The poem is set during the ancien regime/old regime (the regime of
the Louis kings) in France, before the revolution. This poem's speaker
is a 17th-century French courtier—a lady in the court of Louis XIV, the
long-reigning monarch often known as the Sun King. Mad with
jealousy upon the discovery that her husband is a philanderer, the
speaker is persuaded that only murderous vengeance can relieve her
pain. She seeks the laboratory of an old chemist, who has agreed to
help her brew a poison for a large sum of wealth.
The speaker has a glass mask on to protect her from the harmful
fumes of poison. Through this glass mask, she peers through the faint
white smoke curling around in the room. The old chemist is brewing
the poison in his workshop, which she compares to a “devil’s smithy”.
She expresses a desire to know which poison is the one for her rival.
In the second stanza, we learn of the events that have driven her to
such extremes. Her husband is with her rival. They know that the
speaker is aware of the sexual nature of their relationship. They laugh
at her assuming she is crying in a church - praying to God to return
her husband to her. However, she is in the laboratory, watching a
poison brew - resolute that murdering her rival can relieve her pain.
They might be laughing at her now, but she’s the one who shall have
the last laugh.
The beginning of the third stanza consists of active verses. She says
that she is not in a hurry, and the old chemist should take his time
grinding the paste and pounding the powder - ensuring that the poison
is brewed perfectly. She would rather sit in the laboratory than go and
dance at The King’s. This stanza is also reflective of the sexism
prevalent in Victorian society. Women were nothing but objects in
men’s eyes. For the speaker, the laboratory offers a refuge, albeit a
rather twisted one, from the leering eyes of men.
, She inquires about the process; asking if the substance in the mortar
(bowl) is a poisonous gum. She praises the tree which has yielded
such a magnificent substance. She spots a phial (or a vial) with an
exquisite blue liquid. She is sure such a bright looking fluid would taste
sweet and she asks him if it is poison.
She says that if she had him and his treasures (of poisonous
substances) she would have all the pleasures of life. She could carry
deadly poison in an earring or a casket, perhaps a signet ring, in the
mount of a hand fan or a filigree basket. These items are traditionally
associated with femininity. Here, they are used for a sinister purpose -
to carry poison. This is one of the instances where we can see how
jealousy has corroded her soul.
At the King’s court, she would give Pauline a lozenge, filled with
poison - and the woman would have but thirty minutes to live. She
plans to give Elise an incense stick; which once lighted will emit
poisonous fumes, killing the woman. She visualises death - each part
of the body dropping down dead. This is suggestive of the extreme
anger this woman has at her husband cheating on her with other
women.
The speaker now grows impatient and comments on the appearance
of the poison. She says that the poison looks too grim and would not
be willingly consumed by her rival. She wishes it to look as enticing
and bright as the blue liquid in the philal. She wishes the poison would
brighten the drink of her rival and appear beautiful.
She says her rival is not petite and slim as her; perhaps this is the
reason her husband seeked a mistress in the first place. She wishes
for a larger portion to kill her rival - to free her soul from her
the Louis kings) in France, before the revolution. This poem's speaker
is a 17th-century French courtier—a lady in the court of Louis XIV, the
long-reigning monarch often known as the Sun King. Mad with
jealousy upon the discovery that her husband is a philanderer, the
speaker is persuaded that only murderous vengeance can relieve her
pain. She seeks the laboratory of an old chemist, who has agreed to
help her brew a poison for a large sum of wealth.
The speaker has a glass mask on to protect her from the harmful
fumes of poison. Through this glass mask, she peers through the faint
white smoke curling around in the room. The old chemist is brewing
the poison in his workshop, which she compares to a “devil’s smithy”.
She expresses a desire to know which poison is the one for her rival.
In the second stanza, we learn of the events that have driven her to
such extremes. Her husband is with her rival. They know that the
speaker is aware of the sexual nature of their relationship. They laugh
at her assuming she is crying in a church - praying to God to return
her husband to her. However, she is in the laboratory, watching a
poison brew - resolute that murdering her rival can relieve her pain.
They might be laughing at her now, but she’s the one who shall have
the last laugh.
The beginning of the third stanza consists of active verses. She says
that she is not in a hurry, and the old chemist should take his time
grinding the paste and pounding the powder - ensuring that the poison
is brewed perfectly. She would rather sit in the laboratory than go and
dance at The King’s. This stanza is also reflective of the sexism
prevalent in Victorian society. Women were nothing but objects in
men’s eyes. For the speaker, the laboratory offers a refuge, albeit a
rather twisted one, from the leering eyes of men.
, She inquires about the process; asking if the substance in the mortar
(bowl) is a poisonous gum. She praises the tree which has yielded
such a magnificent substance. She spots a phial (or a vial) with an
exquisite blue liquid. She is sure such a bright looking fluid would taste
sweet and she asks him if it is poison.
She says that if she had him and his treasures (of poisonous
substances) she would have all the pleasures of life. She could carry
deadly poison in an earring or a casket, perhaps a signet ring, in the
mount of a hand fan or a filigree basket. These items are traditionally
associated with femininity. Here, they are used for a sinister purpose -
to carry poison. This is one of the instances where we can see how
jealousy has corroded her soul.
At the King’s court, she would give Pauline a lozenge, filled with
poison - and the woman would have but thirty minutes to live. She
plans to give Elise an incense stick; which once lighted will emit
poisonous fumes, killing the woman. She visualises death - each part
of the body dropping down dead. This is suggestive of the extreme
anger this woman has at her husband cheating on her with other
women.
The speaker now grows impatient and comments on the appearance
of the poison. She says that the poison looks too grim and would not
be willingly consumed by her rival. She wishes it to look as enticing
and bright as the blue liquid in the philal. She wishes the poison would
brighten the drink of her rival and appear beautiful.
She says her rival is not petite and slim as her; perhaps this is the
reason her husband seeked a mistress in the first place. She wishes
for a larger portion to kill her rival - to free her soul from her
