Theme Of Gender In The Victorian Age

Within ‘A Doll’s House’ Nora Helmer has a strong appetite for knowledge. This is particularly evident in her voracious longing for independence: “But it was great fun, though, sitting there working and earning money. It was almost like being a man”. This knowledge of “being a man”, and what that entails, would be unknown to many women during the Victorian era due to the fiercely patriarchal society that was perpetuated. The desire for knowledge and its inaccessible nature is particularly evident in the lack of further education for women. In fact, in the United Kingdom the first widespread report of female further education was the Edinburgh Seven in 1869. Whilst that instance of knowledge was not destructive, in the case of Nora and ‘A Doll’s House’ her appetite for knowledge is ultimately catastrophic for the Victorian female ideal due to the secrecy she creates around it: “My husband must never know of this”. As a result of this concealment and Nora’s appetite for knowledge, the Victorian ideal unravels and ultimately becomes destructive. Likewise, in Rossetti’s ‘Goblin Market’ an appetite for knowledge is ultimately destructive for the characters within the poem. After tasting the “fruit” of the “Goblin Men” and becoming knowledgeable of the taste and effects of it Laura “knew not was it night or day”. This confusion of time and geographical

The world today consists of children roaming the streets, technology taking over the world, and being able to work wherever you'd like but, could you imagine a life without all these things? Believe it or not there was a time in life where these things were very uncommon to see. This would be known as the victorian era. This time period was between 1837 and 1901. Daily life was very different from now. Health, social classes, and fashion are just three examples of how daily life was different in the victorian era.

The Victorian period marked the first traces of progress in the feminist movement, and poet Christina Rossetti embraced the advancement as her own long-established principles slowly became publicly acceptable. Her poem "Goblin Market" comments on the institutions in Victorian society that she and her feminist contemporaries wished to see altered, creating modern female heroines to carry out its messages. The goblins serve as malicious male figures to tempt the innocent heroines, sisters Laura and Lizzie, to corruption.

The role of women in works of literature as well as in life has changed significantly. Previously, women were seen as needy and dependent on the men in their lives. Women were only important for raising children and doing work around the house, while men were off

On the surface, the poems “Goblin Market” by Christina Rossetti and “The Thorn” by William Wordsworth appear to be very different literary works. “Goblin Market” was written by a young woman in the Victorian period about two sisters who develop a special bond through the rescue of one sister by the other. “The Thorn” was written by the Romantic poet William Wordsworth about a middle-aged man and his experience overlooking a woman’s emotional breakdown. Material to understanding the works “Goblin Market” and “The Thorn” is recognizing the common underlying themes of sex and gender and how these themes affect perspective in both poems.

Over the course of time the role of women in society and in the home has changed drastically. Many brave women have fought and worked tirelessly to earn the right to vote, for equal pay, and to all around be treated the same way as men get treated. In literature, especially early literature, we see major differences in women’s roles both inside the home and out in the world.

Christina Rossetti’s poem, Goblin Market, was written in the Victorian era during a time of vast social change across Europe. Though the Victorian period was a time of female suppression and order, Rossetti exposed social stigmas and ideologies that are displayed through the journey of two sisters, Laura and Lizzie. Despite initial impressions of a childhood fairytale, the suggestive and multi-interpretive use of language signifies an underlying message of erotic sexual commentary and feminist views. In addition, Rossetti conveys moral lessons by illustrating consequences of the goblin’s seduction. Through the sister’s experience with the goblins, the power of sisterhood becomes undeniable. Christina Rossetti’s Goblin Market serves as a

Throughout the centuries, equality between men and women has only been something of a far away dream that has yet to come true. Men have always been seen as the superior sex, with women depicted as weak housewives. In the centuries before, the fact that women would even think about having sex for pleasure, or just exerting their sexuality in any way was appalling and frowned upon. Because the Victorian Age was a time when female sexuality was not something to be spoken about in public, Christina Rossetti uses Goblin Market as a metaphor to acknowledge the subject and the choices that women should be able to make on their own accord.

