Poetry Analysis

Back to poet

On either side the river lie

Original Poetry

Translation

On either side the river lie

On both sides of the river

Long fields of barley and of rye,

are long fields of barley and rye,

That clothe the wold and meet the sky;

That cover the hills and meet the sky;

And thro' the field the road runs by

And through the field, the road runs by

To many-tower'd Camelot;

To the many-towered Camelot;

The yellow-leaved waterlily

The green-sheathed daffodilly

And the green-sheathed daffodil

Tremble in the water chilly

Shake in the cold water

Round about Shalott.

Around Shalott.

Willows whiten, aspens shiver.

Willows turn white, aspens shiver.

The sunbeam showers break and quiver

Sunbeams break and quiver

In the stream that runneth ever

In the stream that always runs

By the island in the river

Flowing down to Camelot.

Four gray walls, and four gray towers

Overlook a space of flowers,

And the silent isle imbowers

And the silent island surrounds

The Lady of Shalott.

Underneath the bearded barley,

The reaper, reaping late and early,

The reaper, working late and early,

Hears her ever chanting cheerly,

Hears her always singing happily,

Like an angel, singing clearly,

O'er the stream of Camelot.

Over the stream of Camelot.

Piling the sheaves in furrows airy,

Piling the sheaves in airy rows,

Beneath the moon, the reaper weary

Under the moon, the tired reaper

Listening whispers, ' 'Tis the fairy,

Listening whispers, 'It's the fairy,

Lady of Shalott.'

The little isle is all inrail'd

The little island is all fenced

With a rose-fence, and overtrail'd

With a rose-fence, and covered

With roses: by the marge unhail'd

With roses: by the edge unnoticed

The shallop flitteth silken sail'd,

The boat with silk sails floats,

Skimming down to Camelot.

A pearl garland winds her head:

A pearl garland wraps her head:

She leaneth on a velvet bed,

She leans on a velvet bed,

Full royally apparelled,

Dressed royally,

The Lady of Shalott.

Part II

No time hath she to sport and play:

She has no time to play:

A charmed web she weaves alway.

She always weaves a charmed web.

A curse is on her, if she stay

A curse is on her, if she stops

Her weaving, either night or day,

To look down to Camelot.

She knows not what the curse may be;

She doesn't know what the curse may be;

Therefore she weaveth steadily,

So she weaves steadily,

Therefore no other care hath she,

Therefore she has no other care,

The Lady of Shalott.

She lives with little joy or fear.

Over the water, running near,

The sheepbell tinkles in her ear.

The sheepbell rings in her ear.

Before her hangs a mirror clear,

Before her hangs a clear mirror,

Reflecting tower'd Camelot.

Reflecting towered Camelot.

And as the mazy web she whirls,

And as she spins the tangled web,

She sees the surly village churls,

She sees the grumpy village people,

And the red cloaks of market girls

Pass onward from Shalott.

Sometimes a troop of damsels glad,

Sometimes a group of happy girls,

An abbot on an ambling pad,

An abbot on a slow horse,

Sometimes a curly shepherd lad,

Sometimes a curly-haired shepherd boy,

Or long-hair'd page in crimson clad,

Or a long-haired page in crimson clothes,

Goes by to tower'd Camelot:

Goes by to towered Camelot:

And sometimes thro' the mirror blue

And sometimes through the blue mirror

The knights come riding two and two:

The knights come riding two by two:

She hath no loyal knight and true,

She has no loyal knight and true,

The Lady of Shalott.

But in her web she still delights

But in her web she still enjoys

To weave the mirror's magic sights,

For often thro' the silent nights

For often through the silent nights

A funeral, with plumes and lights

And music, came from Camelot:

Or when the moon was overhead

Came two young lovers lately wed;

Came two young lovers recently married;

'I am half sick of shadows,' said

'I am tired of shadows,' said

The Lady of Shalott.

Part III

A bow-shot from her bower-eaves,

He rode between the barley-sheaves,

The sun came dazzling thro' the leaves,

The sun came dazzling through the leaves,

And flam'd upon the brazen greaves

And shone on the brass armor

Of bold Sir Lancelot.

A red-cross knight for ever kneel'd

A red-cross knight forever kneeled

To a lady in his shield,

That sparkled on the yellow field,

Beside remote Shalott.

The gemmy bridle glitter'd free,

The jeweled bridle glittered freely,

Like to some branch of stars we see

Like a branch of stars we see

Hung in the golden Galaxy.

The bridle bells rang merrily

As he rode down from Camelot:

And from his blazon'd baldric slung

And from his decorated belt hung

A mighty silver bugle hung,

A mighty silver bugle,

And as he rode his armour rung,

And as he rode his armor rang,

Beside remote Shalott.

All in the blue unclouded weather

All in the blue clear weather

Thick-jewell'd shone the saddle-leather,

Thick-jeweled shone the saddle-leather,

The helmet and the helmet-feather

Burn'd like one burning flame together,

Burned like one burning flame together,

As he rode down from Camelot.

As often thro' the purple night,

As often through the purple night,

Below the starry clusters bright,

Below the bright starry clusters,

Some bearded meteor, trailing light,

Moves over green Shalott.

His broad clear brow in sunlight glow'd;

His broad clear brow glowed in sunlight;

On burnish'd hooves his war-horse trode;

On polished hooves his war-horse trod;

From underneath his helmet flow'd

From underneath his helmet flowed

His coal-black curls as on he rode,

His coal-black curls as he rode,

As he rode down from Camelot.

From the bank and from the river

He flash'd into the crystal mirror,

He flashed into the crystal mirror,

'Tirra lirra, tirra lirra:'

Sang Sir Lancelot.

She left the web, she left the loom

She made three paces thro' the room

She took three steps through the room

She saw the water-flower bloom,

She saw the helmet and the plume,

She look'd down to Camelot.

She looked down to Camelot.

Out flew the web and floated wide;

The mirror crack'd from side to side;

The mirror cracked from side to side;

'The curse is come upon me,' cried

The Lady of Shalott.

Part IV

In the stormy east-wind straining,

The pale yellow woods were waning,

The pale yellow woods were fading,

The broad stream in his banks complaining,

Heavily the low sky raining

Over tower'd Camelot;

Over towered Camelot;

Outside the isle a shallow boat

Beneath a willow lay afloat,

Below the carven stern she wrote,

Below the carved stern she wrote,

The Lady of Shalott.

A cloudwhite crown of pearl she dight,

A cloudwhite crown of pearl she wore,

All raimented in snowy white

All dressed in snowy white

That loosely flew (her zone in sight

That loosely flew (her belt in sight

Clasp'd with one blinding diamond bright)

Clasped with one bright diamond)

Her wide eyes fix'd on Camelot,

Her wide eyes fixed on Camelot,

Though the squally east-wind keenly

Though the squally east-wind blew keenly

Blew, with folded arms serenely

With folded arms serenely

By the water stood the queenly

Lady of Shalott.

With a steady stony glance—

Like some bold seer in a trance,

Beholding all his own mischance,

Seeing all his own misfortune,

Mute, with a glassy countenance—

Mute, with a glassy face—

She look'd down to Camelot.

She looked down to Camelot.

It was the closing of the day:

It was the end of the day:

She loos'd the chain, and down she lay;

She loosened the chain, and down she lay;

The broad stream bore her far away,

The broad stream carried her far away,

The Lady of Shalott.

As when to sailors while they roam,

By creeks and outfalls far from home,

Rising and dropping with the foam,

From dying swans wild warblings come,

From dying swans wild songs come,

Blown shoreward; so to Camelot

Still as the boathead wound along

The willowy hills and fields among,

They heard her chanting her deathsong,

They heard her singing her deathsong,

The Lady of Shalott.

A longdrawn carol, mournful, holy,

She chanted loudly, chanted lowly,

She sang loudly, sang softly,

Till her eyes were darken'd wholly,

Till her eyes were completely darkened,

And her smooth face sharpen'd slowly,

And her smooth face slowly sharpened,

Turn'd to tower'd Camelot:

Turned to towered Camelot:

For ere she reach'd upon the tide

For before she reached upon the tide

The first house by the water-side,

Singing in her song she died,

The Lady of Shalott.

