The Glove and
the Lions Summary & Analysis - Poem by Leigh Hunt
King Francis was a hearty
king, and loved a royal sport,
And one day as his lions fought, sat looking on the court;
The nobles filled the benches, and the ladies in their pride,
And 'mongst them sat the Count de Lorge, with one for whom he sighed:
And truly 'twas a gallant thing to see that crowning show —
Valour and love, and a king above, and the royal beasts below.
Ramped and roared the
lions, with horrid, laughing jaws;
They bit, they glared, gave blows like beams, a wind went with their paws.
With wallowing might and stifled roar they rolled on one another,
Till all the pit with sand and mane was in a thunderous smother;
The bloody foam above the bars came whizzing through the air;
Said Francis then, "Faith, gentlemen, we're better here than there!."
De Lorge's love o'erheard
the King, a beauteous lively dame,
With smiling lips, and sharp bright eyes, which always seemed the same;
She thought, “The Count, my lover, is brave as brave can be,
He surely would do wondrous things to show his love of me;
King, ladies, lovers, all look on; the occasion is divine;
I'll drop my glove, to prove his love; great glory will be mine.’
She dropped her glove to
prove his love, then looked at him and smiled;
He bowed, and in a moment leaped among the lions wild;
The leap was quick, return was quick, he has regained his place,
Then threw the glove, but not with love, right in the lady's face!.
"By Heavens!" said Francis, "rightly done!" and he rose
from where he sat;
"No love," quoth he, "but vanity, sets love a task like
that."
Poem by Leigh Hunt
The Glove and the Lions by Leigh Hunt- Summary
Glove and the Lions is simply about an
incident that took place at a royal arena where the king, the nobles and their
ladies had gathered to watch a show of combat between the royal lions. The king
was a cheerful and sporty person who loved to watch these battles. The noblemen
and their ladies also gathered there with pride of being part of this special gathering.
There was a fine young nobleman seated among them with the lady whom he longed
for. His name was Count de lorge.
In between the king and the beasts were a
man with great bravery and the woman he loved.
Lions’ Combat
The fighting lions created a fierce scene.
The lions rolled on each other and the pit was covered with wind. The sound of
roars was equally terrifying. The blood with foam came whistling out from the
pit. Looking at all this, the king makes a comment of reassurance to himself
shaken by the ferocity. “Faith, gentlemen, we’re better here than there!” He is
glad that they are seated up and far from the pit where the bloody combat was
taking place.
Count de Lorge and the
lady he longs for
The beautiful lady who is appreciated by
Count de Lorge, overhears the comment by the king and thinks of a scheme
through which she can show others how much she is sought after by the young man
and to be glorious in front of the huge gathering. She thinks that it is the
best time and place for her plan. Accordingly, she deliberately drops her glove
to the fearful pit where the lions were in combat and looks at the face of the
young man and smiles.
Count de Lorge’s
reaction
Realizing her intentions, Count de Lorge
jumps into the pit and quickly returns with her glove in his hand. His actions
were proof of his bravery and the crowd was amazed. The crowd gets even more
amazed when he throws the glove in the lady’s face with no love at all.
King’s Comment
What was happening was seen by the king as
well and he again makes a comment on what he sees. This time he rises from his
seat and applauds the actions of Count de Lorge; “By Heavens!” , “rightly
done!”, “No love but vanity, sets love a task like that”. He also despises the
act of the lady.
The Glove and the Lions - Analysis
The Glove and the Lions is a narrative
poem. It relates an incident with elaborative information to discuss on a
universal theme to convey an important message to the reader. The poet starts
the poem by creating the background to his narration. Description and the
visualization of the scene of combat and its audience communicates several
aspects of human nature.
The Narrator and the
Narration of The Glove and the Lions
It is a narration from a third person
point of view. NArrator basically focuses on two happenings. The fierce combat
of the lions in the pit and the combat of love and vanity in the relationship
of Count de Lorge and the lady.
