The Paper Nautilus

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1961

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Summary

Background

Poem Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Symbols & Motifs

Animals

Moore is known for her poems about animals. One of the most important motifs in this poem is the presence of an animal in its natural habitat. Moore often wrote about animals, both out of pure joy and pure interest, but also as a vehicle for observation: “She frequently used animals as a central image to emphasize themes of independence, honesty, and the integration of art and nature” (“Marianne Moore.” Poetry Foundation). Unlike scientific observations written on animals, or film and photographs of animals, Moore’s use of animals in her poetry, as in “The Paper Nautilus,” makes superb that which scientific prose generally conveys without lyricism” (Miller 114). Moore uses the unique language of the animal world to give meaning to her poetry, while her poetry gives meaning to the animal world and nature in turn.

The title states the poem is specifically about an argonaut or type of octopus, a paper nautilus, known for its ability to create a thin, translucent shell with which to hold its eggs. Moore’s background in biology and histology, along with her pure love of animals, makes for a unique perspective and an ability to zoom into the life of the animals she often wrote about, creating depth and offering multiple meanings.

Moore also populates the poem with references of other animals for effect: The paper nautilus’ eggs, the “devil-fish” (Line 18-19), “a crab” (Line 22), a “wasp-nest” (Line 27), and “the mane of / a Parthenon horse” (Lines 30-31) offer an occupied world. Yet, all we are witnessing as readers is the unraveling of a single paper nautilus from its eggs, alone and adrift in the vastness of an unspecified ocean or sea, at any given time in the history of the paper nautilus’ existence. In this way, the poem also zooms out, connecting this single paper nautilus to nature as a whole.

Shell

As much as the paper nautilus is the main character in the poem, the shell takes on its own important role, both for the nautilus as a creature and for the poem as a work of art. Its function for the paper nautilus is to carry its eggs as they incubate. While small and insignificant against the vastness of the deep ocean, the paper nautilus defies all odds in her solo journey.

The way in which the speaker describes the paper nautilus and its shell is also specific and telling. It is described as a “thin glass shell” (Line 7), and a “perishable souvenir of hope,” (Lines 8-9), but the fragility of the shell is juxtaposed with the magnitude of the shell’s purpose, its meticulous design, and its multi-functionality. It serves the paper nautilus as a safety vessel for her eggs, as well as a tool for moving in the water.

The shell itself becomes “freed” once the eggs “are freed” (Line 26), and “Ionic chiton-folds / line the lines in the mane of / a Parthenon horse” (Line 29-31). These descriptions of the shell give it an air of elegance that can only come from nature or a flawlessly chiseled statue. It is not a coincidence that the paper nautilus provides a source of meditation on writing. The wordplay in the “paper-like shell of the nautilus provides, its delicate “white outside and smooth- / edged…” (Lines 10-11), and “thin” (Line 7) add multiple layers of meaning to the poem.

Opposites

The shell has both fragile and enduring qualities, and the poem presents these opposing elements in a few ways. The strength of the paper nautilus, and her capability of breeding and nurturing her offspring, is illustrated in the poem by examining vulnerability. This meditation between failure versus success (and the merits of weakness and strength) speaks to nature’s ability to create and destroy mercilessly and without preference. This sets the stage for the awesomeness of the paper nautilus and its ability to reproduce against all odds.

Another way opposites are used and explored in this poem include the human world versus the animal world (see Themes: Nature Versus Humanity). The speaker begins by querying two concepts that contemplate human conformity: “hope shared by mercenaries” (Lines 1-2) or “entrapped by teatime fame and by commuter’s comforts” (Lines 3-5). These two questions are immediately followed by the speaker telling the reader that it is “not for these” that the paper nautilus reproduces. While humans depend on others for food and protection, the paper nautilus has only itself to rely on.

In addition, some of the observations within the poem offer an inner and an outer view of the paper nautilus, with its “white outside and smooth- / edged inner surface” (Lines 10-11). Giving a sense of looking outward from within, the paper nautilus hides its own arms inside its creation, tucked away, changing its own shape.

Finally, while the poem starts with humans, part of the heart of the poem is the animal’s complete disregard to human needs or happenings. It’s as if the humans are on the outside of the animal world, and the animals are in the world. “A poem such as Moore’s,” says Miller, “involves locating in a world that is wholly un-human that which resembles human activity, drawing a parallel between the in-human and the human. This is Moore’s naturalism” (Miller 115). Miller suggests the poem may even infer humans are not as capable of love like the paper nautilus (Miller 116).

Allusion to Greek Mythology

Like her poems about animals, and her ability to make use of intriguing and unexpected metaphors and similes, Moore was also known for her keen use of allusions, a figure of speech that references an outside source, which is essential to the understanding of her poetry.

In “The Paper Nautilus,” Moore references Hercules, the Greek mythological character, a symbol of bottomless abilities and strength, when the poem “shifts from a totally benign [maternal devotion] to a much more ambivalent description…signaled by the image of entrapment” (Diehl). The specific simile refers to Hercules’s second labor, where he is “bitten / by a crab loyal to the hydra” (Lines 21-22), comparing it to the paper nautilus’ eggs “coming from / the shell free[ing] it when they are freed” (Lines 25-26), where “interdependence and the need for security, is reinscribed upon the shell itself” (Diehl).

When Moore references the Parthenon Horse, she grapples with the source of freedom and dependency. In doing so, she brings back images of the shell with its “Ionic chiton-folds” (Line 29). Chiton refers to a tunic reminiscent of Greek fashion, and also to a “sea cradle,” which reconnects us to the maternal hold of the poem. Even though the eggs are freed, the shell no longer has a purpose, and the paper nautilus must let go of her offspring. The unidentified human arms wrapped around the horse’s mane returns us to “the need for protection” (Diehl). According to Diehl, “The Paper Nautilus” is both a refuge and a risk, offering security from the outside world and the crushing pressure of dependency.