"Chanson d'Antioche," chanson de geste Book

I've always believed that miracles can happen and that great physical and/or mental suffering can engender greatness. This indeed proved to be the case with this splendid work by Alexander Pope.

I find Pope a fascinating individual. He was a catholic, at a time when legislation was repressive with regard to this religion; he was practically self-educated, a semi-invalid all his life, in fact he contracted Pott's disease, a tubercular affection of the bones, which may have been transmitted through his wet-nurses milk, or through unpasteurized cow's milk. He also suffered from asthma and headaches, and his humpback was a constant target for his critics in literary battles - Pope was called a "hunchbacked toad". In middle age he was 4ft 6in tall and wore a stiffened canvas bodice to support his spine, which twisted like a question mark. Also being a catholic he knew that he could never attend university and so he spent many hours reading and writing in his father's library during his youth.

And yet despite all of this, he was driven on with his dream to become a great poet on a par with Shakespeare, Milton, Chaucer and Spenser and a satirical one at that and by sheer doggedness and determination he achieved that with this masterpiece.

Pope was desperate for fame and his opportunity came when his friend and neighbour, John Caryll told him about a lover's quarrel that had occurred between Arabella Fermor and Lord Petre, when the latter stealthily removed a lock of her hair with a pair of scissors but the sinful fact was that he hadn't asked her permission. The result of this lack of decorum was a rift between the two families as the Fermor family felt slighted. There was a tacit understanding that the couple would become engaged but Lord Petre never pursued the matter and subsequently married someone else. This removal of hair was evidently seen as a significant intimate and sexual act that implied that marriage was in the air.

As Caryll was friendly with both families, he wanted Pope to write an amusing poem of the affair to reunite the two families and the outcome was this wonderful poem.

The book comprises five cantos known as An Heroi-comical Poem of Five Cantos beginning with Ariel, a sylph carefully keeping an eye on Belinda (interestingly enough Arabella was known as Bell). Pope had originally written two cantos when he was twenty three and expanded these to five over the following three years. But what is really exciting about this work is that the nine drawings (known as "embroidery" because of their finely detailed style) by Aubrey Beardsley are masterpieces in their own right. There's a central motif running through five of them. There is a specific individual involved but I can still only find four. See if you can find them when you read the poem.

All of the couplets are excellent but the two I particularly liked were:

Of these am I, who thy Protection Claim,
A watchful Sprite, and Ariel is my Name.
Late as I rang'd the crystal Wilds of Air,
In the clear Mirror of thy ruling Star
I saw, alas! some dread Event impend,
Ere to the Main this morning's Sun descend,
But Heav'n reveals not what, or how, or where:
Warn'd by thy Sylph, oh pious Maid beware!
This is to disclose is all thy Guardian can.
Beware of all, but most beware of Man!

and,

It grieves me much (replied the Peer again)
Who speaks so well shou'd ever speak in vain
But by this lock; this sacred Lock I swear,
(Which never more shall join its parted Hair;
Which never more its Honours shall renew,
Clipp'd from the lovely Head where late it grew)
That while my Nostrils draw the vital Air,
This Hand, which won it, shall for ever wear.
He spoke, and speaking, in proud Triumph spread
The long-contended Honours of her Head.

If you are a couplet lover then this exquisite poem will be ideal for you. I read it purely for the pleasure of reading the first time around but when I reread it I could see that throughout this amusing and satirical epic, there were layers hiding a dark side. There's also the magical faerie aspect of the book which is enchanting and one can see that Pope was influenced by Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream.

I originally read this on Kindle, but I've ordered the hardcover today as Kindle, I believe, has not quite captured the essence of Beardsley's remarkable and delicate drawings; also I want to find the individual who, so far, I cannot find in one of Beardsley's drawings.

Even after all these years, this is indeed a wonderful work.