The comments made by the king on these two
events play a vital role in the poem. These comments portrait a vivid picture
of the king’s character whereas they do the work of a social critic.
The Setting of the poem
The Glove and the Lions
The poet takes us back to the times of
kings, queens, brave heroes, beauties and monsters. The king, noblemen and
their ladies are seated round the arena watching royal lions fighting in the
pit. One whole stanza is dedicated to establish the background in an effective
and meaningful way.
The king’s fabulous royal presence,
watching the combat from the highest position of the arena and the gathering of
the noblemen and ladies seated below with their elegance and pride makes quite
a scene. At the sametime, the fierce lions fighting in the pit creates quite a
contrasting picture of blood and violence. Above all, the combat of love and
vanity and expression of valour and rejection between a young nobleman and the
lady is quite fascinating.
The poet says that it is a truly valuable
and rare show which is not for just anyone to view. The poet becomes ironic
here referring to the show of the lions and at the same time to the incident
between a couple in love.
The Plot of the Poem
The Glove and the Lions
The movement of the plot through the
stanzas is quite interesting and methodical in this poem. The first stanza
describes the atmosphere of the arena, the king, the noblemen and ladies and
how they are seated. The characters of Count de Lorge and the lady are also
introduced therein. It also mentions the event to which they all have gathered.
Stanza two creates a vivid picture of the
combat between the royal lions, how they fight, how fearful they are and
everything about the violent atmosphere there. The entire stanza is dedicated
for this purpose and it serves its purpose. The king is enjoying the show and makes
a comment about his experience.
The plot moves forward taking a different
direction as the king gets distracted by the show of valour and vanity of two
young lovers; Count de Lorge and the lady for whom he sighed.
The king and everyone who had gathered
there witnessed how the lady threw her glove to the pit where the royal beasts
were fighting expecting her lover to bring it back to her showing his love for
her and thinking that she would own the glory of it. Everybody could witness
the quick reaction of Count de Lorge who leaps to the pit and returns with the
glove to throw it on her face showing his disapproval of her deeds. Having
witnessed it all, the king again makes a comment. He approves the reaction by
the young Count and despises how vanity could set love in such a position.
The focus of the poem
Even Though the very first two stanzas of
the poem have been dedicated to describe the royal gathering at the arena and
the combat between the royal beasts, the focus of the poem is not the royal
sport.
It analyzes the absurdity of human nature
in hunger of glory in any given circumstance. People can go beyond the basic
values of life for their pride.
“The great glory will
be mine”
The combat between the royal beasts is
secondary to the combat going on in the minds of the audience who have gathered
there. They are seated in their pride. They try hard to prove to themselves and
to the rest of the noblemen that they are superior to the others who are
gathered there. Each and every nobleman tries to win over the king. Ladies in
particular, try to outshine each other.
There’s a much fierce combat going on in
the mind of the lover of Count de Lorge. It is the battle between love and
vanity and finally vanity wins, setting love at a difficult position.
Similarly, there is a battle between the
feeling of love and realization of truth in the mind of Count de Lorge having
to face the actions of his lady. Finally, his realization takes power to reject
the unworthy. Accordingly, the focus of the poem is on the battles that are
taking place in the human minds rather than the combat between the royal
beasts.
The Climax of the Poem
The Glove and the Lions
The climax is a surprising twist because
Count de Lorge responds to the request of the lady without a word and just as
she pleases. At the next moment, he frankly showcases his true feelings about
her actions which no one would have expected. This scene is quite dramatic and
creates a vivid visual imagery.
TheTone of the Poem The Glove and the Lions
The tone of the narrator is courteous and
well-nurtured. The narrator does not use harsh words nor the characters utter
hate speech. There is no in depth criticism, yet mild criticism through the
comments uttered by the king. However, most of the time, actions speak more
than words do.
