La Belle Dame Sans Merci

Question 1

Form and structure

Answer 1

• ballad form: 12 quatrains
• iambic tetrameter followed by iambic trimeter in alternating lines
• the structure and rhythm give it a folkloric, musical quality - enhancing the mythical and tragic one

Question 2

Summary

Answer 2

• ballad
• tells the story of a knight who falls in love with mysterious and enchanting woman

Question 3

Language and techniques

Answer 3

• imagery of nature: everything is lifeless, reflecting the knights inner barrenness and emotional ruin
• vision of other victims: powerful men are not righteous as they harm women as well

Question 4

Themes

Answer 4

• love and destruction: love brings ruin, not fulfilment
• illusion vs reality: the knight is seduced by a dreamlike fantasy, only to awaken to harsh truth
• entrapment
• both the structure and imagery suggest he is is cursed and unable to escape
• romanticism: typical romantic themes of intense emotion, nature, the supernatural and the tragic power of love

Question 5

Tone and mood

Answer 5

• melancholic, haunting, dreamlike
• the tone shifts from mystical enchantment to grief and hopelessness