The central image in the poem is "slovenly." Wallace Stevens places a jar in Tennessee, devoid of any artificial object for miles. The jar is simple, and because of its anomalous position on the hill, it somehow makes an impression of "slovenly wilderness." The image is central as the messy or "slovenly" wilderness image is incongruous with the simple glass jar image. The image works by eliciting more questions than answers. In just three quatrains, the image depicts the entire landscape in Tennessee. The image is vivid even in the opening line, where the persona initiates the mysterious as well as the disturbing process. The process of placing the jar is a conscious decision entailing placing, not dropping, leaving, discarding, or ignoring. The conscious decision begins with selecting the space on a hill, all in the Tennessee wonderful state.
The image gives the suggestion that an important scientific experiment is about to kick off. Wallace describes the jar as being round, and since no one else would purposely place a jar in an open place at daytime, we are treated to the suggestion that a scientist or another person out to test a theory is on an expedition. The jar is powerful as it is the prime mover in the landscape (slovenly wilderness). Initially, the jar is slovenly but sprawled around later. Slovenly is a word used as a rare adjective to describe unmanaged as well as untouched land. It also depicts disheveled, untidy as well as dirty. The image symbolizes a modernistic idea by influencing the reader to become a part of the evolving scenario where a jar conducts events.
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