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Alexander Pope is undoubtedly one of the greatest ever satirists of all times (Walker, 1925). He is a poet of society
(Griffin, 2015) the largest part of whose poetry is satirical and didactic (Warton & Rounce, 2004). His masterpiece
The Rape of the Lock serves as a true embodiment of the Neo-classical values (Pope, 2016) and the protagonist,
Belinda, the moral degradation of the contemporary English beau monde (Szwec, 2011). But, thanks to Pope’s poetic
genius, the otherwise ordinary account of a family feud transcends the contemporary age and exposes universal evils
of pride, vanity, hypocrisy, sentimentality, class-consciousness and indifference. Pope has painted a detailed picture
of the following evils infecting these women.
1. Illicit relations
These women have illicit relations with the beaus, exposed by the poet through such sexual symbols as ‘melting
maids’, ‘midnight masquerades’, ‘softening music’, ‘dancing fires’, etc. They indulge in these activities because they
are dazzled by the charms by the fashionable life.
2. Inconsistency in love
Because of their illegitimate relations, they are inconsistent in love and are not contented with anyone:
3. Ambivalent attitude
It is interesting to note that just before the cutting of Belinda’s lock, when Ariel searched ‘the close recesses’ of her
heart, he found ‘an earthly lover (Baron) lurking at her heart”. It shows the ambivalent attitude and confused as well
as mixed feelings of these women. It is difficult to guard the chastity of these women as they themselves do not
desire so. Pope warns:
4. Slanderous Attitude
Their attitude is defamatory and libelous. When they sit together, they have nothing to do except to allure the beaus
and slander other fashionable ladies who are their competitors:
For them, social reputation (‘Honour’) is more important than chastity and they can sacrifice anything for it:
So she is not shocked at the loss of chastity (‘Hairs less in sight’) but at the loss of her reputation (‘any hairs but
these’, means the curls which were visible). The reason is that these curls enabled here to ensnare beaus.
This is a type of society in which there is endless competition among the ladies to surpass each other in their ability to
hunt the fashionable boys. That’s why, Belinda’s own friends are insincere. So we see her friend, Clarissa, providing
the scissors to Baron to cut Belinda’s lock and another friend, Thalestris, trying to make her disgrace public:
Pope humorously tells us that these women are so obsessed with the fashionable life that even after their death, they
turn into spirits and perpetuate their interest in the fashionable circles by supervising the living ladies:
8. Self-conceit
These aristocratic ladies suffer from self-conceit and each one of them considers herself some heavenly creature.
The dream in which Belinda hears the address of a spirit, Ariel, is just a form of her self-praise and self-conceit.
‘Fairest of mortals’ is, in fact, an epithet which Belinda chooses for herself. But when reality is revealed to her, it is too
late. Ultimately, the fashionable women who look down upon the whole world end up dying friendless, isolated and
lonely.