You are a practicing physicist, Roger, and you made a fitting selection. Kant said that sense impressions are the only way humans can know anything about the universe. Stevens must have agreed, and accordingly glories in sense data, reasonably giving it first place over speculations about the wan possible "existence" of imagined (by him) non-physical beings of some sort. Which is fine. How can he or anyone do otherwise? What else is possible to the "material girl" (or guy)? Which is my point. You (and I) may revel in the richness of experience, but the limits of our physical structure constantly limit our speculations about the matrix of our experience. It's a small point, and not one to turn many somersaults over. I applaud your choice of a Stevens quote.
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