Rape of the Lock, The, by the English poet Alexander Pope, is the most famous mock-epic poem in the English language. It was first published in 1712 as a “miscellany piece” in a literary collection and then expanded in 1714 into the version we know today. The earlier version, consisting of two cantos (units), was 334 lines long, while the expanded version has five cantos and is 794 lines long.
Loading the player...The Rape of the Lock by Alexander Pope
“The Rape of the Lock” tells the story of a pretty young woman, Belinda, who has a lock of hair snipped off by a male suitor at a society gathering. The relatively trivial incident evidently took place in the early 1700’s and caused a quarrel between the families concerned. From this incident, Pope builds a tale of epic proportions, satirizing the manners and social customs of the English aristocracy he describes. The excerpt below (Canto I, lines 121-148) describes the heroine’s “toilet” (preparation at the dressing-table). The act of putting on make-up and arranging hair is subtly compared to the preparations for battle as described in the great war epics, such as Homer’s Iliad and Virgil’s Aeneid.
And now, unveiled, the toilet stands displayed, Each silver vase in mystic order laid. First, robed in white, the nymph intent adores, With head uncovered, the cosmetic powers. A heavenly image in the glass appears, To that she bends, to that her eyes she rears; Th’inferior priestess, at her altar’s side, Trembling, begins the sacred rites of pride. Unnumbered treasures ope at once, and here The various offerings of the world appear; From each she nicely culls with curious toil, And decks the goddess with the glittering spoil. This casket India’s glowing gems unlocks, And all Arabia breathes from yonder box. The tortoise here and elephant unite, Transformed to combs, the speckled, and the white. Here files of pins extend their shining rows, Puffs, powders, patches, Bibles, billet-doux. Now awful beauty puts on all its arms; The fair each moment rises in her charms, Repairs her smiles, awakens every grace, And calls forth all the wonders of her face; Sees by degrees a purer blush arise, And keener lightnings quicken in her eyes. The busy sylphs surround their darling care, These set the head, and those divide the hair, Some fold the sleeve, whilst others plait the gown; And Betty’s praised for labours not her own…
Pope uses the metaphor of battle to describe the relationship between the sexes. Social conventions at that time reduced the interactions between men and women to a sort of contest, where a woman’s beauty is merely her “armour” and potential suitors are like opponents to be conquered. The many amusing comparisons and contrasts in size between the battlefield and the dressing table create a brilliant example of comic poetry.
Most of Pope’s poetry was written in a metrical style called iambic pentameter, consisting of five metrical beats per line. He paired the lines in rhyming couplets, often called heroic couplets. This careful formal arrangement, along with the use of “poetic” language to describe a trivial episode, has the effect of subtly mocking the situation and making it appear ridiculous. Pope’s opening lines to “The Rape of the Lock” give a perfect summary of his point: “What dire offence from amorous causes springs / What mighty contests rise from trivial things.”
For more information on Pope, see Pope, Alexander. See also English literature (Swift and Pope); Poetry (Rhythm and meter).
