A Pale Blue Dot by Carl Sagan

What is the context?

Carl Sagan was a world-renowned astronomer, professor, and astrophysicist during the 20^th century. From the 1980s to the early 1990s, Sagan was perhaps the most famous scientist in both the United States of America and abroad. As a professor in the 1970s, Sagan was incredibly progressive and successfully predicted the atmosphere of Venus. Moreover, Sagan was one of the first scientists to study life outside of Earth. He believed that extraterrestrial life existed somewhere in the universe but had never actually come in contact with Earth. Sagan became a national celebrity following his book Cosmos and the subsequent television series broadcast on PBS. Cosmos, created a comprehensive view on the universe for the average person.

The above passage is an excerpt from Sagan’s Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space is based upon a photograph taken of Earth from six billion kilometers away by the Voyager 1 space probe. The photograph is aptly titled Pale Blue Dot as Earth is simply faraway speck.  Sagan’s book is a mixture of philosophy and science as he grapples with the human place in the universe. The extracted passage is easily the most famous of both of Sagan’s books.

What is the artist communicating? How?

Sagan is attempting to make sense of the “smallness” of Earth in the Pale Blue Dot photograph. After seeing the photograph, one inevitably grapples his or her significance in the vast universe. Two themes in Sagan’s reaction to the photo are history and significance. The theme of history is quite apparent as Sagan literally outlines every type of person to have ever existed on the face of the planet Earth. He lists them out in the lengthy last sentence of the passage. The entire history of human life is so easily contained in a small blue speck on the horizon. Furthermore, Sagan contrasts two opposites throughout the list. This significant choice allows one to view history completely as one of both wins and losses.

 The other theme Sagan addresses is significance. By virtually listing every type of person to have ever been alive, Sagan makes one wonder his own importance. The earth is so insignificant to the universe. It is just a “mote of dust” suspended somewhere in infinity. Sagan’s diction truly emphasizes the theme of importance. Words such as “dot” and “mote” elaborate on the tininess that is the planet Earth. Sagan’s three-sentence commentary completely captures a whirlwind of emotions as one ponders his or her own smallness in the universe.

Why do you find it beautiful?

To me, this passage is utterly breathtaking and beautiful. In just three sentences, Sagan summarizes human existence while also forcing me to ponder my place in the universe. More often than not, I get caught up in the little things and stress out over the smallest detail. This passage reminds me to think of myself as a greater whole. My life on Earth is virtually irrelevant in the grand scheme of the universe. I suppose the passage brings out my inner cynic but it is also extremely comforting to know that infinity exists all around me. I like the fact that Sagan does not mince his words in the passage. He accurately captures my feelings of insignificance while also explaining that it is okay to worry about my life since it is the only one I know. As a human being, I am inherently forced to think about my life and myself as if it is the only thing that matters in the universe. Sagan’s passage is beautiful because it summarizes eternity in human terms. The people I encounter, love, and hate are all a part of the universe. My entire existence is based upon my experiences and my life on the pale blue dot.