La Belle Dame Sans Merci - John Keats

~ I saw pale kings and Princes too,
Pale warriors, death pale were they all;
They cried 'La belle dame sans merci
Thee hath in thrall' ~

 

The beginning of 'La Belle Dame Sans Merci', although not necessarily an event, is very significant. In the poem, it is immediately suggested that the "knight-at-arms" has been enchanted, as he is wandering in a desolate wasteland where the plant life has withered "and no birds sing." The knight is pale and the rose in his cheeks, like the sedge, is withering. As he tries to explain his state to the unknown narrator, he makes us highly suspicious of the lady he encountered. He identifies her as supernatural being a "faery's child". This suggests she may be powerful and able to put people 'under her spell'. The description of the knight is a complete contrast to the stereotypical definition of a knight, in which the adjectives "pale" and "haggard" would not be seen. Our expectations of his character are a strong, handsome knight reflected nowhere in 'La Belle Dame Sans Merci'.

The second significant event in the poem is when the lady takes the knight to her "elfin grot". Here, she lulls the knight to sleep. The past tense verb "lulled" can denote an attempt to calm someone's fears or suspicions by deception, suggesting that La Belle Dame is potentially treacherous. It seems to be confirmed that the "faery's child" has caused the knight's condition in the dream he has of the "pale kings and princes too". Therefore, she is presented as a femme fatale - a femme fatale conventionally tempts men with her beauty, and we are informed that she is "full beautiful". She, then, ultimately causes his destruction. However, it is the knight who tells the story and who describes the lady. As we are only offered his interpretation, we do not see the lady's perspective - when reading the poem from her perspective, there is no clear evidence to suggest that she is a femme fatale, suggesting that the knight may not be a helpless victim. The word "lulled" has another meaning, to innocently mean to soothe with soft sounds and motions, as a mother might soother her child to sleep. Therefore, we may read the poem as a representation of a patriarchal society.