Lady_of_Shalott_Explication

Explication of “The Lady of Shalott” The “Lady of Shalott” by Lord Alfred Tennyson is a rich poem about the isolated role of the artist. It is written in four parts. Each part serves a certain role in the poem and assists in moving the plot along. It is written in iambic and trochaic tetrameter which lends the poem a songlike, simple rhythm. The rhyme scheme is aaaabcccb. Both the rhythm and the rhyme contribute to the whimsical quality of the poem that makes it seem like a fairy tale upon first reading. The first stanza, lines 1-9, offers a vivid description of the natural setting of the poem. It describes fields of flowers and grains gently blowing in the breeze and reaching up to the sky to meet it. It also places and island, Shalott, in the middle of a flowing river. The language in this stanza is breezy and light. The people of Camelot are “Gazing where the lilies blow” (7) and the mood is serene. The next stanza however, paints a darker setting. It describes trees that “whiten” and “quiver” (10) and breezes that “dusk and shiver” (11). Though the rhythm is still very light and quick, this language creates a chilly, mysterious tone and slows the reader down to ponder the natural elements that seem to be sensing something terrible. Line twelve mentions the river again that was introduced in the first stanza but this time it holds a “wave the runs forever.” The river and its current move the plot along carrying the reader through the poem and also the Lady of Shalott to her grave. Four gray walls and four gray towers, Overlook a space of flowers, And the silent isle embowers The Lady of Shalott. (15-18) The gray walls imposing themselves on the Lady of Shalott indicate that she is trapped and very removed from the world. Her prison looks over some flowers, but the Lady of Shalott is unable to interact with her surroundings. This imagery paints a vivid picture of the Lady’s isolation. In the third stanza the narrator returns to describing the outside world and in doing so begins to express his feelings about art and the life of the artist. The Lady of Shalott represents the artist in this poem. Shut away and unable to interact with the world around her, like an artist, she is isolated and imprisoned. While life goes on outside of the gray walls, ships sail down-river, and barges transport goods, she is locked away. No one has seen her stand in the window or wave her hand and the narrator asks, “is she known in all the land…'” (26). If this is a poem about the isolation of the artist, the narrator must be encouraging his audience to ask of themselves the same question: Do you know who is behind the art you enjoy' The fourth stanza states that the only people who hear the Lady of Shalott’s singing are the “reapers, reaping early in among the bearded barley” (28) as her song drifts “Down to towered Camelot” (32). The reapers are a stark contrast to the Lady of Shalott. They work in the fields with the barley, amongst nature. They touch it, live in it. They manipulate the grain and use it for survival in Camelot. The Lady of Shalott is so distanced from this very real, tangible existence. The only way she can have any involvement in Camelot is through her song which passively drifts there. An artist is also distanced from playing a very active role in society. Instead of participating in society, he comments on it through his creation and that art drifts into the lives of the people, much as the Lady’s song does. Part two takes the reader inside the Lady’s prison and explains why no one ever sees her. It is because she is busy weaving. She busies herself with this task all day because “She has heard a whisper” (39) that she will be cursed if she were to ever stop. This is much like the artist who feels that he must always continue to toil away for fear of losing his gift. The Lady does not know for certain that there is a curse on her and the artist does not know for certain that his gift will be lost, yet they continue to toil. The only way the Lady of Shalott can see what is going on outside is by looking at the reflections she sees in her mirror. In the second stanza of the second part of the poem the Lady sees people walking towards Camelot. Once again, the imagery emphasizes the draw of Camelot and the Lady’s absolute inability to be there. Lines 55-59 describe the people who pass by, and who’s reflections the Lady sees in her mirror. The Lady notices interesting details, Sometimes a troop of damsels glad, An abbot on an ambling pad, Sometimes a curly shepherd-lad, Or long-haired page in crimson clad. (55-58) The Lady is clearly very observant and interested in what is going on outside of her prison. She, like a artist does, pays