Rossetti – Some Ladies
Initial Responses Development of ideas and interpretations
(red)
Meaning / Ideas / Themes constructed and explored Meaning / Ideas / Themes constructed and
by the poet explored by the poet
- sense of teenage rebellion- critical of society - dismisses those who dress for vanity and
materialism
- internalised misogyny perhaps- critical of women
- satire grows comically vicious in the
- use of clothes and transport to protect status hypothetical world full of water
- one is constrained by fashion and social trends- - Rossetti only appears to criticise the
culminates in a lack of sincerity within society flamboyant, the age-defying, the feminist
- the social expectations of different Victorian classes, and the wealthy
the hypocrisy of society - perhaps transgression against her
- themes of women and society Christian beliefs- judgement and criticism
etc
- lack of title?- lack of power and identity
women had during the Victorian era
Use of form Use of form
- rhyme scheme- ABBAABBACDEEDC - the love and devotion typically expressed
in a traditional Petrarchan sonnet is
- petrarchan form- octet, sestet, iambic pentameter, undermined by the actual
14 lines message/content of the poem
- satirical, irreverent tone - a rebellion against a
society focused upon surface
- subverts petrarchan sonnet- does not end in rhyming
couplet or alternate rhyme- provides a more
unsettling and ambiguous ending
- reinforced by the dashes on the last lines →
ambiguous ending
Use of structural devices (include key terms) Use of structural devices
- anaphora and listing in ‘some…’ shows a lack of - Comedic imagery at the beginning, which
variety, formulaic perhaps- lack of originality in becomes quite dark and satirical towards
Initial Responses Development of ideas and interpretations
(red)
Meaning / Ideas / Themes constructed and explored Meaning / Ideas / Themes constructed and
by the poet explored by the poet
- sense of teenage rebellion- critical of society - dismisses those who dress for vanity and
materialism
- internalised misogyny perhaps- critical of women
- satire grows comically vicious in the
- use of clothes and transport to protect status hypothetical world full of water
- one is constrained by fashion and social trends- - Rossetti only appears to criticise the
culminates in a lack of sincerity within society flamboyant, the age-defying, the feminist
- the social expectations of different Victorian classes, and the wealthy
the hypocrisy of society - perhaps transgression against her
- themes of women and society Christian beliefs- judgement and criticism
etc
- lack of title?- lack of power and identity
women had during the Victorian era
Use of form Use of form
- rhyme scheme- ABBAABBACDEEDC - the love and devotion typically expressed
in a traditional Petrarchan sonnet is
- petrarchan form- octet, sestet, iambic pentameter, undermined by the actual
14 lines message/content of the poem
- satirical, irreverent tone - a rebellion against a
society focused upon surface
- subverts petrarchan sonnet- does not end in rhyming
couplet or alternate rhyme- provides a more
unsettling and ambiguous ending
- reinforced by the dashes on the last lines →
ambiguous ending
Use of structural devices (include key terms) Use of structural devices
- anaphora and listing in ‘some…’ shows a lack of - Comedic imagery at the beginning, which
variety, formulaic perhaps- lack of originality in becomes quite dark and satirical towards
