Connotations and Emotions in Percy's "Sweet William's Ghost"

Connotations surrounding the word “ghost” are inevitably going to make most people think of terror and become afraid when they are presented with it and especially with an image or story of one. When ghosts appear in stories (both old and new), the plot seems to always revolve around the idea that they are haunting a place or an individual and that they are threatening or destroying someone’s life. These supernatural beings are unfathomable, unnatural, and are often considered to have lost all humanistic elements. The fear of the unknown and fear of death are pulled together in the image of a ghost. Therefore, when this ballad opens with “There came a ghost to Margaret’s door,/With many a grievous grone,” this sublime image should invoke fear in the reader (Lines 1-2).

However, the title, which is often an indicator of what can be expected in a story, contradicts the usual allegations relating to ghosts because of the incorporation of the simple word “Sweet.” When I first read the ballad, I thought that was unusual. There are some ghosts, such as Casper the Friendly Ghost, that are not terrifying, but traditionally they seem to be more like Lewis’s Bleeding Nun whose clothes are stained with blood, who carries a dagger, who horses try to run from, and whose carriage is surrounded by tempest weather, complete with thunder and lightning (Lewis 155-6). The diction that Percy uses to represent the ghost here and further on in the piece, such as in line 10 when he says “tis thy true love Willie,” suggests that he is not the terrifying creature that readers have come to expect. In this case, Percy breaks away from the traditional to emphasize the romantic love that exists between William and Margaret.

Their love remains even after William has become nothing more than a spirit. The emotion and passion that Margaret feels is strong enough that she follows him around “a’ the live-lang winter night” asking if there is room in his coffin for her (Lines 43-48). This seems to be entirely irrational, which is often the case in romanticism because these works celebrate emotion over reason. Margaret begs for a kiss and to be married to William, even after he reveals that if he kisses her, she will die (Lines 23-32). Percy is displaying the intensely persuasive capability that emotion has over every human.

While their love still exists, it is impossible for them to remain together. The juxtaposition of the lighter, romantic love aspect of the ballad with the hopeless situation and the darkness of death force Percy to create a darker tone to love. With phrases such as “grievous grone,” “winter night,” “dead corps,” “creep,” “coffin,” “cloud of mist,” and “alone,” he creates an image of despair that originates from the love that these two have for each other. In a way, the story that this ballad presents seems to question the positive connotations that love has. If she will die for love, is it such as good thing? Percy cannot seem to answer this question, but he does reveal the true power of a love that is so strong it can defy even the death of one partner.

The ballad concludes with William leaving Margaret alone crying, and she “stretch’d her saft limbs, and died” (Lines 60-64). Death and despair go together and this ballad displays that perfectly: the death of a true love creates despair, which then leads to the death of the one left alone, completing the circle. Although the emotion, the love lasts even in the grave, the physical, rational person cannot continue to survive. 

thelotusneverdies

Lewis, Matthew. The Monk. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008. Print.

Percy, Thomas. "Sweet William's Ghost." The Longman Anthology of Gothic Verse. Ed. Caroline Franklin. Harlow: Pearson, 2011. 20-22. Print.