The society always queries about the role of women and for centuries, they have struggled to find their place in a world that is predominantly male oriented. The treatment of women was remarkably negative; they were expected to stay home and fulfil the domestic duties. Literature of that time embodies and mirrors social issues of women in society (Lecture on the Puritans). But, slowly and gradually, situation being changed: “During the first half of the 19th century, women 's roles in society evolved in the areas of occupational, moral, and social reform. Through efforts such as factory movements, social reform, and women 's rights, their aims were realized and foundations for further reform were established” (Lauter 1406). Feminist poets like Emily Dickinson and Anne Bradstreet talked substantially about feminism in different lights in the past two centuries. They were very vocal and assertive about their rights and the ‘rights for women’ in general. While they might have been successful at making a good attempt to obliterate gender biases but still there are lot of disparities between the two genders. Nevertheless, their poetry reflects a deep angst.

In the Victorian era, the status of women in society was extremely oppressive and, by modern standards, atrocious. Women had few rights, in or outside of the home. Married women in this period relied on men almost completely as they had few rights or independence. With this mindset in focus,

In “Goblin Market,” Christina Rossetti utilizes her Catholic background as well as her personal experience with women’s issues to create a complex poem that explore temptation and salvation as well as women’s roles in a patriarchal society. During the Victorian period, the social system was patriarchal. It acknowledged the First Fathers, which are the heads of the household, in a way that would pass down the father rule for many generations. This way no women would be able to have that higher status than men., making women and young girl’s lifestyle depend on taking care of men. When young girls reached puberty, they started to take on the new role of adult feminine. Victorians believed that the physical changes due to puberty should also change a girl's behavior, thoughts, and feelings. Many young girls grew up reading The Daughters of England, as manuals for the importance of being inferior to men . ithin, “Goblin Market” Rossetti describes the consequences of this inferiority (Gorham 101). The goblin’s are beasts that coerce maidens to eat their fruits. When the maidens consume the fruit, they lose something sacred to them. After consuming the fruits the maidens lose communication to the goblin’s which prevents them from receiving more fruits, which causes them to become depressed and slowly die. In the poem “Goblin Market,” Christina Rossetti includes elements of Christianity in a way that portrays females being tempted by Satan and making sacrifices to receive redemption in a male dominated social structure.

Christina Rossetti’s, “Goblin Market” message focuses around the sexual content and vicious descriptions of men, symbolizing them as goblins. This narrative poem focuses on two girls, Lizzie and Laura, who get tempted by the goblins selling a generous variety of fruits. Many readers made a first connection to the story understanding it to be relating to sexuality and virginity. Making it hard for the readers to see what other moral or messages might be there that could potential be the main ones. With a different shift of focus, and a fresh new perspective, the hidden compassionate message of sisterhood can be found. “Goblin Market’s” focus is not entirely on the steamy erotic poem that is designed to challenge sexuality during the Victorian era, but rather the sexual content is a method of disproving the misconceptions regarding powerless women, and showing how powerful the bond is between the two sisters as they break the expectations of society.

In the Victorian era, women were expected to fulfill specific gender roles. Women possessed feminine qualities such as being nurturing, pure and docile, while men were expected to be bold and independent.

great prosperity in Great Britain's literature. The Victorian Age produced a variety of changes. Political and social reform produced a variety of reading among all classes. The lower-class became more self-conscious, the middle class more powerful and the rich became more vulnerable. The novels of Charles Dickens, the poems of Alfred,

The role of women in the society is always questioned and for centuries, they have struggled to find their place in a world that is predominantly male oriented. The treatment of women was extremely negative; they were expected to stay home and fulfill domestic duties. Literature of that time embodies and mirrors social issues of women in society (Lecture on the Puritans). But, slowly and gradually, situation being changed: “During the first half of the 19th century, women 's roles in society evolved in the areas of occupational, moral, and social reform. Through efforts such as factory movements, social reform, and women 's rights, their aims were realized and foundations for further reform were established” (Lauter 1406). Feminist poets like Emily Dickinson and Anne Bradstreet talked substantially about feminism in different lights in the past two centuries. They were very vocal and assertive about their rights and the ‘rights for women’ in general. While they might have been successful at making a good attempt to obliterate gender biases but still there are lot of disparities between the two genders. Nevertheless, their poetry reflects a deep angst.