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The Victorian era was a period of remarkable decadence and ornamentation and this is evident throughout the spectrum of Victorian life, and is especially visible in the art and literature of the time. ...
This essay will attempt to examine this question by looking at three of the Victorian period’s most celebrated poems; Tennyson’s “The Lady Of Shalott. ...
Lord Alfred Tennyson’s “The Lady Of Shalott” is without doubt one of the most famous and most frequently quoted poems of the Victorian era. Its striking beauty and fantastic imagery has been an inspiration to a whole host of writers and artists – most notably the Pre – Raphaelites. Upon reading the poem it is not difficult to see why this poem has had such an effect on so many people. ... ” A curse has been placed upon her which keeps her inside and prevents her from viewing the outside world directly. ...
This then may appear to show that Tennyson’s poem has sacrificed the story in order to become more “picturesque.” This too is displayed actual form of the poem: It is divided into four numbered parts with isometric stanzas. Each of the four parts ends at the moment when Tennyson’s description changes into directly quoted speech, giving the effect of the reader being brought out of the luxurious description straight into the lives of the characters. The rhyme scheme of the poem is also of interest; Each stanza contains five lines with the scheme AAAABCCCB with the syntax being on the whole line bound. This then gives the poem an almost musical, “sing song” like quality, which again adds to its air of ethereal beauty and imagination.
This then poses the question; does the fact that this poem is so musical and picturesque detract from the poems inner meaning? ... Tennyson shows us that the artist has no choice. ... The word “Childe” in the poem’s title refers to a young man who has yet to be officially knighted, it is a medieval term which at once informs the reader of the time period into which this poem is set. ... He seems to suggest with this use of language, that while the Shakespearean mode still has a great aesthetic value, much of its cultural relevance may now be defunct. ... His constant remembering of past events seems to suggest that Rowland has more in common with his dead peers than with things from his own time. ...
This sense of magic seems to be a reoccurring theme in the poetry of the Victorian period; it is again present in Christina Rossetti’s “Goblin Market. ... As a result of this many illustrations have been produced of the somewhat picturesque imagery contained within the poem. ... Laura then begins to show strange symptoms, she longs for more of the goblin’s fruit, but as she has already tasted it she can no longer hear the goblin’s calls. ... ” The description here is extremely lavish and speaks of fruits that would have been scarce and expensive in the Victorian period:
Our grapes fresh from the vine,
Pomegranates full and fine,
Dates and sharp bullaces,
Rare pears and greengages,
Damsons and bilberries,
This language then makes what the goblins have to sell seem more alluring. ... Here she uses pure imagery and as a contrast to the alluring colours of the goblin’s fruits and they are frequently described as being “golden”, “white” and “Like a lily in a flood” this means that from the beginning the reader is in no doubt as to which characters have taken on the role of traditional good and evil – the girls are pure, the goblins their temptation.
Approximate Word count = 2782
Approximate Pages = 11.1
(250 words per page double spaced)
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