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Christina Rossetti biography essay
Critical appreciation of Christina Rossetti
Critical appreciation of Christina Rossetti
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"Goblin Market," one among Christina's most sexual poems, contains various analogies to sexual appetites, however it's unclear whether or not she was aware of these sexual innuendos. As her need for esthetical fulfillment becomes a lot more intense, Laura takes on the characteristics of a beast, recalling the fate of many lustful figures. Rossetti permits herself the total freedom of her poetic gifts: her musicality, her visual sense, and her ability in each narrative and lyric modes. The sisters within the literary composition, Lizzie and Laura, square measure tempted by the witching and dangerous fruit the goblins sell as they trudge on the valley facet. Dantean pervades Rossetti’s work with themes of earthly love. That the guilty sister …show more content…
in goblin Market is named Laura might not be coincidence. This Laura isn't the article of carnal love, but she is, perhaps, its conduit. All of the similes suggest that the two of them are identical, and however one among them surrenders to the temptation of the goblin fruit, whereas the other sister stands firm. Being Rossetti’s most famous poem, “Goblin Market” has been reviewed, criticized and analyzed endlessly. The poem of the two sisters Laura and Lizzie and their encounters with the seductive goblin merchants has been viewed as a story about moral temptation, children’s greed, and sexual desire and seduction. Mostly viewed as fantasy or fairy tale, this poem can also be interpreted as a Gothic story with its underlying tones of moral deprivation, the tormenting cries of the goblin merchants’ “come buy, come buy”, the stark contrasts between night and day and the two sisters’ personalities, and the goblins’ shift in demeanor between friendly and evil. The rural life of the two sisters, their daily work and the biblical morality of the story can also be interpreted as Gothic elements of medieval times, much as in “Love from the North”. The first aspects of the poem that the reader encounters are the goblins themselves and their fruit. The goblins are fable-like, animal-men, clearly meant to be creatures stemming from nature. They come hobbling and scurrying down the road in a group, but disappear to different places in nature (the earth, brook, gale, etc.). The introduction of the goblins at the beginning of the poem is perhaps purposely done to establish them as fabled creatures and a part of nature, and to emphasize that they are not unique to the specific situation of Laura and Lizzie, who are presented later, but rather a part of cultural history. Later in the poem when Laura arrives home, her sister scorns her for dealing with the goblins, reminding her of Jeanie who died after eating the fruit. However, Laura will not listen and the next night she goes to buy more from them. To her great disappointment, she discovers that she can no longer hear their cries and she weeps bitterly in her bed over the fact that her sister can hear them, but she cannot, and that she will eat no more goblin fruit. Soon enough, she stops doing her daily chores, stops eating and drinking, and starts to fade away. She grows old, “her hair [grows] thin and gray” as she does not eat anything (Crump, I, 18:277). As Laura is at the risk of dying, Lizzie decides that she must act in order to save her sister, and get her some fruit, something she has been afraid to do before. She goes to meet the goblins, but when they ask her to eat with them she objects and says that she merely wants to bring fruit home for her sister, and not eat of it. They argue that their fruit cannot be carried, that it will be spoiled and no good, but she insists on not eating any, and asks for her money back. At this point they grow angry and violently try to force her to eat of it, pressing fruit against her lips “to make her eat” (Crump, I, 21:407). The description of the attack on Lizzie by the goblins shows her true role in this poem. Hill argues that the image of Lizzie as a “rock of blue-veined stone lashed by tides obstreperously” is an image of Christ, and the entire scene is a description of Christ’s sacrifice, just as Lizzie sacrifices herself for her sister (464). The image here is two-fold since it is both Christ as the rock, and the words “blue-veined” referring to the blood of royalty.
