I'm sure some of you have heard of the poem The Lady of Shalott, but for those of you who haven't, let me enlighten you :)
Here is a link to listen to the poem while watching a cute animated video made by Lisle Marsden C of E Primary School. Enjoy!
She left the web, she left the loom
She made three paces through the room,
She saw the water-lily bloom,
She saw the helmet and the plume,
She look'd down to Camelot.
Out flew the web and floated wide;
The mirror crack'd from side to side;
"The curse is come upon me," cried
The Lady of Shalott.
That is one of my favourite stanzas in the poem because of how intense it is, and I appreciate how great the rhyming is.
Alfred Lord Tennyson is the poet who wrote The Lady of Shalott.
(1809-1892)
(1809-1892)
"I am half-sick of shadows," said the Lady of Shalott.
The Lady of Shalott looking at Lancelot
Famous pictures by John William Waterhouse. This was painted in 1888. (55 years after Tennyson wrote The Lady of Shalott)
Anne (of Green Gables) quoting The Lady of Shalott as she floats dramatically down the river.
The song "If I Die Young" by The Band Perry has little hints of The Lady of Shalott in it. I love trying to figure out what songs mean and it was super exciting when my mom pointed out a few connections she noticed between the music video and the poem.
I think that The Band Perry is saying that life is something to celebrate and that you should be thankful for all of the time you've had. That even though it's "a sharp knife" and it hurts that you should be happy for the time that you got to spend with that person. Another thing I think they're saying is that you should live life to the fullest instead of just staying in the tower and looking down on other people's lives. When the Lady of Shalott saw something that woke her up inside, (Sir Lancelot) she went for it. Even though she died trying, she took the chance and got to be real.
It's kind of cool how when you think about it, this song is (possibly) inspired by a poem written in 1833, almost two hundred years ago (179 years to be exact). Now it's 2012 and the theme is still relevant today as much as it was back then.
I like how dance, poetry, art, movies, and music, can all be inspired by each other and all tie together. John William Waterhouse (the painter) was obviously influenced by the Lady of Shalott and put his feelings about it into his paintings.
Now I hope you'll read the poem and watch the video and see if you have any new thoughts or ideas!
Mikayla, I remember when I was a young girl (probably older than you though) and read The Lady of Shalott. I thought it was really sad and I couldn't imagine her floating down the river (I never saw a picture). Watching the music video and the animation really give me an image to go with the poem! I can't imagine how many hundreds of hours that animation took for the class to make. The song is haunting and beautiful at the same time (I had never heard it before). I am so impressed that you have been able to make such mature connections between the song, the poem and your own thoughts!
ReplyDeleteDo you know what your post made me think about? I am so glad that I am a child of God, so that I can hold on to the promise that ALL things work together for the Good for those who love God. I cannot imagine the life of someone I love cut short when they are young..it would certainly "cut like a knife." But I have faith that even the events that would hurt, be unwelcome and painful will be covered by God's loving care and that is some promise!
I also really liked your point that life is meant to be LIVED and that we should never just watch the life of others pass by. We should live our own life!
Mikayla, keep on reading, thinking, writing and sharing! You have a gift and I love to watch it blossom. I love you, Grandma Bev
thanks Grandma that means alot!
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