Reading Malory’s “The Fair Maid of Astolat” influenced how I read Tennyson’s “The Lady of Shallot“. The victorian poem focuses primarily on the Lady of Shalott herself with a delayed introduction of Lancelot. Malory’s poem is filled with many characters. The overlapping names, places and backstory can be vastly overwhelming compared to the simplistic characters in the victorian poem. The focus was on the longing of Love rather than the need for community. The Malory poem felt like a war story or catalog of random people and battles. In comparison to Tennyson’s work, Malory’s poem is free of magical elements and focused only of the biographical events that occurred.

I will admit, I was a little biased against Lancelot after reading his lack of integrity or concern in Tennyson’s work. I remember vaguely mumbling something along the lines of “Typical man” when he commented on her appearance even after she had passed on. It was difficult to remember that there as no previous relationship between the two individuals prior to her passing. Malory tells a completely different person. Lancelot is an adulterous liar who takes advantage of love seeking women. In Malory’s version, Lancelot is more hated for his actions and treatment of others.

Bring on the women! Tennyson’s poem elicits an emotional response from the audience in favor of our lovely Lady of Shallot. Our lady is trapped in a loveless tower searching for an unobtainable male emotional response. In Malory’s version, the heavy weight of detail raises questions about the Lady of Shalott’s situation in Tennyson’s work. It is unclear as to wether or not she is trapped by force or is trapped as a choice. Is she cursed? Is she magical? It is unclear. In Malory’s version there is an overflow of details on the Maydyn. She is not trapped in a tower but rather gives herself to a man she recently met and showed unreciprocated feelings resulting in her eventual suicide. The audience’s emotional support is present not at her final act of suicide, but rather at the deception presented by Lancelot. Both women can be viewed as slaves to their own towers of unrequited love, but one has the option to live free and one dies for “love”.

Tennyson’s poem seems for like a ballad or sweet lullaby in comparison to the hefty intake of Malory’s poem. However, Malory’s poem provides more backstory to the characters with historical basis. Tennyson’s poem lacks the historical grounding, but in some cases I think I enjoy that poem better. The Lady of Shallot seems like a character that many women can feel connected to. Perhaps women trapped in abusive relationships who are searching for love outside of their loveless castle. In any case, I am more likely to be reciting the melodic stanzas of Tennyson’s work rather than quoting Malory’s extensive poem in my daily life. So for this round, Tennyson’s poem wins.

Some could say that Oliver’s beginning is an injustice in itself. One of the most important aspects of the novel is the frustrating struggle of injustice. Oliver Twist is a victim of the society around him. If Oliver had been born into an identified wealthy family, his early life would have been much different. Throughout the novel, Dickens makes it apparent that people born into the lower classes have no chance of moving into another class. Being born into the lower classes of this society is a death sentence. Oliver could have been spared from the injustice he had under taken if it wasn’t for the unjust decision of his birth nurse. The individual nurse could be part to blame, but the society she was a part & serves is the real criminal. The criminal society is what brought Agnes to the workhouse in the first place. The societal fear of being shamed & defamed due to a baby out of wedlock weighed heavier on her conscience than giving birth to a baby in a proper environment. Oliver is a product of the society he was born into. Other around him have created the unjust circumstance he was born into. Unfortunately, like many others in his situation, he cannot get out of the trapped lifestyle. Even if he shouldn’t have been there in the first place.

London is to Holmes as Oxygen is to life. Holmes would be incomplete without London as his greatest companion. With the development of police professionals in the city of London, less crimes were being solved by crows of people on the street as seen in Dickens’ Oliver Twist. Thank God we developed a more organized police force. In light of these new police developments, there are always internal and external problems with new organizations. Police officers are valuing themselves high above the “theoretical and fantastic” people like our dear Holmes. The place of London is expanding in both economic production but also population. This makes an influx in criminal activity more likely to occur. It makes sense that Holmes would find more crimes to solve in London than in a smaller town outside the big booming & heavily cramped city.

The balance between the various colliding religions and social classes can cause issues for the criminal activities in the city of London. Holmes is faced with a clashing of differing people in a tense time in London’s history. The accusations of social misconduct & bad behavior could expand on the number of crimes that would normally be committed in a city. Holmes is going up against a growing professional organization and a growing population but still manages to keep his name in people’s minds. I guess that’s the benefit of living in the big city, word travels fast.

