Rape of the Lock, rape of the lock by alexander pope, the rape of the lock poem summary and notes for the BA English Students Semester BBMKU and VBU University.
Rape of the Lock Summary
Belinda wakes to ready for the day’s social activities after sleeping late. Her guardian sylph, Ariel, alerted her in a dream that some disaster would happen and promised to defend her to the best of his capabilities. Belinda had little notice of this oracle, however. After a busy dressing and priming ritual, she travels by boat on the Thames River and arrived at Hampton Court Palace (an ancient royal residence outside of London) where a group of wealthy young socialites gather for a party. Baron one of them has already determined to steal a lock of Belinda’s hair. He has risen early to perform an elaborate set of prayers and sacrifices to promote success in this enterprise.
When the partiers arrive at the palace, they enjoy a tense game of cards, which Pope describes in mock-heroic terms as a battle. After a short break of coffee, Baron takes up a pair of scissors and attempted a third time to cut a lock of Belinda’s hair but this time he succeeded. Belinda is enraged. Umbriel, a mischievous gnome went to the Cave of Spleen to procure a sack of sighs and a flask of tears, which he awards the heroine to fan the flames of her anger.
Belinda’s friends arrived and with her boyfriend. She tried to cofort balinda. She also asked her boyfriend to beat Baron. Clarissa, who had helped the Baron in his crime, now advises Belinda to give up her anger in the shake of good spirit and good feeling, honourable qualities which will outlast her vanities. But Clarissa’s moralizing falls on deaf ears, and Belinda starts a scuffle between the ladies and the gentlemen and tried to recover her cutting lock.
The lock is lost in the confusion of this mock battle; however, the poet consoles the bereft Belinda with the suggestion that it has been taken up into the heavens and immortalized as a constellation.