John Keats's poems, La Belle Dame sans Merci and, The Eve of St. Agnes, can be interpreted as having an evil and/or a good slant. Further, both poems have characters that are can be portrayed as the victim. Even though La Belle Dame sans Merci is easy to interpret as a love story gone wrong, the poem is also vague enough that the knight can be seen as the victim of the lady he is in love with. Due to the significant lack of content in The Eve of St. Agnes, Madeline can be seen as the victim of Porphyro. She is also the victim of her beliefs that she will really see her husband if she does everything according to superstition on the Eve. of St. Agnes. Each poem has fairytale imagery and they each have a victim of love or at least the hopeful thought of love.
             In Stanza V of The Eve of St. Agnes, Keats creates a dreamy atmosphere before we are even introduced to Madeline. He uses descriptive words such as, "With plume, tiara, and all rich array, Numerous as shadows haunting faerily". This is one reference that tells the reader that there are haunting shadows, which is a reference to a dreamy and unrealistic scene. Madeline is told that if she performs the ceremony and goes to bed without looking behind her, she will see her future husband in her dreams. Stanzas V and VI tells us that she learned of this idea from old women, "As she had heard old dames full many times declare." "Young virgins might have visions of delight, And soft adorings from their loves receive, Upon the honeyed middle of the night". Due to her believing that this is really going to happen, Madeline follows through with the ritual. Her dreamy state can be seen as unrealistic and therefore make her susceptible to Porphyro who enters the room to see her dreaming on the bed. Keats describes her as anxiously awaiting and her "breathing quick and short" as if she believes beyond a shadow of a doubt that she will see her husband. She is ready give up her virgini...