In this photo (the right picture), the man has a traveling selling table perched in the side walk of an unidentified corner of the city. The box is very clean and the advertisement is clearly labeled and explained for the buyer. The lady behind the box has a look of disgust on her face. Perhaps she is a shop keeper or disapproving neighbor, regardless she does not seem interested in the peppermints. The girl looks to be 19-21 years of age from the side view of the picture.  Her arm looks cut possibly implying that she works and gets sick or hurt often. The man in the hat looks polished and looks like a convincing business man.

The picture is black and white with elements of contrasting colors. The young girl is wearing a black dress with a simple headpiece, maybe she is a widow? The woman in the doorways is wearing a black coat over a white dress, while the man is in all black with a white button down underneath. The setting looks to be a lower-class community, perhaps not poor but most definitely not rich.  Although he appears to be wealthy or professional doctor, I do not think he is.

My reaction to the photo was fueled by my extensive knowledge of 19th century doctors from my various British Netflix Dramas. The John Tomson photo “Street Doctors” (pictured right) made me laugh. These “street doctors” are what we would refer to as street vendors (or so I think). A typical doctor would not sell ointment on the side of the street without any examination of the patients. The man in this picture does not have any identifying features or characteristics that would distinguish him as a doctor. The gentleman in this picture also seems to have a hemmed jacket and dirty shoes. Doctors would have more of a professional attire that differs from the above (right) picture. I think it is significant to think about the role of a doctor in the society. Doctor’s would make home visits to patients which required them to be both professional and discrete. The use of a table outside a home seems rather sly or slick. Possibly using modern words, promoting a scam.

I would like to focus first on the significant of Wordsworth’s language choice, formal choices, etc. Wordsworth’s poem “Composed Upon Westminster Bridge” depicts the speaker’s view of London with the voice of a modern English man in a beloved style. The poem is a Petrarchan sonnet as opposed to a Shakespearian Sonnet, which to me is slightly unexpected. Seeing as Shakespeare is one to the most well known British writes & Wordsworth is writing about England, one would think that he would compose a poem in the Shakespearean sonnet rather than the style of a famous Italian Renaissance poet. A typical Petrarchan sonnet has fourteen lines that are divided into two sections: one with eight lines and one with six. At the ninth line, the poem makes a “turn” (or volta in Italian) and begins to elaborate in a different way on the subject or, sometimes, introduce a new topic altogether. Wordsworth’s sonnet has a more subtle turn. In the first eight lines he introduces the idea that he has never seen such beauty before and then describes the scene. In the last six lines he returns to the idea of unparalleled beauty, this time comparing London to the countryside. The rhyme scheme of Wordsworth piece is fairly simple: ABBAABBA CDCDCD. Only one pair of rhyming lines is slant (not quite a real rhyme, but almost): “by” and “majesty” in lines 2 and 3. The poem is written in a loose iambic pentameter, consisting of five (“penta”) pairs of unstressed and stressed beats (“iambs”):

Dear God! | the ver|-y hous|-es seem | a-sleep.

But not all of the lines follow this pattern. The first two lines, for example, both begin on stressed beats: “Earth” and “Dull.” This loose rhythm comes closer to capturing momentary experience and a conversational tone than a stricter meter would. Wordsworth tried to write how regular people speak, which is one of the reasons he is considered one of the first “modern” English poets.

Now focusing on the connection between man and nature, in the first line of the poem “Earth has not anything to show more fair”, the speaker gives “earth” all the credit for the beauty of the world around him. But what about all the people who designed and built the towers and domes? In lines 4-5, “Like a garment, wear..The beauty of the morning”, the speaker talks about Nature brining out the beauty in the landmarks of London. Interestingly, the affects of the light are compared to clothing, a product of human culture. This tells us as readers that it is hard to tell nature and culture apart. Both work hand in hand, how can you separate them? In line 12 “The river glideth at his own sweet will”, the images of nature play against the expectation of feelings rushed and hurried by the city. Unlike humans, he river does not allow itself to be rushed. It flows at a slow and even pace. Humans should look to nature for its simplicity but perfection.

Wordsworth London seem slightly unreachable, the city is always bustling with an influx of tourists and events (royal wedding 2018). It seems impossible for someone to go wandering around the city and staring at the untouched natural beauty. This poem reminds me of American Transcendalist writers such as Thoreau & Emerson. These writers called for people to step away from the busy modern world and look around at nature.

This poem makes me think about the time I was in London and walked along the river early in the morning. The tourist spots weren’t open and there were no lines anywhere. It’s amazing what a city like London looks like without the giant crowds and hustle. Wordsworth highlights the important thing to remember, London is a beautiful city even without the tourist spots and gags. This poem has challenged me to find the inner heart of the city and spend time to look at the nature hidden behind the large crowds.