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Difficulty: HardThematic Argumentation in Poetry

Read the poem 'Design' (1922) by Robert Frost:

I found a dimpled spider, fat and white,
On a white heal-all, holding up a moth
Like a white piece of rigid satin cloth—
Assorted characters of death and blight
Mixed ready to begin the morning right,
Like the ingredients of a witches' broth—
A snow-drop spider, a flower like a froth,
And dead wings carried like a paper kite.

What had that flower to do with being white,
The wayside blue and innocent heal-all?
What brought the kindred spider to that height,
Then steered the white moth thither in the night?
What but design of darkness to appall?—
If design govern in a thing so small.

Which of the following best describes how the final line ('If design govern in a thing so small') modifies the poem's central thematic argument?

  1. It introduces a critical qualification to the speaker's prior suggestion of a dark cosmic order, proposing instead the unsettling possibility of absolute universal chaos.Answer
  2. B
    It reinforces the speaker's absolute certainty that a malevolent, conscious force actively directs even the most minute and insignificant occurrences in nature.
  3. C
    It shifts the focus from a philosophical inquiry to the poet's own historical and biographical struggles with religious faith and dogma.
  4. D
    It summarizes the physical sequence of events by explaining why the spider and the moth met on that particular wayside flower.
  5. E
    It utilizes a conditional grammatical structure to resolve the poem's primary conceit without altering the speaker's established perspective.

Answer

The option stating that the final line introduces a critical qualification to the speaker's prior suggestion of a dark cosmic order, proposing instead the unsettling possibility of absolute universal chaos.
The correct answer is correct because the final line introduces a critical qualification ('If design govern...') that undercuts the speaker's previous rhetorical question. While the penultimate line proposes a malevolent 'design of darkness,' the final line questions the very premise of design itself, suggesting that there may be no governing force or order in the universe, only random chance.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the octave (lines 1-8) to identify the initial premise and imagery.
The speaker observes an ironic gathering of three white things: a white spider, a white flower (heal-all), and a white moth, which are described as 'characters of death and blight' mixed like a 'witches' broth.'
Understanding the baseline imagery is essential to tracing how the thematic argument develops.
2
Analyze the first part of the sestet (lines 9-13) to trace the progression of the speaker's reasoning.
The speaker poses rhetorical questions inquiring what brought these characters together, concluding with the question: 'What but design of darkness to appall?' which suggests a malevolent, deliberate design behind nature.
This establishes the intermediate argument of a dark, intentional cosmic design before the final line's intervention.
3
Examine the grammatical and semantic function of the final line (line 14) and how it shifts this argument.
The final line starts with 'If,' introducing a conditional clause ('If design govern in a thing so small') that subverts the certainty of the previous line by questioning whether any design or cosmic order governs such small, minor events at all.
This shows the final qualification that completes the thematic argument, shifting it from a belief in a dark designer to the terror of potential cosmic meaninglessness.

Key Concept

Thematic Argumentation in Poetry
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Thematic Argumentation in Poetry

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