Archaic Torso of Apollo Identity Quotes

How we cite our quotes: (Line)

Quote #1

We cannot know his legendary head
with eyes like ripening fruit (1-2)

The identity of the statue, though revealed in the title, is never fully knowable.

Quote #2

Otherwise
the curved breast could not dazzle you so (4-5)

Okay, this seems a bit weird—all of a sudden, "you" are the speaker, or the speaker is addressing "you" or something. This shift in pronoun takes us directly into the experience of looking at the statue, and creates a momentary crisis of identity for the reader.

Identity

Quote #3

for here there is no place
that does not see you. (12-13)

If the artwork (or the world, more broadly) can examine us, then we should probably examine ourselves, right? This suggests the need for introspection.