The spirit is too blunt an instrument

Question 1

Structure

Answer 1

1. (specific) Each stanza contains exactly 9 lines = 9 months of pregnancy and the creation of life
2. Full stop at the end of each stanza - clear and precise
3. Description of larger parts of human body (“the knee and the knucklebones”, “ganglia and vertebrae) to more details (“capillaries”, “neural filaments”) to human mind (“passion”, “sentiment”) - similar to the development of a baby (first develop larger parts then smaller details then mind and thoughts)

Question 2

Title

Answer 2

“Blunt” juxtaposes with the highly intricate human body, alluding to the “[spirit’s]” worthlessness. The title is denying the spirit to be an “instrument”.

Question 3

Form

Answer 3

(general) Free verse - shows the “vagaries of mind” (the messiness of the spirit)

Question 4

Themes

Answer 4

Beauty of human body, life, creation, perfection of body vs. messiness of spirit

Question 5

Poet’s Context

Answer 5

1. “poems still come to me as tunes in the head. Words fall into rhythms before they make sense. It often happens that I discover what a poem is about through a process of listening to what its rhythms are telling me” - Anne Stevenson
2. Moved between US and the UK during the first half of her life; lived mainly in the UK since 1962
3. “I suspect there isn’t really such a thing as free verse. Or if there is, I don’t think I’ve written any. Readers may not always realize how formally constructed my poems are—but I assure you, not a single line has ever been passed over as accidental or unconsidered.” - Anne Stevenson

Question 6

Historical Context

Answer 6

Published in 1969
1960s - decade of change in social norms
1960s - US “cultural decade”, UK the Swinging Sixties

Question 7

“intricate
exacting particulars”

Answer 7

1. “incricate exacting particulars” denotation - “intricate” (very complicated and detailed) “exacting” (demanding, hard), express the awe poet feels towards the perfection of human body
2. “intricate exacting particular” polysyllabic words, emphasize the complexity of human body
3. “incricate exacting particulars” - plosive consonance (c & t) creates a mechanical, precise tone, suggests creating “intricate” human body is demanding and hard

Question 8

“the shell-like complexity
of the ear”

Answer 8

1. simile creates a vivid imagery of the ear
2. simile: likens ears to shells (known for their geometrically beautiful shape), displays the poet’s appreciation of the natural beauty of human body
3. natural beauty contrasts to the mechanical precision of human body (“intricate exacting particulars”), suggests that human body is beautiful in both aspects and is an incorporation of nature and mechanics

Question 9

“indifferently,
through the body’s ignorant precision”

Answer 9

1. oxymoron: lacking knowledge and awareness yet exact and accurate
2. “indifferently” adds on to the ignorance of the body, further emphasize the body’s impressive of ability being precise even though it is “ignorant”
3. oxymoron expresses the poet’s amazement towards how the body could unconsciously be this accurate

Question 10

“infinitesimal capillaries, the flawless connections
of the lungs”

Answer 10

1. wording: Highly academic and sophisticated, many words have more than 4 syllables. It alludes to the intricacies of the human body.
2. use of “flawless” is very absolute and creates a sense of perfection.

Question 11

“invisible neural filaments”

Answer 11

Further augments the complexity of the human body by using imagery. The use of “invisible” gives off a sense of delicacy having that the “filaments” are like tiny gears which are small and precise, yet vital.

Question 12

“mind to invent
love and despair and anxiety
and their pain.”

Answer 12

(the ending sentence of the poem) This could correspond to the convoluted procedure of bringing up a baby, the process that encompasses “despair”, “anxiety”, “pain” as well as the “love” toward one’s child.