The Plain Sense of Things by Wallace Stevens In Stevens' poem "The Plain Sense of Things" the first thing the reader notices is that there are five equal stanzas. The poem is neatly constructed so that each stanza contains four lines. This creates an organized, orderly look to the poem, and gives off the idea of being in control because of the form. After further examination of the poem, the reader discovers the gloomy nature …showed first 75 words of 546 total…

…showed last 75 words of 546 total…of the poem, Stevens appears to be hopeless about the future. We can only imagine a time when salvation is within reach, a time when the pond is not muddy, a time when morals and the Lord comes first, a time when live is valued. Stevens appears to state that it is inevitable that the water becomes cloudy, that Heaven becomes further away, and the idea of a glorious afterlife with the Lord is tainted.