This poem was constructed by Alfred Lord Tennyson and was edited in 1842. It is written in the romantic tradition as a ballad. It tells the story of a young lady within the confines of a tower under a curse. The poem is divided into four numbered sections which rise to a climax before it ends. Each section is broken down in stanzas (paragraphs in prose) with nine lines each.
Part one of the poems creates a picture of its setting. On the island of Shalott, there is a river and a road that passes through long tall fields of barley and rye before reaching the town of Camelot. Traffic of boats and barges coming from Camelot is buzzing. The island is surrounded by plants and flowers (willows, lilies & aspens). It has Lady of Shalott held prisoner in a building of four gray walls and towers. “Four gray walls, and four gray towers,/ Overlook a space of flowers,/ And the silent isle embowers/ The Lady of Shalott” (589). No one knows of her captivity, but the reaper’s harvesters have heard the echo of her voice from song. After a long weary day, the reaper enjoy the songs and whisper “Tis the fairy, Lady of Shalott.”
As we enter into part four of the poem, Lady of Shalott descends from her tower wearing a snowy white robe to enter a shallow boat docked under a willow. There is a storm with heavy rain, but she takes time to write (The Lady of Shalott) around the boat’s bow. She sets her eyes towards the town of Camelot with the knowledge of no return and release the chain of the boat.
“With a steady stony glance--- Like some bold seer in a trance, Beholding all his own mischance, Mute, with a glassy countenance---She look’d to Camelot. It was the closing of the day:” (e-text)
She begin to sing as the current carried her to Camelot and reclined in the boat as her time came near. After the boat arrived in Camelot, the court arrived to see the sight noticing the inscription on the boat’s bow. They read her name and made a cross against their hearts and hers for a blessing.
The lady had grown weary of being alone and after realizing she wanted companionship, she made the sacrifice of her life to embrace this.
In the 1842 version of “The Lady of Shalott”, Tennyson interchanges stanzas 3 and 4 of part I, therefore changing the sequence of events. In part IV, he deletes stanza 2 with a small part reappearing in stanza four creating stanza 3. I enjoyed the newer version, because it gave a clearer vision of the activities within the poem. I saw her grow from someone once satisfied with her solitude to one who wanted to become a member of society and one who wanted love after seeing of Sir Lancelot. She decides that no curse would stand in her way.
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Bianca,
ReplyDeleteThis post provides a plot summary of Tennyson's poem, with some quotations of passages that do not seem very crucial (such as the architectural description of her tower). At the end you begin to get into a worthwhile topic, with a discussion of the title character's relation to Lancelot, and how to interpret that relationship. You do not adequately pursue that topic, though, in the small space remaining.
Bianca,
ReplyDeleteThis was a good blog. I liked how you fully explained the changes Tennsyon made to his poem, The Lady Of Shalott, during his ten years of silence. I think some of his changes influenced the meaning or interpretation of the poem, but most of them simply made it more aesthetically pleasing. What do you think of the Lady’s decision to leave the tower? I think it was pretty noble, but I’m not sure it ended up being worth it in the end.
I like how you note that the Lady of Shalott could possibly have followed what she wanted to do no matter what curse had plagued her life. I think, however, that the curse was her entrancement with riding down the river in hopes of companionship because it isn't until after she leaves her web that she says, "the curse is come upon me" (line 116 pg. 591). I think Tennyson may have been trying to portray that all people long for companionship and when she finally looked out the window, against what she had been forewarned to do, she showed that love, or the longing for love, will make us do crazy things.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Dr. Glance in his assertion that most of this is summary. The part I like was when you started to say how you felt about Tennyson changing the ending. I agree with you that the second, newer version of the ending is better but for different reasons. But your romantic ideal of the Lady works. Over it was an OK post but there needs to be more of what you think.
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