As mentioned, The Rape of the Lock is a mock epic. The poet intends his poem to be humorous, but at the same time the poet uses the same conventions and characteristics of a real epic. However, the poet of the mock epic will often present such conventions in a manner that is ridiculous or opposite to the way they are presented in a serious epic.
Before examining Pope's poem, the reader may
find it helpful to review the qualities of a serious epic.
Almost all epics contain the following six haracteristics:
life figure. He is bigger, better, stronger, and smarter than most other men. He is important to his nation. He may even be internationally famous. Usually, he is often an important historical figure.
Supernatural forces, such as gods, angels, demons, or monsters, usually interfere in the lives of mankind.
A number of other conventions or qualities may also appear in the epic:
invocation of the muse."
"in medias res" means in the middle of things. The epic poet does not begin his story at the very beginning. Rather, he starts in the middle of the action. For example, in The Iliad Homer tells the story about the Trojan War. That war lasted for ten years. However, Homer begins his tale at the ninth year.
OR ARMIES: The poet often presents a catalog or list in the epic. For example, in an epic like The Iliad, a list of all of the Greek kings and warriors appears. Each king or warrior is also briefly described. Part of the purpose of an epic was historical. The epic would record or preserve the names of the great heroes from a nation's past.
Iliad the captains or leaders of both the Greek and Trojan armies address or speak to their troops in a formal manner.
Many of these conventions or characteristics appear in The Rape of the Lock. But they appear in a comic manner or style. Pope mocks or makes fun of his subject matter by employing these conventions in a humorous way.
As noted above, one of the prominent or important features of an epic is the use of supernatural forces. In The Iliad, the Greek gods, like
Zeus, Athena, and Apollo, take an interest in the Trojan
War and even become involved in the action. In
Paradise Lost, God, Jesus Christ, Satan, angels, and devils all play a prominent role in the action involving Adam and Eve. For his mock epic, Pope also decided to add supernatural forces. But because he wanted to be comical, Pope did not wish to use the gods of the serious epics. So, instead, Pope decided to uses the supernatural forces of the Rosicrucians.
If anything, the Rosicrucians were probably a cult: a religious group with extreme or traditionally unacceptable views. Some cults are even intentionally bogus or fake. They are set up to cheat people out of their money. In fact, people today are not even sure that the Rosicrucians really ever existed. In the early
17th century two books were published (Fama
Fraternitatas in 1614 and Confessio Fraternitatis in 1615) that claimed that a secret society had been in existence since the 15th century. This society was called "the brethren of the rosy cross" (or Rosicrucians). This society, so the books state, claim to have secret knowledge and magical powers. They claimed they could turn cheap metal (like iron or copper) into gold (alchemy). They claimed they could make people live long, long lives. And they claimed they had power over the elements and the spirits of the elements. During the Middle ages, people belived there were four principle elements: earth, air, water, and fire. The Rosicrucians believed that there were spirits that were connected to each of these elements. If one could control these spirits, they stated, then one could also control the elements.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the views of the Rosicrucians spread across Europe and into England. Many fashionable or affluent (rich) people especially became fascinated by the Rosicrucian promise of power and wealth. In a sense, the fascination with the Rosicrucians became a kind of fad or popular activity for many of the gullible (or easily fooled) people of that time. Of course, the fascination with Rosicrucian beliefs suggests a contrast to the logical and practical views normally associated with the people living during the Age of Reason.
Alexander Pope did not believe in the Rosicrucian claims. However, the idea of elemental spirits struck him as the perfect choice for the supernatural creatures in his poem. In this way, Pope not only finds a suitable poetic device for his mock epic. But he also indirectly finds a way to satirize or make fun of the Rosicrucians and all those people who blindly accepted the Rosicrucian beliefs.
In the poem Pope describes the four elemental spirits. But in his poem, these spirits are so tiny that they are invisible to the human eye. They are also quite comical. To add to the humor even more, Pope invented a story to explain the origins of these comic spirits (explained below).
THE STRUCTURE OF
The story in The Rape of the Lock is a simple one. Still, the student may find the following summary helpful. The conflict concerns Belinda (the heroine) and the Baron. The Baron cuts off a lock of Belinda's hair because he is quite attracted to her. But Belinda becomes angry and upset. And, so, Belinda and the Baron quarrel or fight, and their friends also become involved in the struggle.
As noted earlier, the poem has five divisions or sections called cantos.
Canto 1 is set in Belinda's bedchamber.
Belinda is asleep. While she is sleeping, a sylph appears. A sylph is a sprite or spirit of the air. The name of this particular sylph is Ariel. Ariel is like a guardian angel. His job is to protect Belinda. He flies to the ear of Belinda and whispers to her. She hears his voice in her sleep, but will later think the voice was just a dream. Ariel tells Belinda all about the four kinds of spirits -- the spirits of air, earth, fire, and water. More importantly, Ariel warns Belinda that something bad is about to happen to her. Ariel does not know exactly what will happen, but he does know that the bad event will involve a man. Later, when Belinda is awake, she forgets the warning.
Canto 2 includes a scene at the Baron's house. The Baron prepares a sacrifice to the God of Love so that he can successfully cut off Belinda's two beautiful locks of curly hair. Meanwhile, Ariel seeks the assistance of other sylphs to help him so that he can protect Belinda.
Canto 3 takes place at a fashionable coffeehouse or teahouse. Belinda plays a card game called Ombre against the Baron and one other man. The Baron plays well, but Belinda defeats both him and the other man. After the game there is a coffee break. When Belinda is relaxed and least suspecting any trouble, the Baron cuts off one of her curls.
Canto 4 introduces another supernatural creature named Umbriel. Umbriel is a gnome, a spirit of the earth. The gnomes are bad, though not quite evil. They like to cause trouble. Umbriel visits the Cave of Spleen, a kind of underworld, where the queen there presents him with two magical gifts. These gifts will cause Belinda and her friends to become even angrier and to make the conflict get worse. In the coffeehouse Belinda tries to get her curl back from the Baron. Belinda also presents a speech, in which she displays how angry and upset she is.
In Canto 5 another woman named Clarissa also presents a speech. Clarissa is the Baron's friend. In her speech she tells Belinda not to be so angry and not to place so much value on physical beauty. Belinda, however, is too angry to listen to her. Her argument or fight against the Baron continues. Finally, Belinda takes some tobacco and throws it at the Baron. The Baron sneezes. When he does this, he drops the lock of hair. Everybody looks for the lock, but they cannot find it. Magically, the lock flies up into the night sky and turns into a bright and shining star.