Canto Three Flaws

In canto three there are many people with flawed perceptions. At the Hampton Court Palace Belinda sits down with two knights for a game of cards the game of cards is representing a heroic battle. The sylphs Belinda and the baron all have their own set of flaws and some are noticeable and some are hidden for good reason, but the hidden flaws can be seen as harm to goods eye.
The sylphs are the witness of all nonsense in the rape of the lock, but especially in canto three when they see the evil in people and try to help beautiful virgin girls but just aren’t able to. The sylphs are worried for Belinda when she starts the game of Cards with the baron and another young man to a game of cards. The sylphs are like Belinda’s fairy godmothers; they watch out for her and protect her beauty from harm. During the card game the sylphs kept a close eye on the action. They are the protectors but their flaws are that they cannot save beauty from evil. The party guest gather around for coffee and the Sylphs come around her fanning the hot drink to cool it down and make sure to protect her dress from any spills. The sylphs are almost perfect that they have no flaws, but almost are not perfect

because the lock of hair from Belinda’s head still got raped. So you could say that they did not succeed in their duties to protect her but did the best of their ability to try.
Belinda flaw is that her beauty is so strong that men can’t stand to stay away.

The sylphs are the ones who protect Belinda from vile men. Not only that Belinda’s beauty is powerful its that she is also a pure virgin and they protect her virginity. Belinda plays the game of cards and comes out on top. Lines 40-44 are one long extended metaphor on how Belinda and the baron are both generals in their card game. The faces on the cards seem like living Queens, Kings and Jacks commanding an army. Another flaw of Belinda’s is that some time she is blinded by the good to see the bad headed her way. After she won in cards in line 124 is states how the sent of coffee sent new ideas to the Barons brain on how to cut the rape of hair from Belinda’s head but she did not see the evil coming to

her.
The Barons flaw is a flaw that everybody deals with and it is jealously. After the Baron has gotten beaten several time he started to get a little steamed. Once the game ended the entire party guests helped themselves to a cup of coffee once the baron took a sip he started to obsess over Belinda’s lock once more. His obsession turns into a reality and he finds himself an ally, Clarissa that is also Belinda’s friend and she lets him borrow her silver scissors. He walks up behind Belinda and cut the lock and Belinda realizes that she has been beaten.
Alexander Pope is trying to relate to a mock epic in this story with the society of the elite in the 18th century. He benefits from his own story by seeing what flaws come out of different charters that his own imagination created. He might of used ideas from his own lifestyle or his family had their own rivalry between another families. The charter Belinda that he created was used as a magnet between the two rival families and once her lock had been cut by the Baron (the devious character) all of the characters realized that the hair was the rift between two families and now that the lock is gone the rift is also gone. Alexander Pope used creativity from his imagination but also seems like he put some of his own family feuds in the story.