Loneliness in the Lady of Shalott and Mariana.
The themes of loneliness, exile and escape from reality are important aspects that characterize the works of Alfred Lord Tennyson. During the 1800s, these aspects differentiated him from other Victorian poets, distinguishing him as one of the most popular poets of the Victorian era. In Tennyson's poems Mariana, and The Lady of Shalott, the artists express loneliness in their isolation from the rest of the world. The following essay will compare and contrast the displays of temporary and permanent loneliness of these artists through Tennyson's use of imagery, repetition, and word painting. Tennyson's extensive repetition in The Lady of Shalott and Mariana is an important feature in establishing feelings of loneliness. In Marianna, the last four lines of every stanza are repeated. For example,
She only said, "My life is dreary,
He cometh not," she said;
She said, "I am aweary, aweary,
I would that I were dead" (8-12).
These four lines represent the emotions that Mariana is feeling in her lonely state. She is alone and exhausted, as she waits for her loved one to join her. Tennyson ultimately allows the reader to better understand the way Mariana feels by repeating her emotions several times throughout the poem. Tennyson uses repetition to express these feelings because Mariana's life is a constant repetition of the same suffering emotions day in and day out as she chooses not to act upon it. This is very much like the repetition found in The Lady of Shalott. Lines five and ten in each stanza of the poem show the repetition of "Camelot" and "Shalott". Tennyson repeats these words many times throughout the poem to show the isolation of the Lady in her separate, artistic world of Shalott and therefore away from the real, everyday world of Camelot. This division of worlds is an important distinction that the reader must first see in order to truly understand the state of loneliness that the Lady is subjected to. Tennyson also shows some fluctuations in his
She only said, "My life is dreary,
He cometh not," she said;
She said, "I am aweary, aweary,
I would that I were dead" (8-12).
These four lines represent the emotions that Mariana is feeling in her lonely state. She is alone and exhausted, as she waits for her loved one to join her. Tennyson ultimately allows the reader to better understand the way Mariana feels by repeating her emotions several times throughout the poem. Tennyson uses repetition to express these feelings because Mariana's life is a constant repetition of the same suffering emotions day in and day out as she chooses not to act upon it. This is very much like the repetition found in The Lady of Shalott. Lines five and ten in each stanza of the poem show the repetition of "Camelot" and "Shalott". Tennyson repeats these words many times throughout the poem to show the isolation of the Lady in her separate, artistic world of Shalott and therefore away from the real, everyday world of Camelot. This division of worlds is an important distinction that the reader must first see in order to truly understand the state of loneliness that the Lady is subjected to. Tennyson also shows some fluctuations in his
Bibliography: Norton Anthology of Poetry. Ed. Margaret Ferguson, Salter, Mary Jo, Stallworthy, Jon. New York: Norton, 1997. Mong, Lydia. "Animals and Their Symbolic Meanings." Symbol Art 2002. 5 April 2004 . Morris, William. "Art and Idealism (Victorian Values)." History Today 1996. 5 April 2004 . Ryals, Clyde. Theme and Symbol in Tennyson 's Poems to 1850. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania, 1964. Tucker, Suzetta. "Ravens, crows, blackbirds; Omen of death & divine providence." The Bestiary 1998. 5 April 2004 .