La Belle Dame sans Merci by John Keats - Poetry: The Best Words in the Best Order - #BlogchatterA2ZChallenge 2021
LA BELLE DAME SANS MERCI
JOHN KEATS
O what can ail thee, knight at arms,
Alone and palely loitering?
The sedge has withered from the lake,
And no birds sing.
O what can ail thee, knight-at arms,
So haggard and woe-begone?
The squirrel's granary is full,
And the harvest's done.
I see a lily on thy brow,
With anguish moist and fever-dew,
And on thy cheeks a fading rose
Fast withereth too.
I met a lady in the meads,
Full beautiful - a faery's child,
Her hair was long, her foot was light,
And her eyes were wild.
I made a garland for her head,
And bracelets too, and fragrant zone;
She looked at me as she did love,
And made sweet moan.
I set her on my pacing steed,
And nothing else saw all day long,
For sidelong would she bend, and sing
A faery's song.
She found me roots of relish sweet,
And honey wild, and manna-dew,
And sure in language strange she said -
"I love thee true."
She took me to her Elfin grot,
And there she wept and cried full sore,
And there I shut her wild wild eyes
With kisses four.
And there she lulled me asleep,
And there I dreamed - Ah! woe betide! -
The latest dream I ever dreamt
On the cold hill side.
I saw pale kings and princes too,
Pale warriors, death-pale were they all:
They cried, "La Belle Dame sans Merci
Thee hath in thrall!"
I saw their starved lips in the gloam,
With horrid warning gaped wide,
And I awoke and found me here,
On the cold hill's side.
And this is why I sojourn here,
Alone and palely loitering,
Though the sedge is withered from the lake,
And no birds sing.
The Poet: John Keats (1795 - 1821)
John Keats is considered as one of the finest Romantic poets, even though he died at the young age of twenty-five, having published only 54 poems in all. However, the quality of his writing, rich in imagery and content, powerful yet devoid of mythic grandeur, make him stand, shoulder to shoulder, with William Shakespeare's persona as a lyric poet, as seen in the latter's sonnets. Literature, for Keats, was a labour of love through which he could lead humankind towards beauty and inspiration.
'La Belle Dame sans Merci' was written as a ballad and took its inspiration from 'Lyrical Ballads', written as a collaboration between William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Keats was a keen reader of the latter's poetry, and influenced by it as well.
The poem deals with the loss of love, a parallel of which can be drawn in Keats' own life as well. It is known for its stark economy of form, the lines being short and forceful. It reveals his love for his neighbour, Fanny Brawne, and his awareness of his own impending death.
The knight-at-arms wanders along listlessly, looking haggard and love-lorn. He had met a beautiful lady, a faery's child with wild eyes. They had spent hours of dalliance together and he could not have been happier. However, she lulled him to sleep and when he awoke, the horror had overtaken him. Was it a dream or was it reality? He found himself lying alone on the cold hill side, seeing visions of pale kings and princes, all of whom had been the victims of 'La Belle Dame sans Merci' or the beautiful lady without pity, a lady who had entrapped them with her seductive beauty, and them left them high and dry.
There is a hint of the supernatural in the poem that makes it highly evocative. Romance, music and Gothic horror - this poem has it all. The genius of Keats was cut short when he died early. His epitaph reads, "Here lies one whose name was writ in water."
Wordsworth Trust
This post is a part of #BlogchatterA2ZChallenge2021
Ah John Keats' poem. Read it again after ages.
ReplyDeleteI always loved it for many reasons and i wrote a story taking inspiration from this poem. The title of my debut book too. Your summary is really good. The Romantic were my favourite poets
Deepika Sharma
The Romantics are my favourites as well, Deepika. This poem has stayed in my mind ever since I first read it when I was young. Thank you so much for your heartwarming comments.
ReplyDeleteLove that you added a photo of his epitaph. My interpretation was maybe he was unconscious (on the battlefield) and had met the woman in his dreams before coming back to reality.
ReplyDeleteAll of us have our own interpretations, Suchita, which is why reading poetry can be such an enjoyable challenge! :) Love your interpretation too!
DeleteI love the odes of John Keats and this particular poem that popularized the concept of 'Femme fatale'.
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed your analysis.
Yes, Purba, the original 'femme fatale' was Eve... these mythical heroines come a close second. Thank you.
DeleteThis poem was part of our intermediate syllabus. Was introduced to John Keats though this. It was a pleasure reading it again along with your analysis.
ReplyDelete