The tone of a work of literature can be defined as the
attitude that the author takes on the them, a character or an object within that work of
literature. When we consider the overwhelming message of this excellent poem, which
regards the way that men view and construct an idealised view of womanhood and
femininity that springs from their own imagination and has nothing to do with the way
that women themselves view their position and gender in society, we can describe the
tone as sad and sombre, as the speaker reflects upon this state of affairs in her
culture and society. Note how this wistful and sombre mood is created in the last three
lines of the poem:
Not wan with waiting, not with sorrow
dim;
Not as she is; but was when hope shone
bright;
Not as she is, but as she fills his
dream.
The way that the
female subject of this poem is described clearly highlights the negative impact of this
idealisation upon her. She is described as a mere shadow of her former self, "when hope
shone bright." She now only has existence, not in her actual appearance (and note how
the four words "Not as she is" are repeated to emphasise this) but only as "she fills
his dream." She is interpreted and portrayed from his perspective, rather than having
any reality or life of her own. Thus the sombre tone of the poem is
established.
No comments:
Post a Comment