Poem Themes, Ideas, Relevant Context Links to other poems
Thoughts, Attitudes (remember these can be
similarities or
differences)
From the Antique - Depression - Women not recognised under - Shut Out – same sense of
- Struggles of womanhood the law listlessness and isolation
- Meaninglessness of life - Fallen women and sexual - Soeur Louise de la Misèricorde –
- Loneliness double standards ideas of sexual double
- Natural imagery - Victorian gender roles standards and womanly
- Rossetti’s depression struggles
- Song (‘When I am dead, my
dearest’) and Echo – same
negative perception of life
- A Birthday – contrasting
empowered and extremely
joyful and hopeful persona
- ‘No Thank You John’ and Maude
Clare – empowered female
personas, seemingly stronger
than their male counterparts
Goblin Market - Men as malevolent - Fallen women and sexual - ‘No Thank You John’ –
- Female solidarity/sisterhood double standards empowered female persona,
- Female eroticism - Marriage market denying male counterpart (like
- Temptation and fallen women - Victorian gender roles Lizzie)
- Innocence/chastity - Rossetti’s choice not to marry - Maude Clare – similar ideas of
- Salvation and sacrifice - Rossetti’s religion desire and fallen women but
- Sin and redemption - Rossetti’s contrasting relationship
- Female empowerment sister/sister-in-law/time at between female characters
- Addiction/greed Highgate Penitentiary - Soeur Louise de la Misèricorde –
- Capitalism - Growing capitalism and ideas of sexual double
- Natural imagery exploitation in the marketplace standards/fallen women and
, desire being sinful
- Twice – men as malevolent
- Shut Out – men as malevolent
and isolation in society as fallen
woman
- In the Round Tower at Jhansi –
contrasting good relationship
between men and women
Winter: My Secret - Empowered speaker - Women not recognised under - ‘No Thank You John’ and Maude
- Secretiveness the law/property law Clare – empowered female
- Taunting reader - Victorian gender roles personas and taunting/teasing
- Protectiveness - Rossetti’s piousness natures/ideas of power – ‘NTYJ’
- Safety - Fallen women also structured similarly – an
- Trust address and denying something
- Deceit - Goblin Market – deceit, safety
- Uncertainty and protection
- Playful - In the Round Tower at Jhansi –
- Power contrasting sense of trust
- Chastity - Shut Out – sense of ownership
- Natural imagery/seasons with pronoun ‘my’
A Birthday - Religion as positive - Rossetti’s religion - Good Friday, Shut Out,
- Biblical imagery (GoE) - Rossetti’s depression Remember, Echo and Song
- Finding God/yourself (‘When am I dead, my dearest’)
- Empowered speaker – contrasting doubt and
- Joy/celebration negativity surrounding religion
- Royalty/the divine - Twice, Soeur Louise de la
- Pre-Raphaelite imagery Misèricorde and Uphill –
religion being a solace from
earthly struggles
Remember - Love – Petrarchan sonnet - Rossetti’s religion and fear of - Good Friday, Shut Out, Echo and
- Memory hell when on her deathbed Song (‘When am I dead, my
- Death/grief - Rossetti’s depression dearest’) – doubt and negativity
Thoughts, Attitudes (remember these can be
similarities or
differences)
From the Antique - Depression - Women not recognised under - Shut Out – same sense of
- Struggles of womanhood the law listlessness and isolation
- Meaninglessness of life - Fallen women and sexual - Soeur Louise de la Misèricorde –
- Loneliness double standards ideas of sexual double
- Natural imagery - Victorian gender roles standards and womanly
- Rossetti’s depression struggles
- Song (‘When I am dead, my
dearest’) and Echo – same
negative perception of life
- A Birthday – contrasting
empowered and extremely
joyful and hopeful persona
- ‘No Thank You John’ and Maude
Clare – empowered female
personas, seemingly stronger
than their male counterparts
Goblin Market - Men as malevolent - Fallen women and sexual - ‘No Thank You John’ –
- Female solidarity/sisterhood double standards empowered female persona,
- Female eroticism - Marriage market denying male counterpart (like
- Temptation and fallen women - Victorian gender roles Lizzie)
- Innocence/chastity - Rossetti’s choice not to marry - Maude Clare – similar ideas of
- Salvation and sacrifice - Rossetti’s religion desire and fallen women but
- Sin and redemption - Rossetti’s contrasting relationship
- Female empowerment sister/sister-in-law/time at between female characters
- Addiction/greed Highgate Penitentiary - Soeur Louise de la Misèricorde –
- Capitalism - Growing capitalism and ideas of sexual double
- Natural imagery exploitation in the marketplace standards/fallen women and
, desire being sinful
- Twice – men as malevolent
- Shut Out – men as malevolent
and isolation in society as fallen
woman
- In the Round Tower at Jhansi –
contrasting good relationship
between men and women
Winter: My Secret - Empowered speaker - Women not recognised under - ‘No Thank You John’ and Maude
- Secretiveness the law/property law Clare – empowered female
- Taunting reader - Victorian gender roles personas and taunting/teasing
- Protectiveness - Rossetti’s piousness natures/ideas of power – ‘NTYJ’
- Safety - Fallen women also structured similarly – an
- Trust address and denying something
- Deceit - Goblin Market – deceit, safety
- Uncertainty and protection
- Playful - In the Round Tower at Jhansi –
- Power contrasting sense of trust
- Chastity - Shut Out – sense of ownership
- Natural imagery/seasons with pronoun ‘my’
A Birthday - Religion as positive - Rossetti’s religion - Good Friday, Shut Out,
- Biblical imagery (GoE) - Rossetti’s depression Remember, Echo and Song
- Finding God/yourself (‘When am I dead, my dearest’)
- Empowered speaker – contrasting doubt and
- Joy/celebration negativity surrounding religion
- Royalty/the divine - Twice, Soeur Louise de la
- Pre-Raphaelite imagery Misèricorde and Uphill –
religion being a solace from
earthly struggles
Remember - Love – Petrarchan sonnet - Rossetti’s religion and fear of - Good Friday, Shut Out, Echo and
- Memory hell when on her deathbed Song (‘When am I dead, my
- Death/grief - Rossetti’s depression dearest’) – doubt and negativity
