Coming Death Of The Lady Of Shalott example essay topic

1. Introduction This paper will try to analyze the growth of consciousness of the Lady of Shalott. Ranging from her state of mind in total isolation, her 'childhood', to her changing 'adolescence' and eventually reaching 'adulthood' and death, all in a sort of quick-motion. It will further deal with the development of tension throughout the poem. By making a distinction between tension through formal aspects, such as rhyme scheme, and tension through content it will try to show the interconnection between both of them.

Additionally, the paper will deal with the possible effect of tension on the reader and how the poem might be perceived by him / her. 2. Growth of Consciousness and Development of Tension 2.1. Initial Isolation Lord Alfred Tennyson's poem starts out with the total seclusion of the beautiful, young Lady of Shalott surrounded by '... four grey walls, and four grey towers...

'; . (Tennyson, line 15). She is largely unaware of the world outside and of her own existence as a woman, only being able to see shadows of reality, which are reflected by her magic (?) crystal mirror and worked into her web. At this point of time it is unknown to the reader whether the Lady of Shalott is forced to be in this situation or chose to live this life of isolation. Reasons for a self inflicted seclusion might be homophobia, the fear of rejection by the exterior world, or simply a lack of interest for it. However, the Lady of Shalott is quite content with what she has and what she does.

Her life of art in front of the loom and the crystal mirror is all she needs singing her '; ... song that echoes cheerly... '; (30) throughout the land. She is as innocent as a careless child giving little thought about her future. The Lady of Shalott has no urge to leave her own interior world because she is not aware of any other options. Little is known about her outside '... many-towered Camelot. ' ; (5) and apparently she intends to keep it that way: But who hath seen her wave her hand?

Or at the casement seen her stand? Or is she known in all the land, The Lady of Shalott? (24-27) By now the reader might ask him-/herself why the Lady of Shalott is stuck in such a dreadful situation and why she does not attempt to do anything about it. There is a constant increase of tension attained by the use of iambic and trochaic tetrameter and an - a - rhyme scheme repeating in each stanza. This is always interrupted by sudden drops produced by the plosive sound 't' as in 'Camelot'; , 'Shalott'; or 'Lancelot'; in lines 5 and 9. The whole scheme could already be seen as an indicator for the omnipresent basic suspense of the poem.

Almost as if something or someone is constantly trying to break free but is stopped every time before reaching its climax. Maybe a dire forecast for the entire poem? 2.2. The Turning Point Things suddenly change when the Lady of Shalott sees '... two lovers lately wed... '; (70) one night (part II). She starts to realize the possibilities the exterior world has to offer but they are still beyond her grasp. The Lady begins to regret her weary little life inside her chambers.

This passage could be seen as the gradual coming of age of the Lady of Shalott. Her consciousness is developing and she questions her existence, consequently no longer wanting to live a secluded life of interior. The question that now arises is: Why did she not leave the loom at this point of time? A solution to this problem might be that she simply had nowhere to go, no prospect or person she could turn to.'s he hath no loyal knight and true, The Lady of Shalott. ' ; (62-63) That is why 'I am half sick of shadows, ... '; (71) clearly marks the turning point of the poem.

Prior to this incident another interesting topic comes up. For the first time in the poem the curse of unknown origin and consequence is mentioned.'s he has heard a whisper say, A curse is on her if she stay To look down to Camelot. ' ; (39-41) This vary vague and mysterious description arises curiosity and builds up tension. But instead of worrying about this strange whisper'... she weave th steadily, And little other care hath she, ... '; (43-44).

'The curse, of course, is that she shall be involved in mortal passions, and suffer the fate of mortals if she looks away from the shadow to the reality. ' ; (Thomas 54) The reader is now attentive and highly interested in the further development of the story. 2.3. Climax of Tension and Consciousness The final set off for her escape from isolation comes into play when bold Lancelot appears. He is described with excessive bright colors 'gemmy bridle'; (82), 'silver bugle'; (88) '... The helmet and the helmet-feather Burned like one burning flame together, ...

