that the speaker would be unable to distinguish the microscopic mite’s movements to that precise detail, yet we find him to be able to point out characteristics that link it to humans and other living creatures. So in the first stanza the speaker describes the mite using imagery, evoking lifelike images in the mind.
Then in the second stanza we find the speaker’s attitude towards the “speck”. He says that the mite came racing j wildly and reached the portion of his manuscript where the ink had not dried. It paused again, as either it drank or smelt the ink and with hatred and abhorrence, it turned to fly. The way the speaker uses the phrase “paused again smelt/with loathing to fly” helps the readers in visualizing the actions of the mite.
The speaker (writer) felt that the insect was too small to have any legs, but then thought that it must have a complete set, since it was walking. It ran in terror and expressed how much it didn’t want to die. And next we find how the speaker says that it l paused and hesitated and then trembling in fear at last reached the middle of the paper and finally accepted its fate of facing the reality that is whatever the man would do to it, it would accept it. When the mite surrendered in fear, the mind of the writer became more activated with several thoughts.
The third stanza concludes the poem with the speaker’s justification for not killing the helpless mite. Here we can say that he has justified his lack of physical actions regarding the microscopic creature by claiming that he had no valid reason to harm it in any way. The last section includes the appreciation of the mind wherever it is present: at this point he also adds some ironical remarks and suggestions about the inhumanity of wars in the modem world. The poet here has used the technique of irony.
He says that he doesn’t have the “collectivistic regimenting love with which the modern world is being swept”. This means that he doesn’t have the ‘love’ of being able to destroy masses of people collectively, and so he could not kill the mite out of the simple anger for being trespassing on his manuscript page. We also find that the poet is satirizing the modem man who is able to destroy masses for small reasons. Then he says that since the mite did not want any evil against him, so he let the mite lie there on the paper till it slept.
The poet then finally claims that he respected the presence of ‘mind’ anywhere, suggesting that he respected and appreciated the mite for its actions. Here indirectly he is satirizing the modem man who lacks the mind to understand that it is foolish to kill wise. The poet felt glad to find that “mind” was displayed “on any sheet of paper.” We can say that here the mind represents the human faculties for imagination, sensibility, sympathy, kindness, love and above all the intelligence that makes us able to think and judge.
A Considerable Speck Title of the Story
“A Considerable Speck” gives the reader a hint of the direction of the-poem. We can see how the poet has chosen a title that is also a paradox. “Considerable” implies importance and significance, while “speck” implies worthlessness. From the beginning of the poem we find how the poet uses imagery to describe the mite in details by saying that he saw a speck falling on a white sheet of paper.
The speck, he said, would have been out of his sight if it did not appear in the white sheet which was his manuscript. Since he was writing on it, he thought to stop the speck by a period of ink of his pen. But something strange about the speck forced him to think over. He saw that it was not a speck of dust that had been blown by his breathing but it was a living mite without any mistake. Till here, we see how the poet says about the speck which is just a microscopic thing. We find how the poet mentions the speck to be a worthless thing.
But from the line “When something strange about it made me think,” the poet highlights the effects of that microscopic things and says that something strange about the speck made him to think. From this line onwards we can see how the poet gives importance to the specks and regards it to be considerable. Then again he says how he observes that this speck had its own proficiency or inclinations. It used this inclination to stop with suspicion that aroused in it, due to the poet’s pen.
And so it came racing on wildly to the place of the manuscript where the ink was not dried. It paused for some moments as it accidentally smelt or drank (tasted) the ink and so with abomination, it turned to fly and escape. So in the poem we find how the poet gradually turns the mere speck into an object of importance. This was the time when the poet used his intelligence and reason. The speck or the mite was too small to have legs but the poet says that it must have had a set of complete legs as it was seen racing and turning to fly.
Then again the poet says that the mite didn’t want to face death, so it ran terrified and crept cunningly. It also hesitated and in this way it came to the middle of the manuscript where it was found to bent down in desperation to accept it’s fate. It was in desperation because it is the nature of the living beings to defend themselves from danger and death and so the mite being a living creature also tried to save itself desperately. It was seen at last to accept whatever the poet decided to do it.
After reading, till here we see how the poet in a very smooth manner gradually changes the speck to a living mite with it’s own inclinations, having intelligence which is the utmost necessity of a living being. He then says that he was against the collectivistic regimenting love with which the people of the modem world was being swept. So he, says that mite to be a poor microscopic item again and since it had done no evil, he let it to live there on his manuscript till it slept.
In the last four lines, the poet gives emphasize on the mind. He appreciated the mite for displaying it’s mind on the paper. The poet was so glad that such a small creature could rouse in him, the display of mind. So first we are led to a belief that the speck is only noticeable due to its contrasting against the paper next we are told it is significant because it could think when we expected it to be thoughtless, lifeless speck of dust. However, perhaps it is considered only for what it signifies: we know logically that this intelligent mite cannot have existed.
