Goblin Market

• List of exotic, unusual fruit - list emphasises passion of the goblins
• Encouraging attitudes
• Dimeter - strong, hypnotic rhythm
• Similar to a magic spell
• Aiming their list at the maids (at the time maids were young, virgin women)
• Sensuous figurative language
• The sisters contrast each other
• Laura - more adventurous and tempted by the list
• Lizzie - frightened
• Idea of temptation
• Boundary - something is forbidden
• Limitations of women are explored
• Tension all throughout the poem
• Goblin's are animalistic - not at all human
• "Come buy, come buy" - attraction of the forbidden
• Laura - romantic poetry - literary, natural similes and metaphors
• Described like a ship being launched - got rid of restraints
• Attempting to find freedom
• Gives in to temptation, enthused in it
• Rhyme, rhythm and repetition - enthusiasm
• Uses hair to buy fruit - magically valuable (wore jewellery with hair on it at the time)
• "Golden curl" - tension and fear giving them power
• Gives the goblins control over her
• Contrast between the two locations - the Glen and their home
• Lizzie warns Laura - tells her a narrative story about a girl
• Sense of an addiction
• Description of domestic setting - no men or parents
• Females supporting each other
• Listing of similes - detailed and figurative (sisters together)
• Draws the reader closer to them
• List of duties - iambic tetrameter - slower than dimeter
• Large contrast between duties and fruits
• Return to the Glen - Laura can't hear goblins cry anymore
• Increases the conflict
• Description of Laura's decline - heading towards death
• Description of the goblins joy - mischevious and evil
• List of how they act - dimeter, strong rhythm
• Lizzie wants to help her sister - obstacles and limitations
• Distressing, violent and intrusive attack - Lizzie laughs as she sees how she can help Laura
• Climax of the poem - confrontation between good and evil
• Erotic desciption of the sisters - transgressive
• Controversial at the time
• Not intended to be sexual - motive to cure her sister
• Saves Laura
• Repetitive and rhythmic ending - shows purpose of the poem
• Dedicated to her sister
• Ambiguous poem
• An analogy - sexual temptation?**
• Fruit = symbol of sex?**
• **Parallel with the bible
• Similar to the "Eve of St Isles"(???)
• Rape? Possibly warning against male sexual appetite
• Influenced by fairytales, folktales and dreams
• Lizzie is Christ-like
• Drug addiction - opium was a problem at the time
• Rossetti worked with women with problems
• About sisterhood