Student Question
What is the analysis of Pope's epigram "We think our fathers fools, so wise we grow; Our wiser sons, no doubt, will think us so"?
Quick answer:
Pope's epigram highlights a cyclical pattern where each generation believes it is wiser than the previous one. It reflects how youth often see their elders as outdated and foolish, only to be viewed the same way by their own children when they grow older. This underscores a recurring theme of generational arrogance and the perception of wisdom.
Pope is presenting a vicious circle type of situation, recognized by succeeding generations throughout time.
Most children go through a period of being convinced that their parents and other elders are hopelessly out-of-date, stupid beyond belief, and incapable of understanding how the world has changed while they've remained stuck in old-fashioned ways and ideas. Pope expresses this certainty that the youth have grown to be smarter than their seniors in the first part of the saying - "We think our fathers fools, so wise we grow."
The problem is that when the speakers have children, those children will grow and, at a certain age, will come to think that their parents (the speakers in the poem!) are hopelessly out-of-date, stupid beyond belief, and incapable of understanding how the world has changed while they've remained stuck in old-fashioned ways and ideas. "Our wiser sons, no doubts, will think us so."
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