Furthermore, Lizzie is also compared to “a royal virgin town” (Crump, I, 22:418) referring to the Virgin Mary, a royal figure of Christian faith, almost as much as Christ himself (Hill, 464; see also D’Amico, 74 and Peterson, Linda H. 219). This interpretation is perhaps rather hasty, and the comparison of Lizzie to Christ or the Virgin Mary seems conflicting with the sense of sisterhood that lies over this poem, and there is little else in the poem that would indicate a connection to the two spiritual figures. Furthermore, it is difficult to see the Christian imagery in this scene, since no symbols here are uniquely Christian. It has already been explained that the sisters are blonde, as well as beautiful, and the image of a beacon becomes more descriptive than symbolic. Moreover, there are other images “fruit-crowned orange tree”, “standard” and others that are not directly Christian, and neither does Hill, D’Amico or Peterson address them (Crump, I, 22:415-421). The “lily in a flood” and “rock of blue-veined stone” are not clearly Christian images, and they do not specifically refer to Christ (22:409- 410). Furthermore, the “royal virgin town” does not specifically refer to the Virgin Mary, and it is strange, to say the least, that this should be a natural connection. The sisters are virgins (maidens), and it is as simple an explanation as …show more content…
anything to say that Rossetti has chosen this merely as an image of a proud, innocent city besieged by their enemies (22:418). Lizzie withstands their attack by merely resisting them and not opening her mouth, “lest they should cram a mouthful in”, and after a long time, they give up, throw her penny back to her and go away (Crump, I, 22:432). She runs home, covered in fruit juice, and on her return, she asks Laura to “suck my juices ... eat me, drink me, love me” (Crump, I, 23:468-71). Laura is anxious for her sister, and asks if she has tasted the fruit as well and must now dwindle away like she has, but she does accept her offer and licks the fruit juice from her sister’s face. One of the most famous and debated scenes of the poem, when Lizzie comes home with goblin fruit for Laura: Linden Meyer claims that food and especially fruit is intimately connected to lesbian sexuality to the verge of being “integral to lesbian existence” offering another interpretation of this poem as a celebration of lesbian sexuality and sisterly love. D’Amico sees Lizzie’s cry of “eat me, drink me, love me” as a further reference to Christ and also the Christian Eucharist. She further argues that the goblins and their fruit represent a temptation of the flesh and that this scene depicts the spiritual redemption of Laura through Lizzie’s sacrifice. D’Amico also maintains that this scene is not to be interpreted sexually, but merely as a celebration of spiritual love (78). Hill, however, has interpreted this story as an allegory of sexual development. In her article she argues with D’Amico and, although she views the goblins similarly as offering earthly, sexual temptation (that causes one to wither and die), she claims that Lizzie instead brings Laura earthly, erotic, sexual delight which simultaneously brings her closer to the love of God and the spiritual union with Christ. Hill goes further in erotic interpretation when viewing the convulsions Laura suffers before regaining her true self as orgasmic. After her feast on the fruit of her sister, Laura experiences violent spasms and collapses onto the floor, and is put to bed for a night of anxious tending by her sister. In the morning, Laura’s golden hair color has returned and she is herself again, the spell of the goblins having been broken after this, seemingly sexual, relief. Hill agrees with D’Amico that there are scenes of “the erotic nature of human desire” in this poem, but she also suggests that Rossetti is “striving for something far more subtle in her depiction of desire” (466). Sara Fiona Winters argues that these scenes are in no way intended to be interpreted erotically, but rather that “to Rossetti, it could well have seemed that the representation of two sisters embracing automatically excluded any hint of eroticism from the physical expression of love”. The fact that the story is about two sisters is evidence enough that Rossetti wanted to focus on a non-sexual relationship (19). It is disrespectful to say that these images must indicate a sexual relationship. It is quite clear in other parts of the poem that the two girls are sisters, and that this is sisterly love expressed emotionally. Lizzie is defending, protecting and rescuing her sister by any means necessary, and the fact that the two are embracing or kissing does not mean that there is a sexual connection between them. I could agree that one can read into the text that what the goblins are offering is something dangerous, something that kills, regardless if it is sex, alcohol or narcotics, but it is impossible to say if this scene celebrates spiritual or physical love, if anything. Rather, I would argue that this poem is a Gothic takes on the classic fable of not accepting candy from strangers, not going into the forest or down to the brook, and other stories mothers have always told their children. Considering the moral of the ending, and Rossetti’s engagement with nursery rhymes for children, it seems reasonable that one of her longer poems similarly would warn children about the dangers of the world. To wrap this into a Gothic tale of evil goblins is merely what Rossetti does best. The poem ends with a stanza where the two sisters are grown old and have children and husbands of their own.