The message of the Poem The Glove and the Lions
The Glove and the Lions poses a question
about the real meaning of civilization / humanity. The first two stanzas focus
on the blood sport and the poet looks down upon the idea of entertainment
through the sorrow of others. Hunting is still considered a sport in some parts
of the world and the poet raises the question whether it is humane to seek
entertainment by killing a living being. There are several other sports which
are meant for hurting the opponent for victory.
“Said Francis then, "Faith, gentlemen,
we're better here than there!."
The poet seeks the attention of the reader
here and is cynical about how people could be so selfish that they think of
their own safety, comforts and enjoyment at the cost of the lives of others.
“Valour and love, and a king above, and the
royal beasts below.”
There is also a hidden message in this
poem which again poses the question of real glory. When the poet refers to the
“royal beasts below”, one can refer to the nobles who fight for the king’s
favour, nobles who fight for beautiful women, nobles who fight for their
nobleness or vanity.
The incident between the lady and Count de
Lorge hints us that it is in vain that one puts someone whom she loves at a
task that threatens his life for the sake of mere glory.
The poet needs the reader to question
themselves whether it is really necessary to become superior to others. Why do
people consider themselves superior to others? Is it worthwhile proving oneself
superior to others ?
Character Analysis
The character of King
Francis
He is portrayed as a hearty king and a
sports lover and not very different from the kings we have known in our history
books. His occasional comments in the poem give the poet a voice to highlight
certain facts and incidents in the plot.
The character of De Lorge
The character of Count de Lorge is
portrayed as a person who is not lacking in valour. He is a man of action and a
gentleman. He is also an intelligent person who is capable of understanding the
sentiments and the real motive of the lady in this poem. Infact, he is capable
of understanding the reality beyond the charms of the fine lady.
The Lady
“a beauteous lively dame, With smiling
lips, and sharp bright eyes, which always seemed the same;’”
The lady is portrayed as someone who has
all the outward beauty that one can get attracted to but lacking in the inner
spirit that attracts a man with a heart. She is an indifferent, heartless and
arrogant lady who is too confident of herself for someone who chooses her pride
over the lover.
This poem exposes a daring character of a
beautiful lady, equally daring young lord and a daring story of love and
valour.
N.B. This
material, copyrighted by ceytopia.com,
has been collected from Google for the purpose of self studies.
ANALYSIS TWO
The poem begins with the speaker
describing the event that the royal court, the king included, are attending. It
is a fight between two lions and all are there to see it play out. The king
himself, Francis, is a fan of this particular “sport,” but his attention is
split. He is amazed by the brutality of the fight and the fact that he is able
to observe it from safety. On the other hand, he is distracted by the beauty of
one for whom he “sighs.” She is the lover of another lord.
The lady herself is distracted by the valor of the king and
decided to set a task for her lover. She drops her glove into the lion pit in
the hopes that he will jump in and retrieve it for her. He does just this but
is not pleased with her actions. He throws her glove in her face and leaves the
arena. He does not believe that any true lover would set “such a task.”
Analysis
of The
Glove and the Lions
Stanza One
King
Francis was a hearty king, and loved a royal sport,
And one
day as his lions fought, sat looking on the court;
The nobles
filled the benches, and the ladies in their pride,
And
‘mongst them sat the Count de Lorge, with one for whom he sighed:
And truly
’twas a gallant thing to see that crowning show,
Valour and love, and a king above, and the royal beasts below.
‘The
Glove and the Lions‘ begins with the
speaker describing a king, Francis, and the courtesans that surround him. The
reader enters the poem into a setting which is
normal for the times, but outlandish seeming to a modern audience. One is
immediately informed that the king is not a bad man, he is “hearty,” and
seemingly good-natured.
On this particular
occasion, he is with the “royal… court” watching one of his favorite sporting
activities, lion fighting. He is surrounded by aristocrats, lords, and “ladies
in their pride.” Everyone is attending this event and is at their best. There
is one couple among them that draws the special attention of the king. The
Count de Lorge, and his “love.” She is the one for “whom [the king] sighed.”