attention to the details of her surroundings. Though in line 62 the reader learns the most important thing that is missing from the Lady of Shalott’s life, a “loyal knight and true.” This detail, again, emphasizes the loneliness and isolation of the artist. The Lady of Shalott is most saddened, even more so than not being able to make her own decisions, by her inability to have a relationship. Similarly, an artist makes sacrifices for his work but perhaps the most difficult one to make is that of human interaction. The last stanza of the second part of the poem explains that, like an artist, the Lady of Shalott weaves what she sees in the mirror into her tapestry. Artists work their inspirations into their work and inspiration usually comes from emotion. The things that evoke emotion in the Lady of Shalott are “A funeral, with plumes and lights” (67) and “two young lovers lately wed” (70). These two representations of the deepest and most profound emotions in life, grief and love, dramatize the loneliness of the Lady. She will never feel those things yet they inspire her nonetheless. Her declaration, “I’m half sick of shadows,” (72) brings part two to a dramatic close. The breakdown of the poem into parts is especially effective in the opening of part three. Tennyson’s bold, introduction of Sir Lancelot gives the reader a vivid image of his power and prestige: A bow-shot from her bower-eaves, He rode between the barley-sheaves, The sun came dazzling through the leaves, And flamed upon the brazen greaves. (73-76) Words like “dazzling”, “flamed”, and “brazen” all lend power to Lancelot’s air of importance. Furthermore, in line 77 Tennyson interrupts his pattern of ending every fifth line in a stanza with “Camelot” by replacing it with “Lancelot”. Lancelot’s name is so important and esteemed that it must be placed here. The second stanza of part three describes the incredible, almost magical appearance of Sit Lancelot. His horse’s bridal is covered in jewels and bells that “rang merrily” (85) as he rides to Camelot. Again in line 89 the speaker says that “his armor rung” as he rode and then again in lines 107-108 he is singing a song. There is much emphasis placed on the noise Sir Lancelot makes on his ride. This is an interesting juxtaposition to the Lady of Shalott’s song that “echoes” (27) down to Camelot. While Lancelot is able to march deliberately towards Camelot, taking his song with him, the Lady’s song drifts down to the joyous city without her. This juxtaposition of the two songs emphasizes the Lady’s, and thus the artist’s inability to participate in life. The Lady’s song, or the artist’s work, is what enters into society, not the Lady, or the artist in person. The third part of the poem closes with the Lady of Shalott making the fateful decision to step away from the loom and look outside. This is the first time the Lady comes into contact with the outside world and of course it is an ominous meeting. As she turns away from her art and towards the outside world, she, as an artist would, loses her creativity and alas, her life. The opening of the fourth and final part of the poem is glum. The wind is “stormy” and “complaining” (120). The encounter between the Lady and nature has occurred and brought unfortunate results. The tumultuous weather is an indication that the Lady cannot live harmoniously with nature. This fateful decision of the Lady of Shalott’s to put down her weaving to look at the outside world is a commentary about what an artist risks when he puts down his artwork and leaves isolation to participate in society; the two cannot mix successfully. Acknowledging that the curse is upon her, the Lady of Shalott finds a boat floating on the river and, cutting the tether, lies down in it and drifts off towards Camelot. Once the weaver of a lush, rich, colorful tapestry, she is now “robed in snowy white” (136). That which gave her color, her artistic craft, as now been lost and replaced by the ghostly pale of death. As she drifts down the river, the Lady sings “her last song” (143). She is finally able to accompany her song to Camelot but because she has met with nature, with the outside world, this will be the last one she sings. Perhaps the most striking commentary on the isolation of the artist comes in the last stanza of the poem when Sir Lancelot finds the Lady of Shalott lying dead in the boat on the river bank of Camelot. He notes, “she has a lovely face” (170). The Lady of Shalott, with her artist’s passion, ended her life in order to see Sir Lancelot and his reaction to her is base and superficial. Perhaps this is the narrator’s reprimand to those who take art for face value and fail to appreciate the painstaking work that is behind its wonder.