La Belle Dame Sans Merci: Analytical Study Questions

Answer chosen questions using carefully selected details from the poem. Technical terminology is highlighted in bold.

1. Who is speaking in the first three stanzas? Why might Keats want these stanzas to be spoken by a different persona? What effect does this create?

Hint: study the transition between stanzas 3 and 4 carefully to discover who the two different speakers of the poem are.

2. Readers of ballads might expect the knight-at-arms to be a heroic figure. In what way does Keats surprise you with the presentation of his knight-at-arms? Hint: write about both the way the knight acts in the poem, and specific uses of diction that describe him.

3. What is the symbolic importance of certain flowers mentioned in the poem? Hint: consider the symbolism of the lily, rose or any other specific plant or flower in the poem.

4. With reference to more than one example, explain how Keats subverts the ballad rhythm to create certain effects?

Hint: choose specific examples of moments in the poem where the prevailing iambic tetrameter is disturbed.

5. In what ways does Keats create the sense that the relationship between the knight and the lady is in some way unwholesome?

Hint: can you add a comment about sound effects to your explanations in this answer?

6. What is the effect of the dream-vision related by the knight at the end of the

poem? Hint: explain Keats’ disturbing use of vivid imagery in this answer.