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4.06 AVERAGE
4.06 AVERAGE
“dear, you should not stay so late, twilight is not good for maidens.”
fast-paced
So unusual for a typical poem from the Victorian age. Been so long I have read something so terrifying, poetic, mysterious and interesting. I really love reading it as a metaphor for "Repressed Women Sexuality and Economic Freedom" in the Victorian era.
- In the beginning of the poem, we see how Laura asks Lizzie to not even look at the Goblin men. These two women were unmarried at that stage of the poem and hence "virgins" as per the acceptable Victorian code of conduct. Also, the two girls were living on their own and weren't supposed to mingle with any men before marriage. We see this in other Victorian texts of the Romantic age like 'Pride and Prejudice' where unmarried women weren't supposed to be around men and if they did, they ended up tarnishing theirs as well as their family's reputation just like Lydia did by eloping with Wickham, unmarried.
- But then Laura herself goes to the Goblin men excited to see them, representing how she was excited to meet the opposite sex, even when she herself knew that she wasn't supposed to do so. She may have advised her sister to not meet them because she was aware of the dire consequences and didn't want her sister to go through the bad fate.
- And then the poem graphically describes the erotic imagery of her sucking on the fruits till her lips went sore. Fruits in Victorian era were a symbol of sex, different fruits like peaches and bananas had very specific sexual connotations. Laura enjoying the taste of the fruits could hint how she was enjoying the freedom of her sexualilty and wanted more fruits as she wasn't still satisfied from the pleasure.
- We also see how Laura didn't own any money to buy fruits as Victorian women weren't supposed to be economically well off and hence sells her golden locks representing women only have their body to be commodified.
- In contrast, Lizzie actually owns money and tried purchasing fruits for her sister by that acquired wealth. But this angers the Goblin men who can be seen as a representation of the patriarchal Victorian society and they end up sexually assaulting her for going against the Patriarchal ideals making her the impure "fallen women''.
- We then see how Lizzie lets Laura kiss her multiple times and suck the fruit juices off her skin which actually satiates Laura's repressed sexuality and pain that she couldn't meet the Goblin men again. But surprisingly we see that this was actually Laura's dream. This was foreshadowed earlier in the poem too, mentioning Laura as a girl "lost in dreams." This is a very important revelation as Freud believed dreams to be an important representation of suppressed desires. Laura's dream could represent her repressed sexuality. She first approaches the opposite sex to satiate her sexual appetite but ends up even more hungry and unsatisfied. Her sexual appetite only satiates when she kisses Lizzie. Also, the fruits are mostly juicy ones like peaches that often represent women's genitalia. This could directly hint at Laura's suppressed homosexuality, something that she can never express during the Victorian age.
And what's more interesting is the infinite number of interpretations for this little poem ranging from Christ's Parable, story of Fallen men, psychoanalysis and so on... Something for every reader.
- In the beginning of the poem, we see how Laura asks Lizzie to not even look at the Goblin men. These two women were unmarried at that stage of the poem and hence "virgins" as per the acceptable Victorian code of conduct. Also, the two girls were living on their own and weren't supposed to mingle with any men before marriage. We see this in other Victorian texts of the Romantic age like 'Pride and Prejudice' where unmarried women weren't supposed to be around men and if they did, they ended up tarnishing theirs as well as their family's reputation just like Lydia did by eloping with Wickham, unmarried.
- But then Laura herself goes to the Goblin men excited to see them, representing how she was excited to meet the opposite sex, even when she herself knew that she wasn't supposed to do so. She may have advised her sister to not meet them because she was aware of the dire consequences and didn't want her sister to go through the bad fate.
- And then the poem graphically describes the erotic imagery of her sucking on the fruits till her lips went sore. Fruits in Victorian era were a symbol of sex, different fruits like peaches and bananas had very specific sexual connotations. Laura enjoying the taste of the fruits could hint how she was enjoying the freedom of her sexualilty and wanted more fruits as she wasn't still satisfied from the pleasure.
- We also see how Laura didn't own any money to buy fruits as Victorian women weren't supposed to be economically well off and hence sells her golden locks representing women only have their body to be commodified.
- In contrast, Lizzie actually owns money and tried purchasing fruits for her sister by that acquired wealth. But this angers the Goblin men who can be seen as a representation of the patriarchal Victorian society and they end up sexually assaulting her for going against the Patriarchal ideals making her the impure "fallen women''.
- We then see how Lizzie lets Laura kiss her multiple times and suck the fruit juices off her skin which actually satiates Laura's repressed sexuality and pain that she couldn't meet the Goblin men again. But surprisingly we see that this was actually Laura's dream. This was foreshadowed earlier in the poem too, mentioning Laura as a girl "lost in dreams." This is a very important revelation as Freud believed dreams to be an important representation of suppressed desires. Laura's dream could represent her repressed sexuality. She first approaches the opposite sex to satiate her sexual appetite but ends up even more hungry and unsatisfied. Her sexual appetite only satiates when she kisses Lizzie. Also, the fruits are mostly juicy ones like peaches that often represent women's genitalia. This could directly hint at Laura's suppressed homosexuality, something that she can never express during the Victorian age.
And what's more interesting is the infinite number of interpretations for this little poem ranging from Christ's Parable, story of Fallen men, psychoanalysis and so on... Something for every reader.
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
10/10 would buy fresh fruits from a cursed goblin market.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Rossetti’s poem is one that will lead you through temptation yourself. I came across in my first year of undergrad and was thoroughly and utterly captivated by her imagery, narrative, simile and metaphors. So much so that I’ve written three essays on it in my undergrad.
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes