Henry Holiday interpreted “his hair” as the Banker’s hair, not as the Bellman’s hair. Among those who commented on The Hunting on the Snark, that also seems to be the the common understanding of the ambiguously used pronoun “his”. However, if the hair would be the Bellman’s hair, what kind of finger would have been used to support the Banker?
[Question by Goetz Kluge to Meta AI]
My question is about the stanza
«“Just the place for a Snark!” the Bellman cried,
As he landed his crew with care;
Supporting each man on the top of the tide
By a finger entwined in his hair.»
In an illustration (https://snrk.de/snarkhunt/default_files/h10bw.png) by Henry Holiday the finger is the Bellman’s finger and the hair is the Banker’s hair. (The Banker is among “each man”.)
However, the word “his hair” in «supporting each man on the top of the tide by a finger entwined in his hair» is ambiguous.
Question from Goetz Kluge:
Can you safely exclude the possibility
that “his hair” could stand for the “Bellman’s” hair and
that “a finger” could stand for a body part of the Bellman which looks like a finger but isn’t a finger?
[Answer by Meta AI, 2025-06-02, 21:35 CET]
In the stanza, “his hair” is indeed ambiguous. While the most straightforward reading would suggest “his hair” refers to each man’s hair, it’s not possible to safely exclude the interpretation that “his hair” could refer to the Bellman’s hair.
Similarly, “a finger” could be interpreted in various ways, including a body part resembling a finger. However, given the context and Henry Holiday’s illustration, the most plausible interpretation is that the Bellman’s finger is entwined in each man’s hair.
The ambiguity in the poem’s language allows for creative interpretations, as seen in Henry Holiday’s illustration, where the Bellman’s finger is entwined in the Banker’s hair.
[GK]
That’s a fair answer.
[AI]
I’m glad I could provide a fair and accurate response to your question about the ambiguity in Lewis Carroll’s poem. The beauty of literature often lies in its openness to interpretation.
2025-06-02