Lamia

1
Lamia
Anna Lea Merritt (1844 - 1930) Lamia, The Serpent
Woman

• John William Waterhouse Lamia by the pond -
  1909

Herbert James Draper (1909) The Lamia
Will H. Low from an 1889 edition of the poem
2
Lamias Mythology

• Presides in ancient Greek mythologies, updated
  through the ages.
• (Grand-)daughter of Poseidon
• Queen of Libya
• Had an affair with Zeus, bore him children
  enraged, Hera (Zeus wife) killed them out of
  jealousy.
• Lamia went insane with grief. Envious of other
  mothers, she ate their children.
• Appearance unclear - shape-shifter? Removable
  eyes? Distorted face? Serpent woman?
• Seductress as of 9th century a supernatural
  threat to marriage.
• Later, story used as a threat to children - go to
  bed or the lamia will come and eat you!

3
Key Themes in Keats

• The themes weve seen so far include
• Power of Women and/or/v Men
• Old Age
• Reality v Dreams/Imagination
• Mystical (supernatural)
• Religion
• Ambiguity/Uncertainty

4
Symbolism

• The use of physical things to represent ideas and
  emotions. It is the practice of representing
  things by means of symbols or of attributing
  symbolic meanings or significance to objects,
  events, or relationships.

5
Symbols - Abstract ideas

• What abstract ideas might the following
  settings symbolise?
• The lake in La Belle
• The chapel in Eve
• The banqueting chamber in Eve
• The beldames room in Eve
• Madelines room in Eve
• The outside in Eve

• What abstract ideas might the following
  characters symbolise?
• The woman in La Belle
• The knight in La Belle
• The beadsman in Eve
• The beldame in Eve
• Madeline in Eve
• Porphyro in Eve

6
Plot Prediction

• What do we expect to see from a Keats plot with
  the following characters
• Hermes one of the Greek Gods who leaves Olympus
  (the home of the Gods) in search of a beautiful
  nymph.
• Lamia a sorceress who is transformed from a
  serpent into a beautiful woman.
• Lycius a young and handsome Corinthian who is
  looking for love.
• Apollonius a wise advisor and former tutor to
  Lycius

7
Setting

• Where does Keats set the opening to his poem?
• How does Keats reveal the setting?
• What are the key quotes/ evidence that reveal the
  setting?
• Evaluate the significance/ meaning of the setting.

8
Keats Women

• What do we already know?
• Victims?
• Villains?
• Naive?
• Manipulative?
• Romantic?

9
Lamia - lines 47-145

• What does Keats reveal about Lamia?
• How does Keats reveal the character?
• What are the key quotes/ evidence that reveal the
  character?
• Evaluate the ways in which her character might be
  interpreted.

10
Character Analysis

• Lamia is depicted as a .... character.
• Keats presents the character by.
• This is shown when.
• This could have the effect of.
• Alternatively, it may have the effect of.

11
Key Question

• Are women presented as positive or negative
  figures in Keats poetry?

Positive Negative
Eve of St Agnes
La Belle Dame
Lamia
12
Recap on Imagery

• How does Keats create imagery in his poetry?
• Appeal to the senses
• Pictorial imagery intense visual imagery
• Concrete imagery the use of concrete images to
  portray abstract ideas
• Synaesthesia the substitution of one sense for
  another.

13
Imagery 146-184

• What examples of imagery does Keats use?
• What type of imagery is it?
• Evaluate the ways in which the images might be
  interpreted.

14
Type of imagery Example Effect of the image

15
Allegory is...

• A story with two meanings
• 1) literal 2)symbolic
• A form of extended metaphor
• Objects, people, and actions represent wider
  moral, social, religious or political meanings
  beyond the story itself
• Characters often personifications of abstract
  ideas as charity, greed, or envy.

16
Allegory in Lamia

• In most cases the allegorical readings focus on
  the ways in which the three main characters in
  the poem, Lamia, Lycius, and Apollonius may be
  said to represent something other than
  themselves.
• What do you think each of these characters may
  represent?

Lamia Lycius Apollonius

17
Allegorical Characters in Lamia
Lamia Lycius Apollonius
Fanny Brawne Poetry Poem Illusion/Dream Text Keats Poet Keats/Poet Dreamer Ego Charles Brown Philosopher Reviewers Reason/Reality Public
18
In Part I

• Find evidence for how the following are
  established the first two stanzas
• Settings
• Atmosphere
• Lamia
• Colour and imagery
• Tradition

19
Love

• Who falls in love in this poem?
• How does Keats position the concept of love in
  the opening?
• How does he present it as the poem progresses?
• What is the defining difference between these
  loves?

20
Section A

• First question What ways does the writer
  present...
• AO2 language, form and structure
• Second question How far/To what extent
• AO1, AO3, AO4

21
Section B

• AO1, AO2, AO3

22

• Many narratives have one or more significant
  moments of crisis.
• Write about the significance of crises in the
  work of the three writers you have studied.
• How do writers use repetition to create meanings
  in their texts?
• In your answer, refer to the work of the three
  writers you have studied.
• Write about some of the ways characters are
  created in the three texts you have studied.
• Write about the ways authors use time to shape
  the order of events in the three texts you have
  studied.
• Writers often choose their titles carefully to
  allow for different potential meanings.
• Write about some potential meanings of titles in
  the three texts you have studied.
• Write about the significance of one or two key
  events in each of the three texts you have
  studied.

23
Voices in Lamia

• Identify the different voices in 1-84 (part II).
• Consider the similarities/ differences in terms
  of the viewpoint.
• Evaluate the interaction between the different
  views/voices within the poem.

24
Points of View

• The poem begins with Hermes point-of-view.
• Hermes point of view moves to Lamias
  point-of-view at line 146 as Hermes the wood
  nymph fly away into the forest.
• Does this suggest that the dreams of Gods
  (Hermes) can be fulfilled but not the dreams of
  mortals (Lycius)?

25
Recap on Narrative Voice and Viewpoint

• Authors voice/ viewpoint
• Narrators direct voice/ viewpoint
• Narrators indirect voice/ viewpoint
• Characters direct voice/ viewpoint
• Characters indirect voice/ viewpoint

26
Voices Part 1

• Lamias voice is heard first line38 lamenting
  her imprisonment.
• Hermes voice line 83 sounds desperate/
  besotted by the power of his attraction to the
  wood nymph.
• At intervals the voice of the poet interrupts to
  provide his point-of-view and question the reader
  lines 171-2.
• Line 200-201 the poet directly addresses the
  reader to ensure that they are aware of the
  dramatic tension at key moments.
• Line 395-397 poets voice warns of the
  unhappiness to come.

27
Voices Part 2

• Part II lines 1-15 the poet warns of the
  unhappiness to follow love cannot exist in an
  environment that is isolated from the real
  world.
• Part II line 146 poet chastises/ warns Lycius
  of his foolishness in not being satisfied with
  having Lamia to himself.
• Apollonious is shown to speak with the voice of
  reason as he sees through Lamias deception,
  contrasting to Lycius misguided ranting at the
  end.

28
How far do lines 1-84 support a reading of the
poem in which

• Lamia symbolises the value of poetry and its
  capacity to inspire dream illusion?
• Lycius symbolises the role of the poet as a
  dreamer?
• Apollonius symbolises the role of philosopher and
  rationalist a man of reason who is rooted in
  reality?

29
Lamia Part 11 1-84

• How does the poet use different voices to keep
  the readers interest in this section of the poem?