What is the story behind the painting The Lady of Shalott?

What is the story behind the painting The Lady of Shalott?

The Lady of Shalott is a poem by Alfred Tennyson, written 50 years before Waterhouse painted this picture. The Lady of Shalott is cursed and forced to stay in a tower. She is only allowed to look at the world through a reflection in the mirror. Lady of Shalott’s story can be read as a warning about female desire.

Who painted the Lady of Shalott painting?

John William Waterhouse
The Lady of Shalott/Artists

Where is the Lady of Shalott painting now?

The Lady of Shalott is a painting of 1888 by the English painter John William Waterhouse. It is a representation of the ending of Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s 1832 poem of the same name….The Lady of Shalott (painting)

The Lady of Shalott
Medium Oil on canvas
Dimensions 183 cm × 230 cm (72 in × 91 in)
Location Tate Britain, London

What kind of painting is The Lady of Shalott?

History painting
The Lady of Shalott/Genres

What does The Lady of Shalott symbolize?

One of the possible interpretations of “The Lady of Shalott” is as an indictment of Victorian culture, which conflated women’s inherent value with their sexual purity. The Lady, in her tower on Shalott, is surrounded by lilies, a frequent symbol of chastity and purity.

What did Sir Lancelot say when he saw The Lady of Shalott?

But Lancelot mused a little space; He said, “She has a lovely face; God in his mercy lend her grace, The Lady of Shalott.”

Why does The Lady of Shalott look at Lancelot?

Susan Woodward, M.A. Elaine, the Lady of Shalott, is in love with Lancelot, hence the references to light and heat. When she first sees him, it is the reflection of her magic mirror through which the Lady of Shalott is able to view the world.

Who is The Lady of Shalott based on?

legend of Elaine of Astolat
Origin. The poem is loosely based on the Arthurian legend of Elaine of Astolat, as recounted in a 13th-century Italian novellina titled La Damigella di Scalot, or Donna di Scalotta (No. LXXXII in the collection Il Novellino: Le ciento novelle antike); the earlier version is closer to the source material than the latter …

Is Ophelia The Lady of Shalott?

Alfred Lord Tennyson’s poem The Lady of Shalott, parallels closely to the life of Ophelia. Tennyson’s poem written over 200 years after Hamlet, is about a young woman who lives on an island off the coast of Camelot. There is a curse…show more content…

What does the Web represent in the Lady of Shalott?

They serve to characterize her as both an artist and as someone touched by the supernatural. Her web is symbolic of her artistry as she depicts through her weaving the sights she sees in her mirror, which symbolizes the necessity of distance in the nurturing of the artistic soul.

How is the Lady of Shalott an allegory?

15). Forbidden by some power to interact with — or even look at — the outside world, she passes the time by looking at her mirror, which shows all those who pass by her enclosure. The Lady spends her days weaving a great tapestry of what she sees. It is described as a “web with colours gay” (l.