Explanation

Alfred Lord Tennyson's 'The Lady of Shalott' is a lyrical ballad that tells the tragic story of a woman cursed to live isolated in a tower near Camelot. She spends her days weaving a magical web and can only see the outside world through a mirror. The poem explores themes of isolation, the role of the artist, and the conflict between art and life. The Lady of Shalott is forbidden to look directly at the outside world, and when she does, she brings a curse upon herself. The poem is rich in imagery, depicting the serene yet melancholic setting of Shalott and Camelot. Tennyson uses vivid descriptions of nature and medieval life to create a romantic and mysterious atmosphere. The Lady's eventual decision to look out at the world, inspired by the sight of Sir Lancelot, leads to her tragic demise. Her story reflects the tension between the desire for connection and the constraints of her artistic existence.

Word Dictionary20

Word	In English	Plain (English)	Pron.
wold	open, hilly land	open, hilly land	wold
imbowers	encloses	encloses	im-bow-ers
shallop	small boat	small boat	shal-lop
dight	adorned	adorned	dight
raimented	clothed	clothed	ray-men-ted
zone	belt	belt	zone
seer	prophet	prophet	seer
mischance	misfortune	misfortune	mis-chance
carol	song	song	car-ol
churls	peasants	peasants	churls
trow	believe	to think or suppose	trow
greaves	armor for the legs	protective armor worn on the legs	greaves
baldric	belt	a belt worn over the shoulder	bal-dric
tirra lirra	nonsense phrase	a joyful or playful song	tir-ra lir-ra
waning	fading	decreasing in size or strength	wan-ing
wan	pale	lacking color or vitality	wan
marge	edge	the border or edge of something	marge
unhail'd	unnoticed	not greeted or acknowledged	un-hail'd
sheaves	bundles	bundles of grain stalks	sheaves
plumes	feathers	large, decorative feathers	plumes

Poet & Context

PoetAlfred Lord Tennyson

EraVictorian Era

Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson, was an English poet and Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom during much of Queen Victoria's reign. His works, known for their vivid imagery and medieval themes, had a significant influence on the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.

View on Wikipedia

When1832 (revised in 1842)

WhyInspired by the 13th-century Italian text 'La Damigella di Scalot', the poem tells the tragic story of Elaine of Astolat, a young noblewoman. It reflects themes of isolation, the artist's role in society, and the conflict between art and life.

FormLyrical Ballad

Themes & More

Themes

IsolationArt vs. LifeTragic FateRomanticism

Literary devices

Imagery: Vivid descriptions of nature and medieval life create a romantic and mysterious atmosphere.Symbolism: The mirror represents the Lady's limited view of reality and her isolation.Metaphor: The web symbolizes the Lady's life and her entrapment by the curse.Alliteration: Repeated consonant sounds, such as 'Willows whiten, aspens shiver', enhance the musical quality.Personification: The river and other elements of nature are given human-like qualities.

Poetry Analysis

Back to poet

On either side the river lie

Original Poetry

Translation

On either side the river lie

On both sides of the river

Long fields of barley and of rye,

are long fields of barley and rye,

That clothe the wold and meet the sky;

That cover the hills and meet the sky;

And thro' the field the road runs by

And through the field, the road runs by

To many-tower'd Camelot;

To the many-towered Camelot;

The yellow-leaved waterlily

The green-sheathed daffodilly

And the green-sheathed daffodil

Tremble in the water chilly

Shake in the cold water

Round about Shalott.

Around Shalott.

Willows whiten, aspens shiver.

Willows turn white, aspens shiver.

The sunbeam showers break and quiver

Sunbeams break and quiver

In the stream that runneth ever

In the stream that always runs

By the island in the river

Flowing down to Camelot.

Four gray walls, and four gray towers

Overlook a space of flowers,

And the silent isle imbowers

And the silent island surrounds

The Lady of Shalott.

Underneath the bearded barley,

The reaper, reaping late and early,

The reaper, working late and early,

Hears her ever chanting cheerly,

Hears her always singing happily,

Like an angel, singing clearly,

O'er the stream of Camelot.

Over the stream of Camelot.

