Rape of Lock
Character Analysis: Belinda
Belinda is a gorgeous, upper-class woman; whose beauty and charm seem to always place her as the center of attention. However, she is well aware of this beauty and I think she loves the admiration and adoration that it provides her with. It is this self-awareness and vanity that Pope mocks throughout the poem. The fact that she is so enraged by the act of cutting a curl from her hair emphasizes her reliance on her appearance as validation of her worthiness through her beauty. Her status as the “Queen Bee” or alpha female is also very important to her, as she lives in a society where class and status define your worth. So in a sense, by losing a lock of her hair, it perhaps symbolized a loss of beauty and by extension a downgrading in her ranking in society.
Character Analysis: The Baron The Baron appears to be a younger man, who knows Belinda to some extent, perhaps in the same social circle. He is portrayed in a humorous light, making an event out of cutting this lock of hair. He rises early, prays, and offers sacrifices all for the sake of successfully being able to perform his wish. Pope uses this character to emphasize the shallowness of Belinda, and to show that such a menial thing would bring about great reaction and strong emotions. The Baron seems to behave in such a manner like a little brother would: being sneaky and running behind her back, and then cutting her hair with no real purpose behind the action but rather to seek a reaction.
Character sympathy:
Personally, I sympathize more with The Baron. His mischievousness and trickery amuse me. While he acknowledges the vanity of his society, he does not seek to justify it or embrace it. Instead he makes a mockery of Belinda’s egotism and seeks to level the playing field by taking her beauty down a notch. While The Baron does seem vindictive and slightly classless, his lack of concern for social norms makes him appear slightly heroic. However, this perception may also be
Belinda is a gorgeous, upper-class woman; whose beauty and charm seem to always place her as the center of attention. However, she is well aware of this beauty and I think she loves the admiration and adoration that it provides her with. It is this self-awareness and vanity that Pope mocks throughout the poem. The fact that she is so enraged by the act of cutting a curl from her hair emphasizes her reliance on her appearance as validation of her worthiness through her beauty. Her status as the “Queen Bee” or alpha female is also very important to her, as she lives in a society where class and status define your worth. So in a sense, by losing a lock of her hair, it perhaps symbolized a loss of beauty and by extension a downgrading in her ranking in society.
Character Analysis: The Baron The Baron appears to be a younger man, who knows Belinda to some extent, perhaps in the same social circle. He is portrayed in a humorous light, making an event out of cutting this lock of hair. He rises early, prays, and offers sacrifices all for the sake of successfully being able to perform his wish. Pope uses this character to emphasize the shallowness of Belinda, and to show that such a menial thing would bring about great reaction and strong emotions. The Baron seems to behave in such a manner like a little brother would: being sneaky and running behind her back, and then cutting her hair with no real purpose behind the action but rather to seek a reaction.
Character sympathy:
Personally, I sympathize more with The Baron. His mischievousness and trickery amuse me. While he acknowledges the vanity of his society, he does not seek to justify it or embrace it. Instead he makes a mockery of Belinda’s egotism and seeks to level the playing field by taking her beauty down a notch. While The Baron does seem vindictive and slightly classless, his lack of concern for social norms makes him appear slightly heroic. However, this perception may also be