'; (93-94) which stand in contrast to the shadowy atmosphere and pale colors earlier and later in the poem. His heroic and erotic appearance to the Lady of Shalott ultimately triggers her desire for love and escape from her world of loneliness. Sir Lancelot becomes her id " ee fixe (Platizky 28) and she sees no other way than to meet him in person, although he probably does not even know about her and she runs the risk of getting hurt. The two worlds, interior and exterior, come clashing together the moment the Lady of Shalott actually leaves the loom and steps to the casement to be able to see Lancelot with her own eyes. 'Out flew the web and floated wide; The mirror cracked from side to side; 'The curse is come upon me,'. ...

' ; (114-116) The cracked mirror could be interpreted as her irreversible loss of virginity and child-like innocence. She is now largely conscious of the whole action and its consequences but still wants to carry on. The Lady of Shalott has now reached adolescence. She brakes free of all restrictions, rules and vague curses and has made up her mind once and for all- she chooses life and love over art and isolation. It is a rebellious reaction to everything she has experienced so far. The further development is inevitable now.

In the fifth stanza of part the climax of tension is reached. The first five lines start out with the repetition of the word 'She' which not only builds up tension within the stanza, but also carries on and intensifies the suspense that has been developing through the heroic and colorful description of Sir Lancelot in the first four stanzas of this part. 2.4 The Final Escape Very soon, though, the Lady of Shalott has to realize that things are not so easy to handle. She is afraid her journey might not be successful and nobody will ever know about her or her rebellion. That is, most likely, why she writes down her full name on the prow of her boat, instead of just writing 'I was here'.

This way people will know who she was in case she does not succeed in her mission. Her state of consciousness has progressed further and evolved to late adolescence. She feels the pressure closing in on her and sort of resigns. 'Like some bold seer in a trance Seeing all his own mischance With a glassy countenance...

'; (128-130). When she at last loosens the chain of the boat she totally brakes away from her self imposed imprisonment (childhood) and finally becomes a woman, reaching full adulthood, floating down the 'river of life'. She has also reached her full consciousness and knows quite sure that she is going to die soon. But just like she did not care to live in total isolation at the beginning of the poem, she is now willing to sacrifice her life for love.

(Platizky 28) The intensity and tension of the previous part is gone. Stanzas three to five (of part IV) pathetically describe the coming death of the Lady of Shalott. It is almost as if she accepts and anticipates her death just sitting still her boat '... singing her last song, ... '; (143).

She dies before reaching '... The first house by the water-side, ... '; (151). When Lancelot sees her lying dead in her boat there is a slight rise of tension again, because one expects something witty or substantial for him to say. Sadly, his only remark is: 'She has a lovely face; God in his mercy lend her grace, The Lady of Shalott. ' ; (169-171) This is, of course, quite a ridicules reaction to what has happened to the fair Lady of Shalott, and after all she has gone through for him the reader might have longed for something different.

But naturally he does not know about her martyrdom and so the story ends, leaving the reader in anger about the carelessly spoken words of Lancelot. 3 Conclusion 'The Lady of Shalott'; was and is subject for countless interpretation by readers and artists, especially pictorial. Although, or maybe because the whole setting is quite vague and shadowy there have been many attempts to explain why the Lady of Shalott was cursed. Maybe she was not cursed al all.

What was this whisper she heard? Was she schizophrenic, hearing voices inside her head? Another question is why she had to die in the end. Is it possible she eventually commit suicide, because she had realized that her love for Sir Lancelot was futile?

These are some questions that stay in the back of your head after reading Tennyson's poem. Even today you can feel the infinite struggle the Lady of Shalott had to undergo. Tennyson impressively shows the development of a young woman who is faced with one of the most difficult times in life- growing up in a world full of restrictions and rules and becoming a woman. His subtle description of a girls problems at his time is, slightly altered, even valid today.