Detailed Presentation - The Rape of the Lock

2. Characteristics of Epic
•The protagonist is a figure of great importance. The ideal person of that culture; a superhuman.
•The Setting is vast in scope.
•The action consists of the deeds of courage. ( For example- War)
•The intervention of gods and supernatural Elements.
•The style of writing is elevated.
•Opens by stating the theme of the Epic.
•Writer invokes a muse.

4. EPIC
•Epics are long poems which detail the heroic
journey of one or more characters.
•Highlights Bravery, courage and struggle of the
central character.
•One of the most famous examples of an epic is
The Iliad, a story set during the Trojan Wars.
MOCK HEROIC EPIC
•A mock epic does exactly what it suggests: it
works by 'mocking' the traditional epic.
• Focuses on a very silly and trivial matter.
•A famous example of a mock epic is "The Rape
of the Lock." This poem has all the grandeur of
an epic but instead of focusing on a heroic
quest, the action focuses on a baron who
steals a lock of hair from a lady, a far more
trivial activity.

5. Alexander Pope – In a Nutshell
Born in London, England
 Roman Catholic Family
 Inspired by the Classical Greek writers
 Self-taught
 At the age of 12 started writing
Translated many Greek Works

6. The Rape of the Lock – Background Idea
Two aristocrat Roman Catholic Families in friendship
Lord Petre and Lady Arbella Fermor fall in love
Petre cut Arbella’s lock of hair
Friendship between the families changed
Mr.John Caryll asked Pope to write a poem
Pope came up with the masterpiece of the age “The Rape of the Lock”

7. Characters
•Belinda
Beautiful young lady with wondrous hair, two locks of which hang gracefully in curls.
•The Baron
Young admirer of Belinda who plots to cut off one of her locks.
•Ariel
Belinda's guardian sylph (supernatural creature).
•Clarissa
Young lady who gives the Baron scissors.
•Umbriel
Spirit who enters the cave of the Queen of Spleen to seek help for Belinda.

8. •Queen of Spleen
Underworld goddess who gives Umbriel gifts for Belinda.
•Thalestris Friend of Belinda.
Thalestris urges Sir Plume to defend Belinda's honor.
•Sir Plume - He scolds the Baron.
Sylphs, Fairies, Genies, Demons, Phantoms and Other Supernatural Creatures
•Supernatural Machinery: In classical Epic, gods and goddesses were the
supernatural elements but here this part is performed by tiny spirits like; sylphs,
nymphs, gnomes, and salamanders etc.
•Source – a Real-Life Incident

9. Canto 1
Belinda awakes from sleeping
The dream of Belinda
Belinda prepares for the day’s social activities

10. Canto 2
The travel on the Thames river
The Baron’s desire
Ariel—Shock, Belinda’s lapdog

11. Canto 3
The game of cards—Ombre
Ombre: popular card game
Matadore: a powerful card that could take a trick
The rape of the lock

12. Canto 4
Belinda’s mood after the loss of the lock
Umbriel descends to the Cave of Spleen
Thalestris’ speech rouses the rage of Belinda
 Sir Plume bids in vain the payment of the lock

13. Canto 5
Clarissa’s speech
The battle of belles and beaux
The lock rises to the heaven and becomes a star

14. Trivial Title

15. Historical Context of The Rape of the
Lock
Pope’s age was one marked by a number of significant political, social, and economic changes.
After the deposition of Britain’s last Catholic monarch, James II, and the passage of the Test
Acts, anti-Catholic feeling was running high.
Pope satirizes the Protestant distaste for Catholic practices over the course of “The Rape of the
Lock.”
The beginning of industrialized mass production meant owning more “stuff” was suddenly more
affordable than it had ever been, Pope mocks Belinda’s almost senseless number of possessions.

16. Major Themes in the Rape of the Lock
•Beauty
•Religion and Morality
•Immortality and carefree nature of the upper class
•Female Desire and passion
•Love
•Pride

17. As a Mock-Heroic Epic
•Both Literary and Moral satire
•Pope’s Vein Compared with Others
•The Machinery Used in Mock-Heroic Epic
•The Use of Spiritual Machinery in Mock-Heroic Epic
•Mockery — both Human and Literacy
•Didactic Purpose of Rape of the Lock as a Mock-Heroic Epic
•The ridiculousness of a society in which values have lost all proportion
•The society on display in this poem is one that fails to distinguish between things that matter
and things that do not.

