The Eve of St. Agnes The Supernatural Quotes

Angela is speaking to Porphyro when he first approaches her inside the castles, remarking on how incredible it is that he's been able to get in undetected. When we first meet her, Madeline's described as "hoodwink'd with faery fancy," and now Porphyro's being introduced not as her boyfriend but as the "liege-lord of all the Elves and Fays." Porphyro doesn't even think this magic ritual is going to work, and yet is described in terms that figure him as an enchanter.

Porphyro's upset at the thought of Madeline putting her faith in the St. Agnes' Eve ritual because, like Angela, he thinks it's nonsense. So, on one hand, we've got all this supernatural, fairy stuff floating around in the poem so far, but on the other hand, everyone who isn't Madeline regards the big magic trick of the night as "enchantments cold." Think about this phrase, because it's kind of funny—would an enchantment be warm if it worked? Lots of things in this poem are split along the lines of "natural" and "supernatural," "warm" and "cold." Why do you think "enchantment" is characterized this way?

Porphyro's snuck into a castle full of people who want to help him shuffle off the mortal coil, Madeline's getting set to enact an ancient ritual, people are getting hidden in closet, and tensions are high. And this line only raises them higher. Most people agree that these lines refer to how Merlin, the famous magician, was trapped in a cave until he died by the enchantress Nimue, whom he'd been majorly in love with and taught his magic. Apart from just being really dark and menacing, though, it makes you wonder who the Merlin and Demon/Nimue figures are in Keats's setup. Is Porphyro the enchanter who will be eventually caught in his own web of tricks, or is it Madeline? With all of the talk of enchantments and fairies, why do you think Keats is referencing an episode where the head honcho of all magicians got smacked down?

Madeline isn't waking up as quickly as Porphyro had hoped, so he decides to play her some tunes to speed up the process. Keats would write his own "La Belle Dame sans Merci" a few months after writing this poem, but at the point at which he's writing "The Eve of Saint Agnes" the song title refers to a medieval French ballad about a chick who rejects her suitor. Now that's kind of weird, when you consider that Porphyro's probably banking on Madeline accepting him. Additionally, although the description of "long since mute" most obviously means "hasn't been played in a long time," it also retains the meaning of "silent," making it seem as though this song that Porphyro's playing isn't actually audible. So, in addition to being both "tumultuous" and "tenderest," the song is both mute and audible. In fact, Keats doesn't even tell us that Madeline hears the song; instead, he says that it "touches" her ear.

Right at the moment of consummation (whatever that consummation might be—choose your own poetic adventure) a funny thing happens: the moon of St. Agnes sets just as this huge storm starts pounding the castle. This storm, as we find out shortly, is an "elfin-storm from faery land" (344), which means that what essentially happened here is that the symbol of female chastity and power (the moon of St. Agnes) is replaced by the elfin-storm, trumpeting out a warning (the "alarum").

Porphyro's trying to get Madeline up ASAP so they can get moving. He tries to reassure her by telling her that the storm outside, despite being "haggard seeming," is actually going to help them get away. The most obvious meaning is that a wild storm will help them escape undetected, but the fact that it's so clearly written as a magical storm opens up other interpretations. This entire night has felt supernaturally charmed, and it seems as though this "elfin-storm" isn't just going to do Porphyro and Madeline a solid by covering their tracks, but that it's actually going to be the escape. Porphyro can sweet-talk Madeline about his home across the moors all he wants, but it feels a lot like "faery land" is the real destination.