Compare and contrast the Lady of Shalott with In Westminster Abby Essay

Consider* The context* The depiction of the women* Form* The poets use of lyric poem* Your responseBoth of the poems be approximately a womanhood. From the outset the two women appear very different, only when you study them more closely and we can vex to discover similarities.I think that both the woman in The Lady of Shalott and the women in West Minister Abbey are prisoners in some way or form. It is maybe more obvious in The Lady of Shalott where she is actually imprisoned inside a tower which is on an island and more than that she is also imprisoned by a curse which is upon her. The woman in Westminster Abbey is imprisoned by her lack of connection with reality and is so out of touch with the real world that I would say she is a prisoner within her self. The main difference between the two women is that one of them kat onces she is a prisoner and eventually in the contain breaks apart (even though it kills her) yet the other is blaitinly unaware.The tradition is which th ey are written is very different. The Lady of Shalott tells a story at that placefore it is a Narrative poem. In Westminster is about self-revelation so it is a dramatic monologue.The Lady of Shalott is set in the era of King Author and the Knights of the Round Table. The poem features Sir Lancelot (one of the bigest of the Knights) who is a key character. I think he symbolizes the male system that was very dominant back in the Victorian times. In short Lancelot represents to her all that she cant defend and accepting death is better than being locked up.The poem is split into four parts, which build a kind of chapter formation. Part one gives us a snatch of insight to what her surroundings are like and the fact she lives in a tower and that no one really knows very some(prenominal) about her. quite a little to towerd Camelot And by the moon the reaper weary, Piling sheaves in uplands airy, Listening, whispers Tis the fairy Lady of Shalott.This quote from the poem (which is th e last four lines of part 1) tells us that she is perceived almost like some kind of super natural being.In part two the lady of Shalott never stops working. She is weaving a picture of the things she sees reflected by a mirror so what she sees is 2-d and fickle. (Notice the contrast, her surroundings are drab yet her tapestry is colourful)A funeral, with plumes and lights and music, went to Camelot Or when the moon was overhead, Came two junior lovers lately wedThe above statement connects the funeral with a wedding like both are equal and that love is equivalent to death. The lady then realizes that there is something unsubstantial about her life and proclaimsIm half sick of shadowsIn Part three Lancelot appears and she sees his attractive reflection in the mirror, it appeals to her so much that she stops her work and looks out through the window at him. SHOCK the mirror breaks and the curse has come upon her. We can see how the lady almost becomes a mirror in herself with the gl assy expression on her face. In this chapter the rhyming pattern changes when Lancelot appears, usually every verse ends with the word Shalott but one of the verses ends with Camelot instead. This is emblematic of how much devastation he actually causes, the whole form of the poem alters when he appears.In part four she wonders from the tower d sustain to Camelot.And down the rivers dim expanse Like some bold seer in a trance,Seeing all his own mischance With a glassy mug.These lines tell of the ladys trance like gaze possibly cause by thoughts of passion and desire (Lancelot). This could indicate that she is not responsible for her own actions. The changes of weather in the chapter indicate the change in mood. She comes down to Camelot and finds a boat that is her final resting-place. She does not kill her self, nor is she evil because her last song is express to be mournful and holy. All the people gather round her and in the crowd, totally oblivious to the fact he caused her d eath Lancelot proclaims that god has mercy on her as she has a lovely face.In Westminster Abbey is set during a war against Germany in the church in Westminster abbey. A woman is talking the whole time, which makes this, understandably different from the last. In fact she is doing more than talking, she is praying. Once we discover that the audience is God we become very shocked by the things she is coming out with, in particular when she says if he makes a mistake she will forgive him She is being incredibly selfish and asking for special treatment i.e. that she should be protected more than anyone else. The woman is being greedy and praying for silly things like that her shares down go down and such like. In one of the verses she is talking about why England should win.There is great juxtaposition in the list that she gives placing things like democracy and class distinction together and then bringing in the fact they have proper drains, which clean turn ups her snobbery. In o ther parts she is racist telling god to protect the blacks but to protect the whites more, which is saying that whites are more important just because they are more sophisticated and probably more civilized that the blacks she was talking about. The last verse gives us real insight into her character. She asks God for what she wants and expects to have her prayers answered in turn over for doing things she should have been doing any way. I.e. helping the war effort and going to church when ever she got the time. The poem ends with her having to leave for a social occasion-A now dear lord I cannot wait,Because I have a luncheon dateShe is a snob and she thinks God is one too, instead of praying to him in her topical anesthetic church she comes all the was to Westminster because she thinks God will view her prayer as more important. The end line of every verse deflates to what she has said (exposes the selfishness). The poet uses irony to show her up so you cant help laughing becaus e you become almost astonished by the things that she says. The womans actions dont co-inside with her wrangle and the language doesnt fit. This makes her seem like a walking contradiction.I think there is great contrast in both the context and styles of these poems but there still are similarities. They are both poems with a message the message in The Lady of Shalott is that if you strive for more freedom you might end up dead. The message in the second poem is that we arent always aware of our faults etc. but they are always there.