May be Frost has referred to the minuscule “ mind” to the thoughtless process by which the humans run around their lives helplessly, without achieving nothing. On the other hand, the mite is said to have mind displaying intelligence on the sheet of paper by reacting according to the situation that came in front of it.
So though we find the title to be somewhat oxymoronic, as we can’t expect such a small object to be of any importance, yet in the contents of the poem, the speck is shown to be significant and having effects on the poet’s mind. Hence thought it is a speck, it can be considered important or can be said considerable, hence the title of the poem given as “A considerable Speck” can be said to be relevant.
A Considerable Speck About The Poem
This poem “A Considerable Speck” is a witty poem. In the poem Robert Frost speaks of a living microscopic mite which he observes on a white sheet of paper. By seeing this he presumes that the mite seems to have its own inclinations. The mite is living in its self-engrossed world and it is having some desires which are totally its own.
When the mite smells the wet ink and perhaps tastes it from the paper in which the poet was writing, it runs terrified with some cunningness and avoids the writer’s or the poet’s pen for it has no desire to die. The poet desists from killing it, not because of any belief in “collectivistic regimenting love”, but because he appreciates the mite for being intelligent. He feels glad to find “on any sheet the least display of mind”. So he allows the mite to lie down on the paper with the hope that it had slept.
A Considerable Speck Main Point Of The Poem
In the poem “A Considerable Speck” we find a mere mite which is microscopic in size has more intelligence than a human being. A mere mite with intelligence is to be preferred to a human being who is a dullard. In this poem, we see that Frost does not indiscriminately accept all human
beings irrespective of their intelligence.
We also see Frost’s ability to turn a trivial thing like a mite into an occasion of significance-here a reflection on intelligence. The poem can be described as a satire on dullards. Not only this the poem also tells us to be careful in making decisions in life. One should be very wise and careful while making choices in his/her life because our choices shape our future.
A Considerable Speck Linewise Summary
1. A speck that would have been beneath my sight
On any but a paper sheet so white
Set off across what I had written there.
And I had idly poised my pen in air
To stop it with a period of ink
When something strange about it made me think,
This was no dust speck by my breathing blown,
But unmistakably a living mite
With inclinations it could call its own.
It paused as with suspicion of my pen,
And then came racing wildly on again
Robert Frost in the beginning of his poem “A Considerable Speck” presents a speck that would have been beyond his sight, if it was not in a white sheet of paper on which he was writing. He was able to see a dot like thing just because it was a contrast on the white paper. He says that seeing the speck he poised his pen in the air in an idle manner to stop this speck with a period of ink but then something strange about it stopped it from doing so. The ‘speck’ grabbed the attention of the poet and made him think.
He thought that it was no speck blown by his breathing but he saw that it was unmistakably a mite which was a living creature like the humans or other animals. The poet thought that since it was a living creature therefore it had certain inclination of its own. It was also living in its self-absorbed world with its own inclination. The mite also paused and possibly it thought that the writer would do something to it or it suspected for something to be done to it by the writer. So it came running again wildly on his manuscript
2. To where my manuscript was not yet dry;
Then paused again and either drank or smelt —
With loathing, for again it turned to fly.
Plainly with an intelligence I dealt.
It seemed too tiny to have room for feet,
Yet must have had a set of them complete
To express how much it didn’t want to die.
It ran with terror and with cunning crept
It faltered; I could see it hesitate;
Then in the middle of the open sheet
Cower down in desperation to accept
As the mite raced wildly on the paper it came to the portion where the writer had written and was wet with ink. Most probably the mite had either smelled or drank the ink. The poet here did not forget to express the reaction of this microscopic creature. So he says that when it tasted the ink, it turned to fly with hatred and detestation.
When the writer saw it moving, flying, walking, running, he says that he dealt this intelligently. It was too tiny to have feet or legs but then the writer (speaker) thought that since it was walking it had a complete set of legs. Then the poet says how clever and cunning the mite was.
The mite was reluctant to die and so to express it, “it ran with terror and cunning crept.” It stopped for a moment and hesitated and when it reached the middle of the poet’s manuscript, it bent down waiting for his judgement. Most probably it had no options but to accept his fate and so it surrendered itself on the will and the judgement of the poet.
The poet through the lines 22 and 23 “Cower down in desperation to accept/ Whatever I accorded it to fate” — upholds the intelligence of the mite by saying that it bent down in desperation to accept or surrender its fate. It was aware of its anticipated danger and so it surrendered itself by bending down,before the writer or the poet.
