Alfred, Lord Tennyson wrote The Lady of Shalott. The reason this might be of any interest is that the poem plays an important role in the book (and play) Anne of Green Gables. Last semester, in this semi-euphoric high, I tried out for and got a part in a Mask Club production of Anne of Green Gables and ended up playing the part of Matthew Cuthbert. Matthew is an old man who wants to adopt Anne. Marilla is his sister. They end up adopting Anne.
I spent the month or two I dealt with that play in a rather annoyed and depressed state. Matthew, in the play, is painfully shy. This is a key to the character; though, around Anne, he kind of comes out of that shell because she is such an outgoing, non-judgmental individual. Because I was dealing with this play six days a week, and because I was never really allowed to get out of character, I was always “on” when it came to Matthew. As a result, the shell I already seem to live in became thicker and harder to pull myself out of.
This, in part, led to my realizing that I might be good at acting; but, that I am not eager to get back into it. Part of the exploration of this was the audition for the next level of classes at BYU. I didn’t know about the auditions until a couple days in advance; I didn’t have time to prepare (and yes, it is very necessary to prepare); and when I got my reviews back, I was not disappointed that I didn’t get accepted.
At the same time, I was supposed to be in the second part of a philosophy class I was taking last semester. The problem, I kept becoming agitated as I dealt with the class and, at the last minute (like the day before the class) I dropped it and picked up a religion credit. This caused me to lose the frustration the class was causing; and, at the same time, I was somewhat taken aback after a rather candid conversation with one of the two professors teaching the class. My responsibilities would’ve been to write and to be a part of a production crew; and, chances are, I would’ve directed one of the movies being produced; but, at the same time, I discovered that I was on the path to getting married. Specifically, we’d moved from just talking about it to getting serious about really getting engaged and getting married.
The class no longer held a place and the final straw (camel’s back). The day after the class (and the day that the other professor started trying to contact me through Erin) I did get engaged; which, kind of, solidified my lack of time to spend on the screenplay or the class. The time commitment outside of class would’ve been in excess of nine hours a week; nine hours I don’t have (even though I probably do have it). This time was scheduled for Saturday’s. I catch up on rest and restore health on Saturdays and Erin wants some of my time (even though she works) that day as well.
Anyway, the aspect of The Lady of Shallot that plays into Anne of Green Gables is that “The Lady” ends up committing suicide and then being sent, floating, down a river. From what I was told, she was the actual wife to Sir Lancelot who, in a part of the poem, states that she is truly lovely. If you remember, Lancelot runs off with Guinevere, wife to King Arthur, who, because of the pride of his people (and himself), then chases down Lancelot and Guinevere and wages war, thereby destroying Camelot.
The destroyer of Camelot, a parable like the City of Enoch, is destroyed because of infidelity. Lancelot, about The Lady of Shalott is, “She has a lovely face; God in his mercy lend her grace, The Lady of Shalott.”
Because The Lady of Shalott is attractive, because, in death, she is attractive, God should let his grace fall upon her. Grace, in case you didn’t know, is the method whereby man is redeemed from sin and allowed to return to live with God. Grace comes through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, or The Messiah. Therefore, as a result of The Lady’s qualities she should be saved into heaven.
What we learn, today, is that The Lady actually never looked outside and spent her life only being able to see the world through the reflection of a mirror. She was a weaver creating images from what she saw; but was made to stare at a window and weave and never allowed to actually go outside. This is likened unto Plato’s Cave (and Fire) allegory where people in a cave are only able to determine what the world outside is like from the shadows cast (of them) on a wall from a fire.
Anyway, when confronted with the reality of the situation, The Lady commits suicide. She is dead. There is a curse and the curse results in her dying. Lancelot mourns her death and, apparently (I am really stretching here) he mourns so much that he and Guinevere run off together thereby destroying Camelot.
Granted, in the greater story Morgause is the true author of Camelot’s destruction. The destruction came about when Morgause cloaked herself in magic and then seduced Arthur having a child by him who, in turn, was elevated to the level of a knight in Camelot. Arthur tried to hide his infidelity; but, in the end, his infidelity (along with Guinevere’s and Lancelot’s) ultimately destroyed Camelot.
In Anne of Green Gables, Anne elevates The Lady of Shalott to a mournful, holy level. She wants to be The Lady. It’s romantic. And yet, in that romance, the inherent nature of the story is infidelity and destruction – even though it was written during a post-romantic period in literature where the hero should be good and holy. The outcome is that Anne, in recreating, almost kills herself.
There is no real reason for writing all of this. I think that the telling (of this entry) is somewhat allegorical. I believe that it speaks something to myself; but, honestly, I don’t know how to tell y’all what.
John Hattaway | Alicia Grey | Denny Crane | Bond. James Bond