Literary Devices in The Lady of Shalott Essay

The Lady of Shalott by Alfred Tenysson is a poem about an isolated artist trapped in her own pieces of work. She can not escape the life she lives because of a curse set upon her when she was born. Tennysons theme is that no one understands the world in the same way as the artist does because the artist is too distracted by desire to participate in the world; this is shown greatly through tone, imagery and symbolism in The Lady of Shalott.

Tone is the authors attitude towards the subject. In the beginning of The Lady of Shalott the tone the author sets is calm and peaceful. Describing the beautiful surrounding area of the island of Shalott with barley and rye,/ that clothe the world and meet the sky (2-3 Tenysson). This brings the reader to almost false pretences, thinking it will be a nice, calming poem. The time dramatically changes from peacefulness to darkness as Lady Shalot bluntly states that she is, Half sick of shadows (71). This bold statement provides the reader with a whole new understanding of the poem and of Lady Shalott. When Lady Shalott sees the two lovers from the reflection of her mirror it creates sympathy for Lady Shalott and pathos because it is something she yearns for. This darkness remains the same throughout most of the poem, with Lady Shalott wanting nothing more than to escape her prison and life that she is cursed to live. When she finally decides to take that step and to test the curse the mirror automatically breaks and realising the curse is upon her she decides to try to see Sir Lancelot one time before the curse takes over her and she dies. As she gets into the boat to float across to Camelot to see Sir Lancelot there is a sense of peacefulness brought back to the poem. Lady Shalott gives the impression of an angel because she is clothed in a white dress and is at peace. When Sir Lancelot finds Lady Shalott floating in her boat he also sees the beauty and calmness in Lady Shalott, She has a lovely face; God in mercy lend her grace,/ The Lady of Shalott. (169-171). The tone changes quickly and dramatically throughout the poem which helps keep the reader in tuned to the poem. The urgent change in Lady Shalotts attitude towards living her life differently depicts the change in tone for the rest of the poem.

Imagery is a series of repeated images. In The Lady of Shalott the imagery of isolation plays a significant role throughout the poem. The first mention of isolation is with the island of Shalott itself, being an island isolates it from surrounding land. Lady Shalott is isolated also in her tower by herself, and all she was able to do is look through a mirror to see the world outside. This imagery of isolation depicts just how alone Lady Shalott really is. This form of isolation is also showing the dull life Lady Shalott leads by colours that surround her or lack their of, Four grey walls, and four grey towers,/ overlook a space of flowers (15-16). Lady Shalotts life is like she is living in black and white but the world outside of her tower is full of colour. Also the bold, bright colours that Sir Lancelot wears are a contrast to the dull life and colours Lady Shalott lives with. Sir Lancelot is depicted as one of her works of art to the reader because of how bright he is. The image of when Lady Shalott dies is also a very strong image, Lying, robed in snowy white (136) and, Till her blood was frozen slowly,/ And her eyes were darkened wholly (147-148). This picture that the writer puts into your mind almost haunts the reader because of beautiful description of Lady Shalott. The strong images that the poet creates of, helps the reader enjoy the poem more and fully understand the meaning of it. Lady Shalott is surrounded by the lonely dull colours which she lives in, the world outside her seems so much brighter than her dungeon and she yearns for the feeling of actually touching and being around these bright colours.

Symbolism is imagery that is repeated. The symbolism in this poem is isolating and/or alienating because Lady Shalotts talent that she has is also a curse which she views the world from. She must than remain distant from the outer world in order to capture all aspects of it without prejudice as an observer not an experience. Therefore, no one understands the world in the same was as the she does. The town Camelot is a symbol of the real world and what Lady Shalott yearns for, A curse is on her if she stay/ To look down to Camelot (140-141). When Sir Lancelot comes around he is a temptation to Lady Shalott of the real world and of love. She wants nothing more than to love and be loved by somebody and Sir Lancelot is her temptation for this. This is very significant because in the end Lady Shalott decides she would rather die than to have never felt the feeling of love. She decides finally to see if the curse is real, and even though she finds out it is, and it is upon her she leaves to see Sir Lancelot one last time before she dies. The tapestry works that Lady Shalott creates are all the reflections of the world from her mirror and what she longs to be a part of. Also as mentioned before the colour in her artwork is a contrast against her dull life, But in her web she still delights/ To weave the mirrors magic sights,/ For often through the silent nights/ A funeral, with plumes and lights (164-167). These works of art are all Lady Shalott has to do to pass the time, weaving reflections of the world in which she can only see through a reflection. This all has to do with the creations of Lady Shalott because without her beautiful works of art she would have been lonely; she would rather experience life than to watch it. Also being able to freeze images she had seen and weave them into webs of thread helped her understand the world better since she could not go out and experience it for herself.

The Lady of Shalott is a very moving poem. The poem has many emotions and colours running through its words which help the reader feel as if they are Lady Shalott themselves experiencing the feeling of watching the world around you. The desire to participate in the world, that yearning feeling helps the reader understand why she decided to do what she did. Tone, symbolism and imagery and are major parts in this poem and by knowing them they help to understand the poem more thoroughly.