Context Flashcards
Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management
the doctrine for the idealised housewife, illustrates the restriction placed on women at the time
the nightingale in ‘Song’
the nightingale, in a story from Greek mythology which Christina Rossetti knew well, is linked to the tragic story of Philomela
Philomela was a woman who was raped by her brother-in-law and turned into a nightingale when the gods took pity on her
this is supposedly why the bird sings ‘as if in pain’
Rossetti’s experience with mental and physical health
Rossetti dealt with a variety of issues with her mental and physical health throughout her life, leaving her with a great many potential times to reflect upon the nature of her own mortality
as early as when she was fourteen years old, she suffered a nervous breakdown that saw her withdraw from her school and receive a home education
she was diagnosed later in her life with Graves’ Disease and suffered bouts of depression periodically through her adulthood as well
Coventry Patmore v Virginia Woolf
in the poem The Angel in the House, Coventry Patmore depicts the Victorian ideal of how a woman should serve her husband and that should be her sole concern
in response to this poem, Virginia Woolf said “killing the angel in the house was part of the occupation of a woman writer”
Rossetti’s romantic life
Rossetti never married, though she was courted by several men during her life and engaged two or three times
her readiness to turn down offers of marriage (as the speaker in No, Thank You, John does) attests to her independence and strength of character
for women in Victorian times spinsterhood meant social failure; a limited, restricted life and low status, but Rossetti’s belief was that to be unmarried was preferable to being married unhappily
a strong young woman, she was not prepared to compromise
Rossetti’s education
Rossetti grew up speaking both Italian and English and was encouraged to appreciate art and literature
Educated at home by her mother — In the 1830s and 1840s, when Rossetti was growing up, school education was not compulsory, it was not until 1870 that an education act was created and all children under the age of 12 were required to attend school
Rossetti and her siblings were fortunate enough to have well-educated parents who believed in encouraging girls in their reading and writing skills
mental breakdown and ill health
At the age of 14, Rossetti suffered an emotional breakdown — It is likely that its onset was caused by combination of factors linked to her family, her fears regarding her faith and her anxieties about her writings
In the 1840s, her father’s health suffered and the family’s financial security collapsed
it was also at this time that Christina began to suffer from the ill health that would continue to torment her for the rest of her life
Rossetti’s personal life became increasingly difficult as she faced worsening health — she continued to suffer from Graves’ disease which caused a disfiguring of her features, but ultimately died of breast cancer at age 64
rejected marriage proposals
In 1848, at the age of 18, Rossetti became engaged to Pre-Raphaelite artist James Collinson
She broke off the engagement in 1850 because he converted to Roman Catholicism
In 1866, Rossetti rejected the proposal of marriage she received from the poet and translator Charles Bagot Cayley — She felt unable to marry him since he was an agnostic
However, they remained good friends until his death in 1883
Rossetti subsequently remained single, living with her mother and aunt for most of her life
Some biographers have attributed the heartbreak, expressed by many of the speakers of her poems, to her own broken engagements
Florence Nightingale
Crimean War – Florence Nightingale organised a team of nurses to travel to the Crimea to offer their assistance
In October 1854, she and 38 women volunteer nurses went to Turkey where the main British camp was based
Rossetti was 24 in 1854 and had a keen desire to serve the wounded, so she applied to join as a nurse under the instruction of Florence Nightingale
However, she was turned down because of her youth and inexperience
close family relationships
Close to her siblings – she dedicated Goblin Market to her sister Maria
Tractarianism
As a Christian, Rossetti believed that the Bible formed the basis upon which humans can reach an understanding of who they really are
On the basis of this faith, individuals can receive assurance of their place in the Kingdom of Heaven, both now and in their eternal life to come (following physical death)
Rossetti attended the Christ Church, on Albany Street in London — this was a high Anglican church and was considered the leading church of the Tractarian movement
Tractarianism places emphasis on the importance of ritual and ceremony, it followed the celebration of festivals included in the Book of Common Prayer and drew attention to the sacraments
Typically, high church Anglicans or Tractarians put a great stress on ritual in worship, observing the seasons of the church year, ornate robes worn by the clergy and choir, candles, incense and other aesthetic considerations
changes in Britain
During Rossetti’s lifetime, Britain underwent changes that transformed the lives of its people
Notably, campaigns for women’s suffrage gained popularity and influence
Britain’s preoccupation with power and influence
