The Rape of the Lock as Mock-Epic

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08 December 1998 Alexander Pope's The Rape of the Lock is an excellent example of a mock-epic. Taking the entire piece, it becomes an epic poem in miniature, if every action is taken at face value. But if everything is conceptualized through comedy, then the mocking aspect can be seen. Canto One includes many of the traditional elements of an epic, but the comic aspect is also present. By examining the various epic conventions and epic machinery that Pope uses in this canto, the poem can be assessed as a mock-epic. Epic conventions are known as such because they have been included in the works historically known as epics, such as Homer's The Iliad , Virgil's Aeneid , and Milton's Paradise Lost. All of these works had protagonists that were of historical significance: Achilles, Aeneas, and Adam and Eve. Pope's protagonist is notable for her beauty, but Belinda is of little historical note. Yet she is treated with the same reverence as the aforementioned characters. Another convention is the inclusion of supernatural beings. In The Iliad and Aeneid , these were the Greek gods; in Paradise Lost, God and the Devil. The Rape of the Lock has its own supernatural creatures, but these are by no means on the scale of Zeus and Poseidon, who ruled the heavens and the seas; instead, the sylphs, gnomes, nymphs, and salamanders that run the show are fairy-like incarnations of coquettish, prudish, yielding, and shrewish women, respectively. Rather than take charge of an entire sky or ocean, these creatures are charged with protecting Belinda's diamond earrings or petticoat. Yet another epic convention that Pope uses is the traditional arming of the heroes. For Homer, this was a catalogue of ships and armor that comprised all of Book Two. Canto One includes this ritual as Belinda is given her combs and pins. The conventions used by Pope are the traditional epic conventions, only inverted to produce a comedic effect. Pope uses epic machinery in much the same way. The very first two lines posit the epic argument and questions: "What dire offense from amorous causes springs,/ What mighty contests rise from trivial things." This is akin to Milton's epic question at the beginning of Paradise Lost: "Of man's first disobedience, and the fruit/ Of that forbidden tree whose mortal taste/ Brought death into the world, and all our woe," because it alludes to the story that is about to be told and even why the story is worth telling at all. The next line in Pope's poem also conforms to the epic machinery of appealing to a muse. Pope dedicates his poem to John Caryll, a friend of his that had suggested he write it. Likewise, The Iliad begins with a request for the goddess to sing of Achilles' rage. Pope uses another typical machinery to make a comic reference to the epic in Canto One when he begins at the beginning of the day, when Belinda is still asleep. Epics generally begin in medias res, and Pope's action to the contrary once again draws attention to the differences between his poem and a real epic. The epic conventions and machinery that Pope uses in The Rape of the Lock serve to heighten the mock-epic aspects of the poem. While the other Cantos and general elements of the story itself can serve to illustrate the mock-epic nature of the poem, the various actions and injunctions of Canto One best portray the reasons that The Rape of the Lock is considered a classic mock-epic poem.

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