Transcript Rape of the Lock

Rape of the Lock
Alexander Pope
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Mock-heroic, Mock epic poem
Lit terms booklet:
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#61: Mock epic: A comic literary form that treats a trivial matter in a
heroic, grand, epic style for comical purposes.
Poem is divided into 5 cantos or sections
We will read only a portion
Canto 1 opens with a formal statement of the theme—”what
mighty contests rise from trivial things” invokes the Muse to
inspire the poet
Belinda is the heroine of the poem
Sylph Ariel visits her and warns her that some dread fate is in
store for her
Canto 2 tells how Belinda is on a boat on the river Thames
heading towards the palace of Hampton Court
A baron attempts to steal one of Belinda’s beautiful locks (hair)
Belinda’s sylph is a guardian angel who attempts to protect
her
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Canto 3
Hampton Court, the royal palace about 15 miles up
the Thames from London was associated with wits as
well as statesmen
Pope accentuate the triviality of the incident by
inflating the incident to heroic proportions
The trivial and serious are JUXTAPOSED (placed side
by side for effect) throughout the poem
The lords and ladies gossip as they socialize
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Line 16 “At every word a reputation dies” Hyperbole: Gossip
can be destructive, but this is the extreme claim
The mock battle is represented by the card game
Imagery: Visual images “parti-colored” “shining”
“velvet” suggest brightness, lightness.
Underscores the light tone of the poem
 Line 45: Skillful nymph is referring to Belinda’s
ability to play cards
 Literary terms booklet:
 #27 Diction: A writer’s choice of words,
particularly for clarity, effectiveness and
precision.
 Pope describes hands of cards in language
usually reserved for epic heroes: “chief in
years”, “hoary majesty”
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Lit terms booklet
 #71: Parallelism: The use of phrases or
sentences that complement each other in
structure or in meaning.
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Eg. Line 84 Rape of the Lock “Of various habit, and
of various dye” referring to the falling of all of the
“players” on the “battlefield” in the game of cards
Foreshadowing: Commentary on humanity hints
at the coming event and sets it in a universal
context line 101.
 As Belinda pours her coffee, her lock of hair
becomes vulnerable
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Belinda’s lock is protected by the “airy band” of
sylphs headed by Ariel (name borrowed from
Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream)
 But the baron eventually succeeds in “raping”
the lock from her head with a pair of scissors
 His achievement is glorified—Belinda’s hair is
compared to other great works of mortal pride
line 173-178
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Canto four is described. Read it and note a few
pieces of information in your notes…..
Canto 5
 A battle of words in now described line 8 “like
gods they fight”
 “Sir Fopling” reference to comedic character of
the time –he falls
 “Those eyes are made so killing” line 28
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Reference to the words of an aria (song) in opera Camilla by
Bonocini
The song of a dying swan was believed to be most beautiful
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Satire: line 61-62
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Belinda’s silliness is demonstrated by the
comparison to Othello, one of the great tragic
heroes in English drama
The loss of Belinda’s lock is softened because it
has become immortalized as a star in the sky.