Piling the sheaves in furrows airy,

Piling the sheaves in airy rows,

Beneath the moon, the reaper weary

Under the moon, the tired reaper

Listening whispers, ' 'Tis the fairy,

Listening whispers, 'It's the fairy,

Lady of Shalott.'

The little isle is all inrail'd

The little island is all fenced

With a rose-fence, and overtrail'd

With a rose-fence, and covered

With roses: by the marge unhail'd

With roses: by the edge unnoticed

The shallop flitteth silken sail'd,

The boat with silk sails floats,

Skimming down to Camelot.

A pearl garland winds her head:

A pearl garland wraps her head:

She leaneth on a velvet bed,

She leans on a velvet bed,

Full royally apparelled,

Dressed royally,

The Lady of Shalott.

Part II

No time hath she to sport and play:

She has no time to play:

A charmed web she weaves alway.

She always weaves a charmed web.

A curse is on her, if she stay

A curse is on her, if she stops

Her weaving, either night or day,

To look down to Camelot.

She knows not what the curse may be;

She doesn't know what the curse may be;

Therefore she weaveth steadily,

So she weaves steadily,

Therefore no other care hath she,

Therefore she has no other care,

The Lady of Shalott.

She lives with little joy or fear.

Over the water, running near,

The sheepbell tinkles in her ear.

The sheepbell rings in her ear.

Before her hangs a mirror clear,

Before her hangs a clear mirror,

Reflecting tower'd Camelot.

Reflecting towered Camelot.

And as the mazy web she whirls,

And as she spins the tangled web,

She sees the surly village churls,

She sees the grumpy village people,

And the red cloaks of market girls

Pass onward from Shalott.

Sometimes a troop of damsels glad,

Sometimes a group of happy girls,

An abbot on an ambling pad,

An abbot on a slow horse,

Sometimes a curly shepherd lad,

Sometimes a curly-haired shepherd boy,

Or long-hair'd page in crimson clad,

Or a long-haired page in crimson clothes,

Goes by to tower'd Camelot:

Goes by to towered Camelot:

And sometimes thro' the mirror blue

And sometimes through the blue mirror

The knights come riding two and two:

The knights come riding two by two:

She hath no loyal knight and true,

She has no loyal knight and true,

The Lady of Shalott.

But in her web she still delights

But in her web she still enjoys

To weave the mirror's magic sights,

For often thro' the silent nights

For often through the silent nights

A funeral, with plumes and lights

And music, came from Camelot:

Or when the moon was overhead

Came two young lovers lately wed;

Came two young lovers recently married;

'I am half sick of shadows,' said

'I am tired of shadows,' said

The Lady of Shalott.

Part III

A bow-shot from her bower-eaves,

He rode between the barley-sheaves,

The sun came dazzling thro' the leaves,

The sun came dazzling through the leaves,

And flam'd upon the brazen greaves

And shone on the brass armor

Of bold Sir Lancelot.

A red-cross knight for ever kneel'd

A red-cross knight forever kneeled

To a lady in his shield,

That sparkled on the yellow field,

Beside remote Shalott.

The gemmy bridle glitter'd free,

The jeweled bridle glittered freely,

Like to some branch of stars we see

Like a branch of stars we see

Hung in the golden Galaxy.

The bridle bells rang merrily

As he rode down from Camelot:

And from his blazon'd baldric slung

And from his decorated belt hung

A mighty silver bugle hung,

A mighty silver bugle,

And as he rode his armour rung,

And as he rode his armor rang,

Beside remote Shalott.

All in the blue unclouded weather

All in the blue clear weather

Thick-jewell'd shone the saddle-leather,

Thick-jeweled shone the saddle-leather,

The helmet and the helmet-feather

Burn'd like one burning flame together,

Burned like one burning flame together,

As he rode down from Camelot.

As often thro' the purple night,

As often through the purple night,

Below the starry clusters bright,

Below the bright starry clusters,

Some bearded meteor, trailing light,

Moves over green Shalott.

His broad clear brow in sunlight glow'd;

His broad clear brow glowed in sunlight;

On burnish'd hooves his war-horse trode;

On polished hooves his war-horse trod;

From underneath his helmet flow'd

From underneath his helmet flowed

His coal-black curls as on he rode,

His coal-black curls as he rode,

As he rode down from Camelot.

