Who Is Christina Rossetti's Goblin Market?

According to Contemporary Authors Online, Christina Rossetti was a 19th century English writer who was remembered for her literature that was influenced with a societal concern that women were inferior to men in Europe leading up to and during the 19th century (Christina Rossetti). This is the underlying characteristic of Christina Rossetti which makes her important to study in regards to European literature. Christina Rossetti was part of a mock art printer group called the Pre-Raphaelites. According to the Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, the Pre-Raphaelite movement was a brotherhood of English poets and painters formed in 1848 (Pre-Raphaelites). The encyclopedia states the movement was formed by three individuals: D.G. Rossetti (Christina
Rossetti’s brother), W. Holman Hunt, and John Millais. The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood believed that all artwork created in Europe during the 19th century was closely related. They felt so strongly about their moral obligations that they believed artists should try to be poets, and poets should try to be artists. The group was devoted to nature and truth in the face of adversity of an evolving and industrializing European Victorian culture around them. Their moral obligations as a counter-culture movement sought refuge in European literature. Christina Rossetti contributed to the movement in a journal called The Germ, which was published to help promote their literary reputation (Easley).
Alexis Easley, a professor of English at the University of St. Thomas and dedicated researcher of Victorian women writers unveiled gender issues and a chain of events leading up to the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood’s publication of The Germ. During the 19th century in Europe, there were “separate spheres”, in other words, a world for men and a world for women. The woman question involved: concerns of employed women, educated women, and political status of women (Easley). Understanding the woman question, and Christina Rossetti’s affiliation with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood tells us a lot about the issues women writers faced in the Victorian Period. “Goblin Market” and “Apple Gathering” were two poems written by Christina Rossetti with similar underlying themes. For the purpose of this assignment, I will be providing a brief synopsis of each work written by Christina Rossetti, discussing Christina Rossetti’s affiliation with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, how she became an authoritative figure, and her writing style's sociological impact on Victorian society.
“Goblin Market” was a poem written about a young woman in Victorian society who upon her own free will chose to partake in the dark world of sin.
The poem can be interpreted in three ways: an elongated fairy tale, a moral compass with biblical referencing, or a hetero and homo-sexualized story with ties to lust and blasphemy. The central idea of the poem was that women are supposed to save their virginity until marriage, and there are consequences for those who do not. “Apple Gathering” was a poem written about a young woman in Victorian society who plucked pink blossoms from a tree too early, which indicated she gave away her virginity before marriage. The central idea of the poem once again indicates the importance of women saving their virginity until
marriage.
According to an article written by Nathan P. Culmer, "Goblin Market" was a narrative poem and written with an ABAB rhyme scheme (Culmer). Culmer argued that the rhyme scheme is irregular, and written to create levels of comfort for the reader's eye. "Apple Gathering" was a lyrical ballad, and written with an ABAB rhyme scheme as well. The poem is told in first-person narrative to tell a story, and contains three lines of rigid iambic pentameter, followed by one line of iambic tetrameter.
In regards to Rossetti’s affiliation with the PRB, her early contributions to The Germ were published anonymously (Easley).
This may have been for a number of reasons. For instance, PRB members could have been viewed as "whistle blowers". Since the beginning of Industrialization, inside and outside the continental United States, the phrase has been, "let business do what business is going to do". By taking a moderate political approach and analyzing both sides of the argument here, men and women in post-modern society can begin to understand the purpose behind the works of writers like Christina Rossetti and the Conservative approach behind Industrialist thinkers. Industrialization simply means the development of industries in a region, or country. There are a plethora of reasons why mass production caused by Industrialization was deemed beneficial. For example, newly invented machinery was engineered to manufacture and produce goods at rates never before seen by man-kind. This world-changing production rate led to a new class of Elite, and natural monopolies. Elites can be defined as small groups of government in charge. Elites believe that decisions should be made only by those who are experts, or professionals. The newfound socioeconomic and social-class distinction that occurred in Europe during the 19th century can be defined as an Individualistic political
culture.
Europeans within this newfound culture did not classify themselves in these terms at the time, because these are the state governmental terms we use today that they would have fallen under. These facts alone are enough for Conservative thinkers to encourage the continuum of social-class distinction and reinforce their political stance of why they believe maintaining order and tradition should be considered sacred. On the other hand, this is also where Conservative Industrialist prerogative made financial gains by putting the working-class on the backburner.
“Hard Times” by Charles Dickens shines light on some of the negative effects the Industrial Revolution had on the western world’s community. Three notable effects of Industrialization on the western world’s community was: toxic waste created by machinery, dehumanized working conditions, and the political Elite. Compassion for child-labor, and lack of equal-opportunity can never be understated. Destruction of the imagination is where Victorian writers tried to restore faith in progress, humanity, and provide a tranquil restoration for those living in despair. Through the good, the bad, and the ugly, writers of the Victorian Period placed an emphasis on revitalizing the use of the imagination. Liberal thinkers (of the 19th century and today) believe experimentation aids faith in change, and progress. Liberals also believe people are perfectible, and rational people have little need for history. According to Zarena Aslami, a professor of Victorian Literature and Culture, “British writers were caught between their desire to promote the freedom of individuals by restricting the state and their desire to make individuals better through the state’s aegis” (Zarena). Christina Rossetti’s literary theory and liberal ideology simply sought an alternative solution for working-class men and women to find what we call today the American Dream.
Working-class men and women were known as “hands”, whose sole purpose in life was to aid the production of big business. Christina Rossetti became an authoritative figure, because she managed to construct her identity during a time when women were passive victims of institutionalized oppression (Jenner).
The Victorian Period was a period of social issues. Christina Rossetti was one of three main authors to address social issues in their writing. Oscar Wilde, and Charles Dickens are two other honorable mentions. Three major themes existed within Victorian literature: Industrialization, Liberalism, and Imperialism. By understanding these historical landmarks and their sociological impact on their respective society: men and women in post-modern society can begin to understand the problems in our generation resulting from the accumulated record of transcontinental commercial trade. If we can take these steps as moderate political thinkers, we can begin to understand what finding career satisfaction and the American Dream truly means.