Francis is infatuated with the wife, or lover, of a noble in his court.
AD
Taking a brief step
back from the love story that is central to the plot of this short narrative, the speaker
describes how the fight is progressing. He states that it is a “gallant thing”
to see the “crowning show.” It is quite the royal event, something the common
people would never have been able to see. The whole stadium like arrangement is
filled with “Valour and love,” and topped off by the king, who is looking down
on the “royal beasts,” below him. The “beasts” to which the speaker refers can
reference both the lions and the nobles who must fight amongst themselves for the
king’s favour.
Stanza
Two
Ramped
and roared the lions, with horrid laughing jaws;
They
bit, they glared, gave blows like beams, a wind went with their paws;
With
wallowing might and stifled roar they rolled on one another;
Till
all the pit with sand and mane was in a thunderous smother;
The
bloody foam above the bars came whisking through the air;
Said
Francis then, “Faith, gentlemen, we’re better here than there.”
AD
The second stanza
of ‘The Glove and the Lions‘ describes the atmosphere of the
flight itself. The lions are quite vicious and “roared…with horrid laughing
jaws.” They begin to fight and tear into one another. Their “blows” are strong
like “beams” and the wind seems to move alongside their paws. They are rolling
around on the floor and causing a serious commotion. From where the king is
sitting he is impressed by the sublimeness of this moment. He is completely
out of harm’s way but is able to experience the “bloody foam” that comes
“whisking through the air.”
In a distant and
haughty way, he amusingly states that he, and those around him, are better off
“here than there” in the pit with the lions.
Stanza
Three
De
Lorge’s love o’erheard the King, a beauteous lively dame
With
smiling lips and sharp bright eyes, which always seemed the same;
She
thought, the Count my lover is brave as brave can be;
He
surely would do wondrous things to show his love of me;
King,
ladies, lovers, all look on; the occasion is divine;
I’ll
drop my glove, to prove his love; great glory will be mine.
AD
One can assume, as is
often the case, that the nobles chuckled at the king’s comment. One of these
nobles, the lover of De Lorge, was especially entertained by the king’s whit.
She turns and looks at him and smiles with her “beauteous…lips and sharp bright
eyes.”
She sees the king, and
is perhaps struck by his grandeur and strength. She suddenly feels as if she
must test her own lover, De Lorge, to see if he too is as brave as the king
seems to be. She wants to be proven right that he is “brave as brave can be”
and that he would “do wondrous things to show his love.”
She comes to the
conclusion that she will drop her glove into the pit with the lions in the hope
that De Lorge will jump in and retrieve it for her.
AD
Stanza
Four
She
dropped her glove, to prove his love, then looked at him and smiled;
He
bowed, and in a moment leaped among the lions wild:
The
leap was quick, return was quick, he has regained his place,
Then
threw the glove, but not with love, right in the lady’s face.
“By
God!” said Francis, “rightly done!” and he rose from where he sat:
“No
love,” quoth he, “but vanity, sets love a task like that.”
AD
De Lorge does as she
intended. He smiles at her, bows, and the leaps “among the lions wild.” He
moves so quickly that they are unable to touch him. He is back, regaining “his
place” as her lover before anyone has the time to react.
So far things have
gone to plan, but De Lorge was not amused by this gesture. He does not express
his love at this moment. Instead, he throws the glove at her face and states
that he is “rightly done” with her. He rises once more and leaves the arena.
De Lorge seems to be
the only one in this scenario that has a healthy outlook on what a relationship
should be. He understands that she did not really make this gesture in the
hopes of having his love for her validated, but instead as a way of getting
attention and indulging her “vanity.” He states the same, and strides away from
the king and nobles. He does not believe that “love” would “set…as task like
that.”
N.B. This
material, copyrighted by poemanalysis.com,
and analyzed by Emma Baldwin has been collected from Google for the purpose
of self studies.
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