A reference to a mythological story, in which Berenice, queen of Egypt, was said to have cut off one of her locks of hair to ensure her husband’s safety in battle, after which the lock was magically transformed into a constellation. This story was popular with classical authors, appearing in the works of Callimachus and Catullus. Belinda’s own lock ascending into the heavens at the end of Canto V and appearing as a constellation humorously echoes this ancient story, creating another mismatch between the loftiness of classical subjects and the relative triviality and banality of Belinda’s situation.
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Berenice’s Locks Term Timeline in The Rape of the Lock
The timeline below shows where the term Berenice’s Locks appears in The Rape of the Lock. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Canto V
...seen only by Proculus. Then it shot along like a shooting star, more brightly than Berenice’s locks , and the sylphs watched on contentedly.
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