The Highwayman by Alfred Noyes, written in 1906, however the poem took place before 1830’s. This poem is a love poem dedicated to the landlord’s daughter, in the poem the reader sees a act of true love and sacrifice. The poem is both tragic and romantic, in the sense that both The Highwayman and Bess’ souls reunite in death on a winter night.
The Highwayman is set in England is a story of a man who robs people. The highwayman in this poem meets and falls in love with the landlord’s daughter, Bess. He secretly meets with her every night. However, Tim, a stableman who loves Bess is jealous of the highway man so to get back at him he informs the authorities of the highwayman 's plan. And because of Tim the highwayman does not return and the next evening as promised to Bess. Some British soldiers (the Redcoats) go to the landlords house to wait for the highwayman, and taunt Bess by tying her to the bedpost in the room they expect him (the highwayman) to come, with a gun at her chest. The soldiers then wait by the window, but Bess wriggles around till she has her finger on the trigger.
Noyes uses many themes such as love, sacrifice and violence, and the poet used stylistic devices such as, onomatopoeia, repetition, similes, metaphor and imagery in order to set the atmosphere of the poem, help the reader understand the true purpose of the poem.
In The Highwayman, the themes of love, sacrifice and violence, is the main part of the storyline in the poem. The story line is meant