White Rose of Avalon

Literary Love

  • Lady Susan

    Lady Susan is an early epistolary novella written by Jane Austen.   This short novel is unique within the Austen canon for being written in this style (epistolary being written entirely in letters) and for having a protagonist who is rather unscrupulous.   Lady Susan Vernon is a woman of means who had lost her…

  • Love in Edgar Allan Poe Work

    Poe is arguably the American Gothic horror master!    He wrote numerous short tales and poetry that continues to inspire us today.   He was also one of the premier literary critics of the Victorian era, often critiquing his contemporaries.   His personal life, though, was littered with utter tragedy. He fell in love with…

  • Idylls of the King

    In the nineteenth century Tennyson wrote Idylls of the King, a cycle of poetry based on the Arthurian legends.    He took inspiration from the medieval poets that wrote about the legends several centuries earlier.   Tennyson’s poetry was part of a nineteenth century obsession with medievalism and Arthurian legends. The poems would inspire much…

  • Lamia

    Lamia was a queen in ancient Greece who had an affair with Zeus, and was cursed by Hera.    Hera turned her into a half serpent woman.   Part of the curse included that Lamia killed her own children, and was tormented by this knowledge evermore! Lamia is also a species of monster that is…

  • My Top Ten Magical Romance Poems

    Romantic and magical themes in poetry have been important parts of literature for millennia.   In the medieval period these themes became even more popular, and this was especially so due to the popularity of  Arthurian legends!    Number 10: Erec and Enide by Chretien de Troyes ~This is the earliest Arthurian poem by Chretien…

  • Medieval Poetry

    Medieval poetry is a type of literature that was inspired by the legends that were popular at the time.   The medieval period was the time of the epic poem.    The Canterbury Tales, The Decameron, and The Romance of the Rose are examples of this poetry.   The Lais of Marie de France was…

  • Ophelia

    Ophelia is the female lead of Shakespeare’s tragedy Hamlet.   She was in love with that prince of Denmark, and was used by the men in her life.   She is an iconic and tragic figure of a young woman trying to find her place in the world.   Ophelia is a figure that has…

  • My Top Five Shakespeare Love Quotes

    Number 5:’I would not wish any companion in the world but you’ (The Tempest – Act 3, Scene 1) ~This quote reminds us that friendship is important in romantic love!  Number 4:’Her passions are made of nothing but the finest part of pure love’ (Antony & Cleopatra – Act 3, Scene 5) ~I love this…

  • My Top 10 Shakespearean Films

    Number 10: Hamlet (1969) ~This version of Hamlet starred Marianne Faithfull as Ophelia, and is worth watching for that alone! Number 9: William Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet (1996) ~This is the classic Leo DiCaprio and Claire Danes version! Number 8: William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1999) ~Michelle Pfiffer made an awesome Titania in this…

  • Midsummer Night’s Dream

    Today I would like to focus on the Shakespeare comedy A Midsummer Night’s Dream.   As the winter is continuing to assault us I find myself itching for Spring and Summer, which got me thinking of one of my favorite plays!    The story of this play is well known through the western world.   …