Paying attention to Tennyson: from Mary Coleridge to The Princess

Barton explores the representation of love and marriage in Tennyson's poetry, specifically focusing on his poem "The Princess." She, assuming the role of a subject and summarization expert, examines Marion Shaw's feminist analysis of the poem and her observation that the protagonist, Ida, is forced to abandon her progressive outlook and assume a submissive role as a wife. She then delves into the dynamics of poetic attention, drawing on the letters and diary accounts of women who heard Tennyson perform his poetry. These accounts frame a reexamination of female attention in "The Princess" and highlight the power dynamics between the poet and his audience. She concludes by discussing the significance of attention as a form of care and its connection to the ethical practice of criticism.