Laura tells the story of the goblins and how Lizzie saved her, and how fortunate she was to have a sister to look after her. Mainly because of this verse in the end, the two characters of Laura and Lizzie have been interpreted as representing Christina and Maria Rossetti. I agree with this interpretation of Christina as the easily tempted, tormented Laura, and Maria as the strong, almost saintly Lizzie who rescues her sister from certain ruin. Christina did indeed think that she was dying much of the time of her youth and perhaps she thought that this was her own fault, that she was not good enough to deserve life, or that she must have sinned to deserve the illnesses she suffered from (Sawtell,
55-8). Christina Rossetti was an extremely productive poet, and her considerable contribution to the Gothic must not be overlooked. The poems presented in this essay and the analysis of them have intended to show how this poetry not only individually contains all the aspects of the Gothic mode, but also how they represent the larger oeuvre that is Rossetti’s Gothic poetry. In her most famous poems, “Goblin Market”, Rossetti shows the view of temptation and how it influences people’s lives: How it is possible to be saved through somebody else’s love and simultaneously how we are all human, and therefore prone to err and fail in life. “Goblin Market” is one of the few poems in Rossetti’s Gothic oeuvre that has a happy ending. However, the evil goblins and the sacrifice of the sister, combined with the horror of watching a family member slowly whither away must be considered Gothic enough. “Goblin Market” again shows victimized women haunted by evil spirits who threaten them sexually. Rossetti develops the Gothic mode into her own and how she uses her personal experiences and language to portray her emotions through it.
To swift decay and burn. Her fire away” (Rossetti 89), convey how the extinguishing of Laura’s fire is an indication of her dwindling lifespan. Another theme that was proficiently depicted in “Goblin Market”, was the loss of innocence; this was perhaps best demonstrated during the part where Lizzie went to the goblin men in search of an
Her choices of metaphors are simplistic explanations providing the backdrop for the emotional and spiritual connection we seek in following Christ. The symbolic comparisons of Mary Magdalene, her relationship to Jesus, mirrors some of Julian of Norwich’s personal spiritual journey of prayerful contemplation while seeking intimacy in her relationship to God.
In her poems Christina Rossetti references the loss of innocence stemming from premarital sexual encounters. In both the poems “An Apple Gathering” and “Cousin Kate”, Rossetti tells stories of women who lost their purity before marriage, and therefore deemed outcasts of society. These acts of dalliance exhibit how the loss of innocence can affect a Victorian woman’s life. Each poem begins with the introduction of the women who pursued physical relationships, followed by their abandonment by men, and thus, living their lives as outcasts.
The immediate background consists of natural mounds of dirt and a brick wall that enclose the Virgin, Child, and St. John, amplifying the protective effect that Mary’s figure has. The dirt mounds roll inward with a brick wall bordering them on the right, drawing the viewer’s attention towards the three figures. The background is painted in broad terms, with a simple, uniform depiction of tree leaves and smooth rock faces on the horizon. This contrasts with the fine-lined detail and texture of Mary’s hair, facial features, and veil, which further contribute to her elegance and highlight her
In Toni Morrison’s novel, The Song of Solomon, flowers are associated with romance and love, and so the way in which the central female characters interact with flora is indicative of the romance in their lives. Flowers, red roses in particular, are a universal symbol for love and fertility. Though Ruth Foster, Lena called Magdalene Dead, and First Corinthians Dead are associated with different types of flowers in distinctive ways, the purpose of the motif stays the same; flowers reveal one’s romantic status and are a precursor for the romance that is to come. Throughout the entire novel, the flowers share in common that they are not real. Some flowers appear printed, others as fake substitutes, and some are imaginary. This is an essential
In the first paragraph, it is described as “Faith, as the wife was aptly named, [who] thrust her own pretty head into the street, letting the wind play with the pink ribbons of her cap while she called to Goodman Brown” (310). As one can see, Faith is described as a pretty woman, who is possibly young because young girls usually wear ribbons. Children are known for their innocence and purity, so perhaps these ribbons represent this idea. The author repeatedly mentions her ribbons throughout the story, pointing towards a significant meaning. In the middle of Young Goodman Brown’s expedition in the forest, he explains that “But something fluttered lightly down through the air and caught on the branch of the tree. The young man seized it, and beheld a pink ribbon. ‘My Faith is gone...There is no good on earth; and sin is but a name. Come, devil; for to thee is this world given.’” (315) Goodman Brown discusses the devil and exclaims how nothing is just in this world. The ribbon fluttering down from the sky suggests that Faith has lost her purity and has turned to sin. This seems a little paranoid, as Goodman Brown assumes that his wife resorted to transgression. In fact, this paranoia is more exposed when he is talking to himself and saying things like “Faith! Faith…Look up to heaven, and resist the wicked one.”
