"Negation" is a poem from Wallace Stevens's first bookof poetry, Harmonium. Itwas first published in 1918, so it is in the publicdomain.[1]
This poem was Section VII of the poem—sequence "Lettres d'un Soldat"(1918). It was extracted as "Negation" for inclusion in the secondedition of Harmonium. It may reflect Stevens's reading of Thus Spoke Zarathustra, according to Bates. The poem's image of God asbungling potter recalls Zarathustra's dialogue with the last pope, inwhich God is similarly characterized.
Another Harmonium poem that clearly reflects Stevens's reading of Nietzsche is "The Surprises of the Superhuman", which was also extracted from"Lettres d'un Soldat" for inclusion in the second edition.
The poem is notable for its arch wit and the anti-poetical salutation, "Hi!", rather than as a solution to the problem of evil.