18. As a Social Satire
•Pope’s Satire in Rape of the lock
•The Poet’s Purpose
•Pope’s sincerity Towards Belinda’s beauty
•Pope’s Averse Attitude Towards Lord Petre
•Female Vanity as a piece of Satire in Rape of the Lock

19. Clarissa
A lady at court who lends the Baron her scissors to chop off Belinda’s lock of hair.
She later finds the whole incident frustratingly trivial and delivers a speech about how physical
beauty is ultimately fleeting and that instead women should concentrate on being as morally
upright as they possibly can.
Looks might prove attractive to the eyes, Clarissa declares, but virtue is most attractive to the
soul.
While her speech obviously makes good sense, it is typical of a more traditional style of poem
which would be primarily concerned with didacticism, or simply telling the reader what the
moral is.
Pope subverts the conventions of this style of writing by refusing to end the poem here and
instead concluding with the absurdity of the courtly battle. But Clarissa’s name, meaning
“clarity,” hints that the reader might do well to take her wise advice.

20. "Say, why are beauties prais'd and honour'd most,
The wise man's passion, and the vain man's toast?
Why deck'd with all that land and sea afford,
Why angels call'd, and angel-like ador'd?
Why round our coaches crowd the white-glov'd beaux,
Why bows the side-box from its inmost rows?
How vain are all these glories, all our pains,
Unless good sense preserve what beauty gains:
That men may say, when we the front-box grace:
'Behold the first in virtue, as in face!'
Oh! if to dance all night, and dress all day,
Charm'd the smallpox, or chas'd old age away;
Who would not scorn what housewife's cares produce,
Or who would learn one earthly thing of use?
To patch, nay ogle, might become a saint,
Nor could it sure be such a sin to paint.
But since, alas! frail beauty must decay,
Curl'd or uncurl'd, since locks will turn to grey,
Since painted, or not painted, all shall fade,
And she who scorns a man, must die a maid;
What then remains but well our pow'r to use,
And keep good humour still whate'er we lose?
And trust me, dear! good humour can prevail,
When airs, and flights, and screams, and scolding fail.
Beauties in vain their pretty eyes may roll;
Charms strike the sight, but merit wins the soul."

21. CLARISSA
Clarity or Reality
Virtue is important
Fearless
Free
Can be called “Voice of the author”
BELINDA
Conditioning of the Society
Beauty is important
Fearful
Domination of Beauty
Can be called “Trivial rules of the society”

22. Symbols
1.) Lock of Hair
the absurdity of the importance afforded to female beauty in society.
the loss of the lock as the symbolic loss of Belinda’s reputation in society.
emphasizes the ridiculous amount of emphasis placed on female beauty in society.
2.) Playing Cards – Ombre
the trivial nature of life at court.
the cards make for a silly substitute for the lives which might be lost in a real battle.
By infusing the card game with mock-seriousness, Pope consequently suggests that life at
court for Belinda and her peers is likewise empty, trivial, and mockable.

23. Question Bank
1.)Write a detailed note on Alexander Pope
2.) Explain the significance of “Lock of hair” with the reference to “The Rape of the lock”.
3.) Analyse - “The Rape of the Lock” as a Social Satire.
4.) Write a note on Pope’s use of Heroic Couplet in “The Rape of the Lock”.
5.) Analyse the Symbolism in “The Rape of the Lock”
6.) Compare and Contrast Belinda and Clarrisa in the “The Rape of the Lock”.
7.) Write a note on the trivial things and incidents presented in the “The Rape of the Lock”

24. 8.) What is the difference between the Heroic Epic and Mock- Heroic Epic with reference to
“The Rape of the Lock”.
9.) Which elements of society does Pope satirize in The Rape of the Lock? - Explain
10.) Discuss Pope’s critique of the sexual double-standard for women in The Rape of the Lock.
11.) What is the role of the supernatural forces (Sylphs, Gnomes, etc.) in The Rape of the Lock?
12.) Discuss Pope’s attitude towards religion in The Rape of the Lock. What are its implications
for his social critique?
13.) What are the implications of Clarissa’s moralizing speech in the fifth canto of The Rape of
the Lock?

25. Write short notes:-
1.) Clarrisa’s Speech
2.) Lock of the hair – A concept of beauty
3.) Belinda
4.) Baron’s Desire

26. Works Cited:-
Trepanier, Maddy. "The Rape of the Lock." LitCharts. LitCharts LLC, 12 Oct 2019. Web. 7 Aug
2021.