From the bank and from the river

He flash'd into the crystal mirror,

He flashed into the crystal mirror,

'Tirra lirra, tirra lirra:'

Sang Sir Lancelot.

She left the web, she left the loom

She made three paces thro' the room

She took three steps through the room

She saw the water-flower bloom,

She saw the helmet and the plume,

She look'd down to Camelot.

She looked down to Camelot.

Out flew the web and floated wide;

The mirror crack'd from side to side;

The mirror cracked from side to side;

'The curse is come upon me,' cried

The Lady of Shalott.

Part IV

In the stormy east-wind straining,

The pale yellow woods were waning,

The pale yellow woods were fading,

The broad stream in his banks complaining,

Heavily the low sky raining

Over tower'd Camelot;

Over towered Camelot;

Outside the isle a shallow boat

Beneath a willow lay afloat,

Below the carven stern she wrote,

Below the carved stern she wrote,

The Lady of Shalott.

A cloudwhite crown of pearl she dight,

A cloudwhite crown of pearl she wore,

All raimented in snowy white

All dressed in snowy white

That loosely flew (her zone in sight

That loosely flew (her belt in sight

Clasp'd with one blinding diamond bright)

Clasped with one bright diamond)

Her wide eyes fix'd on Camelot,

Her wide eyes fixed on Camelot,

Though the squally east-wind keenly

Though the squally east-wind blew keenly

Blew, with folded arms serenely

With folded arms serenely

By the water stood the queenly

Lady of Shalott.

With a steady stony glance—

Like some bold seer in a trance,

Beholding all his own mischance,

Seeing all his own misfortune,

Mute, with a glassy countenance—

Mute, with a glassy face—

She look'd down to Camelot.

She looked down to Camelot.

It was the closing of the day:

It was the end of the day:

She loos'd the chain, and down she lay;

She loosened the chain, and down she lay;

The broad stream bore her far away,

The broad stream carried her far away,

The Lady of Shalott.

As when to sailors while they roam,

By creeks and outfalls far from home,

Rising and dropping with the foam,

From dying swans wild warblings come,

From dying swans wild songs come,

Blown shoreward; so to Camelot

Still as the boathead wound along

The willowy hills and fields among,

They heard her chanting her deathsong,

They heard her singing her deathsong,

The Lady of Shalott.

A longdrawn carol, mournful, holy,

She chanted loudly, chanted lowly,

She sang loudly, sang softly,

Till her eyes were darken'd wholly,

Till her eyes were completely darkened,

And her smooth face sharpen'd slowly,

And her smooth face slowly sharpened,

Turn'd to tower'd Camelot:

Turned to towered Camelot:

For ere she reach'd upon the tide

For before she reached upon the tide

The first house by the water-side,

Singing in her song she died,

The Lady of Shalott.

Explanation

Word Dictionary20

Word	In English	Plain (English)	Pron.
wold	open, hilly land	open, hilly land	wold
imbowers	encloses	encloses	im-bow-ers
shallop	small boat	small boat	shal-lop
dight	adorned	adorned	dight
raimented	clothed	clothed	ray-men-ted
zone	belt	belt	zone
seer	prophet	prophet	seer
mischance	misfortune	misfortune	mis-chance
carol	song	song	car-ol
churls	peasants	peasants	churls
trow	believe	to think or suppose	trow
greaves	armor for the legs	protective armor worn on the legs	greaves
baldric	belt	a belt worn over the shoulder	bal-dric
tirra lirra	nonsense phrase	a joyful or playful song	tir-ra lir-ra
waning	fading	decreasing in size or strength	wan-ing
wan	pale	lacking color or vitality	wan
marge	edge	the border or edge of something	marge
unhail'd	unnoticed	not greeted or acknowledged	un-hail'd
sheaves	bundles	bundles of grain stalks	sheaves
plumes	feathers	large, decorative feathers	plumes

Poet & Context

PoetAlfred Lord Tennyson

EraVictorian Era

View on Wikipedia

When1832 (revised in 1842)

FormLyrical Ballad

Themes & More

Themes

IsolationArt vs. LifeTragic FateRomanticism

Literary devices