The Laboratory Flashcards
form
dramatic monolouge
inspired by
Marie Madeline, conspired to posion her father and two of her borthers, was caught, tortured, and beheaded
science context
writting in victorian engand, conflict between science and religion, some viewed it as the emeny of religeon
motive
which is the poison to poison her prithee
pronoun ‘her’
love rival only refered to as ‘her’ can barely acknowledge her existance
while they laugh, laugh at me
breaks free from the sexual steryotypes of the time
- isnt passive and meek, takes control of her destiny
- rather than mournign the loss of her love, shes gone to an apothicary and observing the creating of the poison
grind away moisten and mash up thy paste
dictylic, stress falls on the verbs, attention focused on the actions of the chemist
increases pace
pound at thy pouder - plossive
mortar
gum
phial
poison
the lexicon of the laboratory
gold oozings
we can infer from the poem that shes wealthy
but here the posion is the most value
exquistite blue sure to taste sweetly
femilinity death and wealth
beautiful but deadly
pure death in an earing
a signet, a fan-mount
aristocratic wealth, feminine beatury of upper class, speaker fanticises using these trinkets to conceal the deadly posion
clear symbolic link between evil and wealth
the colours too grim!
womens interest in pretty things
she ensnared him
man doesnt seem responsible, fault of rival who trapped him
they belive my teras flow
masculine eyes
i brought my own eyes to bear on her rival
eyes = perception
changing psyche
evil eye, curse, malevolent glare,
oinflation of sense of her abilities, when it fails “she fell not” resorts to traditional solution of poison
let death be felt
brand burn up bite
violent alliteration
delight in the suffering
imagines the effects of the poison
completely devoid of empathy and resmose for her actions
Is it done? take my mask off
now,
pace and impatience
wants to get as close to the posion
first word, structural signal the poem is coming to an end, recognition of unrelenting hurry/ haste
delicate droplent
small and dainty
juxtaposes brand burn bite
can also mean attrative and easily damaged, target for the posion,
my whole fortune as a fee
cost
ponders the cost on a persoanl level
determination, take all my jewls
is prepared to give him more than money
you may kiss me on the mojuth…
sexually promiscous, impulsive,
psycopath
vividly groutesche, indicative of her lack of slef-worth
brush this dust off me
disposal of evidence
ends with another rush of action
physical contact
questions the readers morality
where are our sympathies meant to lie?
murderer, psychopath, evil
sympathise with her victims
invited to admire the tenacity, boldness and single minded drive to refuse steryotypes, not used to hear9ng female voices, not gone to a curch to pray and weep, powerful active female protagonist