3. Whatever I accorded it to fate
I have none of the tenderer-than-thou
Collectivistic regimenting love
With which the modern world is being swept.
But this poor microscopic item now!
Since it was nothing I knew evil of
I let it lie there till I hope it slept.
So we find how the mite had surrendered its fate in the hands of the writer. It was ready to accept what the writer would do to it. In these lines the poet says about the modem world, which is usually swept away by a sense of purpose and selfishness. But according to him he did not believe in this. He was not an insensible man, so he decided not to kill the mite. He says that he did not have the “collectivistic regimenting love” with which the modem world was being swept”.
He did not believe in destroying masses of people collectively so he could not kill the mite as he had a reason behind this. He says that since it was nothing and he knew that it was of no evil, he let it lie down there on the paper till it slept. Here we find how the poet had been benevolent and generous towards the mite. He could not kill it just because it trespassed on his page.
4. I have a mind myself and recognize
Mind when I meet with it in any guise
No one can know how glad I am to find
On any sheet the least display of mind.
In the end, of his poem we find the poet to respect and Vappreciate the presence of ‘mind’. Here mind is being symbolized as the human faculty or capacity which comprises of imagination, love, sympathy. Sensibility and above all intelligence that makes us able to judge, think and act accordingly. So he says that he was so glad that such a small creature like a mite could rouse in him the display of mind. Though tiny, it was considerable to him, by making him think of its effects.
A Considerable Speck Linewise Explanation
1. A speck that would have been beneath my sight
On any but a paper sheet so white
Set off across what I had written there.
And I had idly poised my pen in air
To stop it with a period of ink
When something strange about it made me think,
This was no dust speck by my breathing blown,
But unmistakably a living mite
With inclinations it could call its own.
In the above lines, the speaker or the poet says that he saw a speck. It would have been out of his sight but it was visible to him only because it appeared on a white sheet of paper, in his manuscript on which he was writing. So seeing it he wished to stop it by a period of ink from his pen.
So he poised his pen in the air. But something strange about the speck made the poet think over. He thought that it could not be a dust speck that had blown by his breathing and then he saw that unmistakably it was mite, a living creature like him. It had a certain proclivity and propensity of its own.
2. It passed as with suspicion of my pen,
And then came racing wildly on again
To where my manuscript was not yet dry;
Then paused again and either drank or smelt —
With loathing, for again it turned to fly.
Plainly with an intelligence I dealt.
The mite stopped for a certain moment with a suspicion that the poet would do something to it. Then it went racing again to a place where the poet had just written because the ink there was still wet. Then it paused again and either smelt or drank the ink and with abomination turned to fly. The poet dealt the whole thing with intelligence.
3. It seemed too tiny to have room for feet,
Yet must have had a set of them complete
To express how much it didn’t want to die.
It ran with terror and with cunning crept.
It faltered; I could see it hesitate;
Then in the middle of the open sheet
Cower down in desperation to accept.
Whatever I accorded it to fate.
Here the poet says that the mite was too small or too tiny to have feet, but then he thought that it had a complete set of legs as he saw it running with terror and creeping cunningly because it did not wish to die. Then again the poet saw it to be hesitating.
When the mite was in the middle of the manuscript it bent down as if waiting for the writer or the poet’s judgement, possibly accepting or agreeing to what he would do to it.lt surrendered to the poet on whom its fate depended.
4. I have none of the tenderer-than-thou
Collectivistic regimenting love
With which the modern world is being swept.
But this poor microscopic item now!
Since it was nothing I knew evil of
I let it lie there till I hope it slept.
The poet says that he did not wish to kill the mite because he did not believe in “collectivistic regimenting of love with which the modem world was being swept.” He says that he did not have the love of being able to destroy masses of people collectively which the modem world was swept with. A modem man is swept away by a sense of purpose and selfishness. He knew that the mite could not do any evil and so the poet let it lie there till he hoped it slept.
5. I have a mind myself and recognize
Mind when I meet with it in any guise
No one can know how glad I am to find
On any sheet the least display of mind.
In these lines the poet says that he respects the presence of ‘mind’, anywhere, suggesting that he respects and appreciates the mite for its mind. So he expresses his feelings of appreciation towards the display of mind in any text or sheet which the mite showed on the paper.
A Considerable Speck Annotations and Vocabulary
Speck — dot; fleck
Poised — balanced
Unmistakably — without any mistakes
Inclinations — disposition; propensity
Suspicion — intuition; speculation
Loathing — detest; abhor
Faltered — hesitate
Desperation — hopelessness; despair
Cower down — to bend down or move backward with one’s head down because of fear
Accorded — grant
Collectivistic — a political or economic theory advocating collective control
Regimenting — organising