...ic meanings that still are puzzling art historians today. Some of the key symbols that Stokstad points out in the text is the dove, representing the Holy Spirit; the white lilies as a symbol of the Virgin Mary. She also points out, two rather unknown symbols to the sacrilegious, the date of the Annunciation in signs of the zodiac on the floor, as well as the lone stained glass window that is symbolizing God rising above the three windows that are placed in the background behind Mary. These three windows represent the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Of the two sisters Lizzie and Laura, Laura is the one whose curious desires get the best of her. She and her sister encounter the goblin men and Lizzie just “thrust a dimpled finger / In each ear, shut her eyes and ran” (67 – 68); however, Laura’s curiosity gets the best of her and she chooses to stay: “Curious Laura chose to linger / Wondering at each merchant man” (69 – 70). These goblin men are selling fruit, and once Laura gets her hands on it, she is hardly able to stop herself. Quenching her desire is overwhelming for her, so much so that when she is finally done she “knew not was it night or day” (139). When she arrives home later, she tells her sister, “I ate and ate my fill, / Yet my mouth waters still; / Tomorrow night I ...
..., but Laura saw a beauty in death which helped her to see the beauty of life. Elizabeth realized the frightening possibility that life was just an immediate placement and that her reality resided in death.
Joyce first reveals to readers how obsessed the narrator is with sacred allusions to a chalice and a prayer. The narrator tells readers he “imagined that [he] bore [his] chalice safely through a throng of foes” (598) as he remembers the girl when he is making his way through the crowded market. The chalice is a biblical reference to the cup from which Jesus drank during the Last Supper in Matthew 6. This sacred reference “elucidates the importance and value the boy places on the very name of his love” (Flynn). This allusion to the chalice allows readers to see how sacred the girl is to the young narrator. Shortly after this, while the narrator is in his room he “[presses] the palms of his hands together until they [tremble], murmuring: O love! O love!” (598). This semblance of prayer also shows how sacredly the narrator upholds the girl he likes. However, she soons tells him she cannot attend Araby, a bazaar, because “there would be a retreat that week in her convent” (598), making readers assume she is going to be a nun. If she is going to be a nun, then the narrator has no chance of dating or marrying her, and his obsession with her is pointless. Unfortunately, he does not come to realize this until the very end of the
Jeanie showed promise, she “should have been a bride” (line 313). Jeanie may have had a husband lined up and would have led the ideal Victorian life, but she fell victim to her own temptations. She indulged in the Goblin men's fruit and lost everything, she became ill and died, “But who for joys brides hope to have, Fell sick and died, In her gay prime” (line 314-316). Jeanie lost everything because she gave into a tempting situation, she lost everything and ultimately lost her life. Works Cited Brownley, Martine W. "Love and Sensuality in Christina Rossetti's Goblin Market.
Throughout the poem of Goblin Market, Rossetti shows Lizzie to be a Christ-like figure, she does this in many ways. Rossetti shows Lizzie to represent light “Like a beacon left alone.” This is symbolic of light because light guides and assists people in times of darkness, which is what Jesus does, and so does Lizzie when she tries to help Laura. As well as this one of Jesus’ teachings is referred to “must your light like mine be hidden”, which refers back to the beacon 5 stanzas before. As well as this when Lizzie comes back from sacrificing herself to the goblins she tells Laura to “hug me, kiss me” which echoes Jesus’ words at the last supper before he is crucified. When Laura is eating the fruits for the second time to save herself
Christina Rossetti's poem, “In An Artist’s Studio”, explores how men foster a need for control by creating unrealistic expectations for women through their fantasies. Through the use of repetition, contrast of imagery, and symbolism, Rossetti guides us through the gallery inside of an artist’s mind, portraying the fantasies that give him a sense of control over the women he creates.
Laura started off in a bubble, and has lived in it all her life. She has been protected from the real world, so she has never experienced the effects of betrayal, poverty, or labor, let alone death, which she does get to experience, by the end of the story. Laura meets face to face with death, and the results of it will change her look on life forever. It is a wonder she ever had a chance to be a caring, sensitive person with a sibling like Jose. Jose is an unfeeling, heartless and self-absorbed person who is completely clueless to those around her who don’t have lots of money or expensive assets. She sings songs with mock passion:
She asks Laura is she misses her, and tells her to “Hug me, kiss me, suck my juices,” (469) because while the goblins were trying to hurt Lizzie, they got juice all over her face. Laura asks her, “Lizzie, Lizzie, have you tasted for my sake the fruit forbidden?” (478-479) Laura seems to be in awe of what her sister has done, but does what her sister asks. She then falls into a coma-like state and eventually regains her youth.