The Highwayman
Virtues, Vices, Love, Risks: “The Highwayman” and Its Lessons for the Modern World
It is a common perception in the world that love is very dangerous. This philosophy is one of the greatest themes in the poem, “The Highwayman” by Alfred Noyes. In this poem, the highwayman, a robber on the roads, comes to an inn to meet with Bess, the daughter of the landlord. He leaves her but promises to return. However, he does not, and while he is away, Bess is attacked by the king’s men who await her lover. Bess warns the highwayman by shooting herself, driving him into attempting to kill himself; but before that, he is shot down by a bullet. A story of love and death, this poem includes noteworthy themes such as how love makes one do crazy things, as well …show more content…
As a robber, the highwayman is expected to be a fiendish character, yet he is virtuous and almost heroic. He is passionately in love, which is a virtue. This is when he promises to Bess to return even in the harshest trouble, saying, “I’ll come to thee by moonlight, though hell should bar the way” (30). In contrast, King George’s men, who are supposed to be righteous people because of their title, are the ones who are full of vices. They are the ones who mistreat Bess and her father. In line 49, it states, “They had tied her up to attention, with many a sniggering jest”, showing how they harm her, and then mock her by sniggering at her. It is also implied that Bess is sexually harassed when it mentions, “They kissed her” (51). The irony of this situation illustrates how vices are not only in bad men, and virtues are not only in good men; it appears in both kinds. This truth can be applied to the world today, especially on people in higher power that are expected to be virtuous. Of course, these people are not fully pure, and neither are criminals fully impure. With this, the poem shows how, although old, its messages are not outdated and still
It is a common perception in the world that love is very dangerous. This philosophy is one of the greatest themes in the poem, “The Highwayman” by Alfred Noyes. In this poem, the highwayman, a robber on the roads, comes to an inn to meet with Bess, the daughter of the landlord. He leaves her but promises to return. However, he does not, and while he is away, Bess is attacked by the king’s men who await her lover. Bess warns the highwayman by shooting herself, driving him into attempting to kill himself; but before that, he is shot down by a bullet. A story of love and death, this poem includes noteworthy themes such as how love makes one do crazy things, as well …show more content…
As a robber, the highwayman is expected to be a fiendish character, yet he is virtuous and almost heroic. He is passionately in love, which is a virtue. This is when he promises to Bess to return even in the harshest trouble, saying, “I’ll come to thee by moonlight, though hell should bar the way” (30). In contrast, King George’s men, who are supposed to be righteous people because of their title, are the ones who are full of vices. They are the ones who mistreat Bess and her father. In line 49, it states, “They had tied her up to attention, with many a sniggering jest”, showing how they harm her, and then mock her by sniggering at her. It is also implied that Bess is sexually harassed when it mentions, “They kissed her” (51). The irony of this situation illustrates how vices are not only in bad men, and virtues are not only in good men; it appears in both kinds. This truth can be applied to the world today, especially on people in higher power that are expected to be virtuous. Of course, these people are not fully pure, and neither are criminals fully impure. With this, the poem shows how, although old, its messages are not outdated and still