'Sir Plume demands the restoration of the lock,' an oil painting by Charles Robert Leslie, inspired by Alexander Pope's 'The Rape of the Lock,' exhibited in 1854

Satirical brilliance in Pope's 'The Rape of the Lock'

Delving into the social commentary and symbolism of Alexander Pope's masterpiece

20 JUNE 2024, 

TRACEY MADELEY JONES

The first part of the eighteenth century was regarded as the Augustan Age due to poets such as Pope and Swift. Augustan poetry incorporates references to Greek and Roman writers: Virgil, Ovid, and Horace. Pope in The Rape of the Lock refers to supernatural beings such as the sylph inhabitants of the air and nymphs of the water, along with gnomes who are demons of the earth and delight in mischief. He is also characterised by his satire, making fun of human flaws.

 

Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 – 30 May 1744) is generally regarded as the greatest English poet of the eighteenth century, portrait by Michael Dahl

Virtue and vanity in Pope's eighteenth-century women

Analyzing Martha’s role as the ideal woman in Pope’s poem

20 JULY 2024, 

TRACEY MADELEY JONES

Felicity Nussbaum, in her critique of the poem, argues there is no single theme that unifies the poem, suggesting various ideas are repeated. Martha becomes the embodiment of eighteenth-century conduct book expectations for women: good humor, sense, social love, and a quiet, unassuming wit. Compared to other women who are imposters with assumed identities, she is presented as genuine. In contrast are the portraits of the women condemned by society for being fickle, inconsistent, excessive self-love, and ostentatious displays of wit. These attributes were condemned as a self-centered approach, as they could be seen as challenging men’s positions in an effort to outshine them. Wit was associated with immorality due to the prejudice against women learning, as when taken to extremes, it could make them violent, quarrelsome, and destructive of the social order. James Fordyce stated that women who sought knowledge looked for control and power. His solution was they should confine themselves to the domestic sphere.