Summary

The poem begins with the speaker introducing itself in simple declarative sentences: “I am silver and exact. I have no preconceptions” (1). Without explicitly revealing a name or identity, the speaker continues to describe itself, slowly leading the reader to the conclusion that the poem is written from the perspective of a mirror: “Whatever I see I swallow immediately / Just as it is, unmisted by love or dislike. / I am not cruel, only truthful, / The eye of a little god, four-cornered” (2-5).

In this first stanza, the speaker not only establishes its physical appearance, but also its inner monologue and emotions. The speaker describes that “Most of the time” it “meditate[s] on the opposite wall” (6). Through the speaker’s eyes, we learn that the wall is “pink, with speckles” (7). The speaker also feels a degree of yearning and separation from the wall, “I have...