Byron, Shelley, Keats: Questions for Discussion and Further Research
In this second grouping of poems, pay attention to how the Romantics viewed men, women, love, and relationships.
Discuss:
- In both Don Juan and “La Belle Dame sans Merci,” men are portrayed as victims of women’s seductions and other machinations. Is there another way to read these poems? What clues suggest that the men in these pieces may not be victims? Does the satirical nature of Don Juan support this interpretation?
- What is Shelley’s argument in “Love’s Philosophy”? Why does he suggest that the female subject should kiss him? What counter-arguments exist? Should the argument be happening at all? (Explain why or why not.)
- In both “La Belle Dame sans Merci” and “Love’s Philosophy,” women are depicted as part of the natural (read: non-human) world outside. What effect does this have on each poem’s portrayal of female subjects?
Do further research:
- La Belle Dame sans Merci was depicted in a number of nineteenth- and twentieth-century paintings after the publication of Keats’s poem. Look up one of these images, and analyze how closely it reflects the ideas within the poem — as well as how it adds to and/or diverges from Keats’s verses. What moment in the poem has the artist chosen to depict? Why? Whose perspective does the scene emphasize? Who holds the most power? How can you tell? Finally, What does the painting suggest about romantic relationships, and does this support or subvert Keats’s message?
