Robert Francis "Fair and Unfair": Balance in Nature and Society

Introduction: Francis and the Tradition of Nature Poetry

Robert Francis was an American poet whose work is often compared to that of Robert Frost, his mentor, as well as to Emily Dickinson and Henry David Thoreau. Although Francis's work has frequently been neglected — he is "often excluded from major anthologies of American poetry" — those who have read it have praised both the poet and his writing. In "Fair and Unfair," Francis comments on balance in nature and in society. Like Frost, Francis contends that nature has the ability to provide guidance, if only humanity is wise enough to observe it. In "Fair and Unfair," Francis achieves balance both through what is written and through how it is written.

Narrator, Perspective, and Theme

The poem is told from a first-person, omniscient perspective, and the narrator appears to be addressing the general public. It seems as though the narrator seeks to bring attention to how nature has become disregarded as society and civilization grow and develop. As narrator, Francis appears to want to inform the reader of the imbalance between fair and unfair in the world. By writing "Had we the wit," Francis contends that people cannot perceive this imbalance because they lack wisdom, and thus cannot restore balance to the world. In a sense, Francis is asserting his own enlightenment about the role of nature in the formation of society, and he wishes to share what he has observed so that others may become equally enlightened.

Stanza-by-Stanza Analysis

Francis's poem begins through the juxtaposition of nature and society. In the first stanza, the tone is sorrowful as Francis points out the imbalance between the two. He writes, "The beautiful is fair. The just is fair," thereby establishing that beauty — or nature — and what is just — or society — are each considered unbiased. However, the presence of beauty and justice is uneven and often difficult to discern. Francis contends that beauty is "commonplace…[and] everywhere," whereas justice is "rare…[and] scarcely anywhere."

As Francis continues his analysis of fairness, he comments on humanity's inability to find balance between nature and society. In the second stanza, the tone shifts slightly and becomes reservedly hopeful. Francis writes, "Had we the wit / To use the surplus for the deficit / We'd make a fairer world of it." Here he comments on how humanity is unable to use the surplus of fairness found in nature to supplement the "deficit" — the fairness that is lacking in society. By juxtaposing surplus and deficit, Francis allows the reader to understand that he is addressing imbalance and the possibility of rectifying it. While Francis argues that balance could potentially be achieved, he also counters with the argument that humanity is not prepared, or does not know how, to find that balance.

Structure, Form, and the Terza Rima Adaptation

In "Fair and Unfair," Francis attempts to create balance through the poem's structure and form. The poem is written in a modified terza rima format. Unlike the more traditional terza rima rhyme scheme of ABA-BCB-CDC and so on, "Fair and Unfair" follows an AAA-BBB pattern in which the final word of each line in the first stanza rhymes — fair, rare, and anywhere — and the final word of each line in the second stanza rhymes — wit, deficit, and it. While an imbalance is created when each stanza is examined separately, balance is restored through the inclusion of both stanzas together. For instance, imbalance is created through the odd number of lines in each individual stanza; however, balance is restored when both stanzas are considered as a unit, since each depends on the other.

Moreover, the poem's form is literally balanced across its two stanzas: two stanzas with a total of six lines. The first stanza serves to identify the problem, whereas the second offers a possible solution; without a problem there can be no solution, and vice versa. A caesura occurs between the two stanzas as the poem's focus shifts from stating the imbalance of fairness in the world to lamenting humanity's inability to create change and restore any semblance of balance.

Conclusion: Balance Through Structure and Message

In "Fair and Unfair," Francis does not only point out the inequity between the presence of beauty and the presence of justice, but also implies that humanity has the power to balance the two. Moreover, Francis believes, like Frost, that nature can provide guidance and that an individual can learn from it only if he or she is willing to look. Francis's work is largely free of complex literary devices, which allows him to communicate more clearly with the reader.

In "Fair and Unfair," however, structure plays a more prominent role than the few literary devices — anaphora and assonance — that do appear. Through the poem's structure and format, balance is achieved by the number of lines in each stanza and the number of stanzas themselves. Francis also uses the poem's format to present a problem in the first stanza and to offer a solution or compromise in the second. Through this structure and his colloquial writing style, Francis connects with his readers without coming across as pretentious or preachy.

Works Cited

Francis, Robert. "Fair and Unfair." Web. 7 November 2012.

"Robert Francis." eNotes. Web. 7 November 2012.