She recognised the country’s preoccupation with wealth, power and influence and felt that this focus was a dangerous ‘vanity’
Vanity is a word that Rossetti uses repeatedly throughout her poetry to speak of the alluring but dangerous influences of the world — Its original connotation in the Bible was that of ‘emptiness’
campaigns for women’s suffrage
In the second half of the nineteenth century, campaigns to give women parliamentary representation as individuals gained popularity
Since some women were now given an education and were beginning to establish themselves in roles previously reserved solely for men, many believed that they were entitled to the same rights as their husbands, brothers and fathers
Various campaigns attempted to persuade Parliament to give women the right to vote — Petitions, letters and texts were issued advocating the cause
It was not until 1918 that women who were over the age of 30 were granted the vote and not until 1928 that they were granted the right to vote on the same terms as men
the view that female suffrage was unnecessary
The view that women should have equal rights to men was not universal
Many women still could not read and worked in the home either as servants, mothers, housewives, or carers
As such, few were concerned with parliamentary representation
In addition, it was widely believed that fathers and husbands should direct and guide their daughters and wives — With this in mind, many saw parliamentary representation for women as unnecessary
Rossetti’s lack of support for female suffrage
The poet Augusta Webster wrote to Rossetti in the late 1870s asking for her support in a suffrage campaign she was involved with, which aimed to give women the right to vote
However, Rossetti refused — In her letter of response, she asked: “Does it not appear as if the Bible was based upon an understood unalterable distinction between men and women, their position, duties, privileges?”
In her mind, this ‘unalterable distinction’ was made with Eve and continued throughout the Bible
To Rossetti, men and women were created by God as fundamentally different creatures and because of their fundamental differences, Rossetti believed that men and women should have different responsibilities and rights
Rossetti’s awareness of the disadvantaged position of women in society
Although she did not support suffrage, Rossetti was acutely aware of the disadvantages faced by nineteenth century women
She was also aware of the pressure society put on women to conform to expected standards, especially since early on in her career her poetry was dismissed and reduced by male critics
Rossetti was self-aware of her position as a woman in society — like Nora in ADH also demonstrates a high level of self-awareness
prescribed roles for women: the angelic maid v the evil temptress (the Madonna/whore complex)
Many of Rossetti’s early poems focus on the distinction often made by Victorian male writers between two sorts of women: the angelic maid or mother and the wicked temptress
In The Angel in the House, a poem written by Coventry Patmore, published in 1854 and revised up until 1862, the ideal woman is described as a charming and unselfish creature completely dedicated to her husband and children
Child-like and weak, she is seen as pure and in need of male protection, with her proper place being in the home
If a woman did not fit the prescribed pattern of the girl-like and innocent angel, she was often conceived of as being a dangerous threat
Many of Rossetti’s poems challenge the sharp line that her male contemporaries drew between the pure woman and the seductress, to present a much more balanced and complex picture of womanhood
The Highgate Penitentiary for Fallen Women
Rossetti was especially concerned with the welfare of women who sought to come out of prostitution
During the 1860’s, she worked as a volunteer in a home for women deemed as ‘fallen’ by Victorian society
Rossetti recognised that, according to the Christian principle of forgiveness, these women did not and should not be deemed outcasts for the rest of their lives
Instead, she sought to change commonplace and stereotyped assumptions
Throughout her poetry, she highlights the fact that women who have once been prostitutes can undergo a complete change
growing rights of women: Married Women’s Property Act 1870
Throughout the Victorian era, most girls were brought up to believe that it was their duty, when they reached adulthood, to get married and have children
With little choice over their own education, they were often taught domestic skills and trained to care for husbands and children
It was not until 1870 and the introduction of the Married Women’s Property Act, that married women were actually allowed to keep their earnings and inherit property
Before that, they, along with their possessions, were seen as the rightful property of their husbands
Contagious Diseases Act
In the 1860s, the introduction of the Contagious Diseases Acts meant that even women who were suspected of working as prostitutes could be thrown into prisons, yet the men that frequented brothels received no such punishment
Campaigner Josephine Butler sought to raise awareness of the unfairness of these acts and the problems to which they gave rise – sexual double standard
Rossetti’s concern with fallen women
Unlike her contemporaries, like William Acton who published a report called “Prostitution”, Rossetti does not dismiss ‘fallen women’ with hasty judgement
