"The Lady of Shallot" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, is a
beautiful, mythical poem filled with enchantment, the Arthurian Knight Lancelot,
Camelot, and the tragic fate of the "Lady."
Tennyson's poem
tells the story of a young and beautiful woman who lives in a tower. She can see the
river running past, as well as a road that leads to Camelot. Uncertain as to why she is
in her predicament, she is knowns she is under a curse and may not look directly upon
anything outside of her "prison," and neither can she leave. She weaves all day and
watches the reflection of the world passing by through a mirror. It is in this way that
she catches sight of Lancelot. The crusader passes by her home singing, as he heads
toward Camelot; she sees the "plume" on his helmet and his flashing
armor.
Tired of her life, the Lady of Shallot turns,
quickly crosses the room and looks directly at the world around her, and the power of
the curse falls upon her.
She left the web, she left the
loom,
She made three paces through the
room,
She saw the water-lily
bloom,
She saw the helmet and the
plume,
She look'd down to
Camelot.
Out flew the web and floated
wide;
The mirror crack'd from side to
side;
"The curse is come upon me,"
cried
The Lady of
Shalott.
She leaves her home
and makes her way down to the river, where she finds a small boat. Lady Shallot paints
her name on the side of the boat, rests herself on its bottom, and sets it afloat.
Carried by the river's current, the young woman sings and watches the world as it passes
above her, seeing things that have been kept from her, and soon dies. When the boat
reaches Camelot, a group of people gather around the boat, wondering who she is.
Lancelot is there. He calls down a heavenly blessing on this lovely woman who has died
and notes that she "has a lovely face."
(By the way,
Loreena McKennit sings a shortened version of this poem, which is quite
lovely.)
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