Summary:
John Keats’ La Belle Dame sans Merci (French for “The Beautiful Lady Without Mercy”) is a ballad that tells the haunting tale of a knight who has been bewitched by a mysterious and enchanting lady. The poem is structured as a dialogue, where an unnamed speaker encounters the knight, who appears pale, weak, and heartbroken. The knight recounts how he met a beautiful, fairy-like woman who seduced him with her love, fed him exotic food, and took him to her mysterious cave. However, in a dream, he saw ghostly figures—pale kings and princes—who warned him that the lady had ensnared them all. Upon waking, he found himself abandoned and alone on a desolate hillside. The poem explores themes of love, illusion, and the transient nature of happiness, with a melancholic and eerie tone.
| Question | Answer |
| Poem Name | La Belle Dame sans Merci |
| Poet | John Keats |
| Year Written | 1819 |
| Year Published | 1820 |
| Poem Type | Ballad (lyric narrative poem) |
| Rhyme Scheme | ABCB |
| Themes | Love, illusion, loss, supernatural elements, heartbreak |
| Tone | Melancholic, mysterious, eerie |
| Symbolism | The lady represents temptation and illusion, while the knight symbolizes human vulnerability |
| Famous Line | “And I awoke and found me here, On the cold hill’s side.” |
| Main Idea | The poem warns about the dangers of enchantment and idealized love, showing how passion can lead to despair. |
| Unique Feature of the Poem | Unlike Keats’ other odes, this ballad has a medieval, supernatural setting with an unresolved ending. |
| Influence on the Poem | Inspired by medieval romance, folklore, and Keats’ personal experiences with love and illness. |
1. : What is the meaning of the poem’s title?
(A) The Beautiful Lady of Mercy
(B) The Beautiful Lady Without Mercy
(C) The Mysterious Woman in Love
(D) The Fairy Queen’s Curse
2. : What is the structure of La Belle Dame sans Merci?
(A) Sonnet
(B) Ballad
(C) Ode
(D) Epic Poem
3. : How does the poem begin?
(A) With the knight telling his story
(B) With the lady singing a song
(C) With a stranger asking the knight why he looks so sad
(D) With the knight finding himself in the forest
4. : How does the knight describe the woman he meets?
(A) A cruel sorceress
(B) A fairy-like, enchanting lady
(C) A ghost from his past
(D) A lost princess
5. : What does the lady feed the knight?
(A) Bread and wine
(B) Fruits and honey
(C) Exotic food like roots and wild honey
(D) Poisoned berries
6. : Where does the lady take the knight?
(A) To her castle
(B) To an underground cave
(C) To a misty lake
(D) To a dark forest
7. : What happens to the knight in his dream?
(A) He sees a vision of his future
(B) He sees ghosts of pale kings and warriors warning him
(C) He hears the lady singing to him
(D) He wakes up and realizes it was all a dream
8. : What happens to the knight at the end of the poem?
(A) He is left alone and heartbroken
(B) He returns home safely
(C) He finds another lady to love
(D) He wakes up and realizes it was a nightmare
9. : What is the main theme of the poem?
(A) The beauty of love and devotion
(B) The dangers of idealized love and illusion
(C) The triumph of true love
(D) The conflict between love and war
10. : What does the setting of the poem symbolize?
(A) The beauty of nature
(B) The loneliness and despair of lost love
(C) The happiness of love fulfilled
(D) The victory of knights in battle
