The Princess

What It's About

The poem is framed as a story told in turns by a group of young men and women at a summer gathering. Their tale centres on Princess Ida, who rejects the world of men entirely and founds a university reserved exclusively for women. The prince to whom she was betrothed in childhood, refusing to accept her decision, disguises himself and two friends as women in order to gain entry to the college and win her back. Their deception is eventually discovered, setting off a chain of events that draws in both families and escalates toward open conflict.

Key Concepts

Written decades before women's colleges existed in Britain, the poem engages directly with questions of women's education, independence, and equality between the sexes, filtered through a Victorian lens. Tennyson mixes comic and serious tones throughout, and the blank-verse narrative is interspersed with shorter lyrical songs, including some of his most anthologised short poems. It has drawn both praise for its early, sympathetic treatment of women's rights and criticism for how it ultimately resolves the tension between Ida's independence and the marriage plot.

About the Author

Alfred, Lord Tennyson was an English poet who served as Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom for over four decades, becoming one of the most widely read poets of the Victorian era.