The Game of Ombre Canto 3 lines 18

The Game of Ombre Canto 3; lines 18 -100 At the Hampton Palace

What is “Ombre”? Ombre (Hombre, or "The Man") is a trick-taking card game very similar to the modern games of Spades and Hearts. It is also a direct ancestor of the modern game of Bridge. It was very popular among the London elite in Pope's time, and the game that he describes in "The Rape of the Lock" obeys its rules perfectly.

The Rules The game is usually played with three players with a standard deck of cards that has the 8's, 9's, and 10's removed. Each player is dealt 9 cards, and the remaining 13 cards are placed in the talon. The players bid on who will be able to take a majority of the tricks (five of nine). The winning bidder becomes the declarer (the Hombre) and must play against both of the other two players. The winning bidder is allowed to declare which suit will be trump. ("Let spades be trumps” she said, and trumps they were. Line 46). Each player plays a card in a counter-clockwise rotation. To win the hand, the declarer must take five tricks.

Important Terms Trump : the dominant color of the hand. (王牌) Matadors : the highest three cards in any game. The black aces are always Matadors. Spadille : the Ace of Spades and always the highest trump card. Basta : the Ace of Clubs and always the third highest trump. Manille : the card that would otherwise be the lowest card in the trump suite.

The Ranking of the Cards Black and red suits have a slightly different ranking. If the trump is a black suit (spades or clubs), the ranking of the suit is S 2 B K Q J 7 6 5 4 3 (S = Spadille, or the Ace of Spades; B = Basta, or the Ace of Clubs) If the trump suit is red (hearts or diamonds), the cards are ranked S 7 B A K Q J 2 3 4 5 6. Similarly, cards in the black suits (when not trump) are ranked K Q J 7 6 5 4 3 2 A and cards in red suits (when not trump) are ranked K Q J A 2 3 4 5 6 7.

The Hands Belinda, by the help of the Sylphs, has the four highest cards in the game (both black aces and the 2 and king of the trump suit), she is guaranteed to win at least four hands. However, because she is the designated the Ombre, she must win five of the nine tricks to beat both of the other players.

Round 1 (lines 49 -50) ( = Winning Hand) B A R O N Belinda (Ombre, or “The Man”) 3 rd P L A Y E R

Round 2 (lines 51 -52) 3 rd P L A Y E R B A R O N Belinda (Ombre, or “The Man”)

Round 3 (lines 53 -54) 3 rd P L A Y E R B A R O N Belinda (Ombre, or “The Man”)

Round 4 (lines 55 -64) 3 rd P L A Y E R B A R O N Belinda (Ombre, or “The Man”)

Round 5 (lines 65 -74) 3 rd P L A Y E R B A R O N Belinda (Ombre, or “The Man”)

Round 6 (lines 75 -86) 3 rd P L A Y E R B A R O N Belinda (Ombre, or “The Man”)

Round 7 (lines 75 -86) 3 rd P L A Y E R B A R O N Belinda (Ombre, or “The Man”)

Round 8 (lines 87 -92) 3 rd P L A Y E R B A R O N Belinda (Ombre, or “The Man”)

Round 9 (lines 93 -100) 3 rd P L A Y E R B A R O N Belinda (Ombre, or “The Man”)

The Significance of the Game The Mock-Heroic Battle: Pope is suggesting that the energy and passion once applied to brave and serious purposes is now expanded on such insignificant trials as games and gambling, which become a mere front for flirtation. The fall of the Queen of Hearts: Perhaps implicates the disgrace that Belinda later is going to face. The final Victory of the King of Hearts: One way we can interpret is that the final victory of a male represents the success of the Baron’s attempt. But another way we see that “hearts” possibly echoes with line 144 of canto 3, when Ariel entered Belinda’s brain, that “an earthly lover lurks at her heart. ”