The Rape of the Lock
/ðə ˌreɪp əv ðə ˈlɒk/
/ðə ˌreɪp əv ðə ˈlɑːk/
- a long humorous poem (1712) by Alexander Pope, about a man who cuts off a small piece of a woman's hair (= a lock). Pope describes this rather unimportant act in grand and elegant language, which gives the poem its humour.
Want to learn more?
Find out which words work together and produce more natural sounding English with the Oxford Collocations Dictionary app.
Check pronunciation:
The Rape of the Lock