Goblin Market Flashcards
1
Q
Goblin Market: literal meaning
A
About some goblins who try to persuade Lizzie and Laura to buy fruit from them / Laura gives in, but then receives a lack of attention from the goblins, she craves more and becomes incapable of doing basic things, such as eating. Fearing that her sister will die, Lizzie decides to find the goblins and purchase some fruit for her sister. Lizzie refuses to give in to their attack. / Years later, both Lizzie and Laura marry happily and have children, Laura warns her own children of the goblins
2
Q
Goblin Market: implicit meaning
A
It is likely that the fruits of the goblins have sexual connotations and Lizzie warns Laura not to indulge in this, because it will ruin her, causing her to become a ‘fallen’ woman and be isolated from society.
3
Q
Goblin Market: narrative voice
A
An omniscient, 3rd person speaker / the events described could affect anyone and are not limited to a couple of individuals
4
Q
Goblin Market: form and structure
A
Irregularly rhymed poem, often using couplets or ABAB rhymes. This irregularity could reflect Laura’s inability to follow the ‘regular’ societal expectations of women, but the pockets of rhyme demonstrate the control Lizzie has and many other women in society had to avoid such men and avoid becoming ‘fallen’ women. The couplets often occur in lists, increasing the speed at which the poem is read and creating a breathless feel, possibly reflecting the overwhelming nature of the goblins through this listing technique.
5
Q
Goblin Market: key imagery + language (stanza 1)
A
- morning and evening = constant + never-ending, the incessant call of the goblins is the problem
- fruits = sexual connotations, the listing of them could suggest all forms of desire and temptation
- peaches = sexualises them to the body
- free-born = could be alluding to the lack of freedom women had
- pine-apples = wouldn’t have been common in Victorian England, this exoticism is luring them even more
- ripe = could be reflective of women having an expiry date. Fruit goes off, beauty doesn’t last. Could link to Rossetti’s Graves’ disease and how beauty doesn’t last. Also, fruit that’s ripe could symbolise fertility.
- lots of alliteration = almost song-like
- try = you’re not committing
- bright-fire-like = hell-like imagery. Goes with the sexualised language
- come buy, come buy = incessant call
- morns = second mention of time, could suggest the time is running out to buy their fruit
- pomegranates = fruit of the underworld. The underworld was the kingdom of the dead in Greek Mythology.
6
Q
Goblin Market: key imagery + language (stanza 2)
A
- evening by evening = constant
- Laura + Lizzie = similar names, suggests they could be either, could be saying that anyone could fall.
- arms + lips + cheeks + finger tips = focusing on the body as being really important
- we must = imperative
- who knows = you don’t know where they have come from
- you should not = Lizzie is almost separating herself, she doesn’t trust Laura.
- glossy head = links to female beauty
- restless = idea of boredom
- little men = almost mocking, almost underestimating them. This also directly connects the goblins to the idea of masculinity. The use of ‘little’ could be used to suggest that the goblins have limitations and can be resisted.
- anaphora of ‘one’ = sense of the goblins being overwhelming. Almost hypnotic, the goblins are taking control from the women rather than women taking from the goblins.
- lugs = idea the goblins are almost under a burden and struggling
- ‘no’, said by Lizzie = readers pity Lizzie, she is closed off from life, not living. We need to put ourselves in the real world to understand who we really are.
- cat’s face + tail + rat etc = the goblins are presented as inhumane and disgusting. The goblins are compared to furry animals and not dangerous ones, could be reflective of trying to appear friendly and trustworthy to their enticed customers. The aspects of their body are the only focus, much like women are objectified.
- all together = it’s not just the one goblin, but could be what society says men are like
- doves = saying the right things + being seductive, but that’s not really who they are. Doves symbolise peace, yet this is a deception to lure Laura away from safety
- full of loves = this is a poem about sexual temptation
7
Q
Goblin Market: key imagery + language (stanza 3)
A
- swan = shows an animalistic aspect of Laura, similar to the Goblins who are a mixture of many different creatures; she is becoming one of them. Comparing Laura to this = an example of zoomorphism. They have webbed feet under the surface which paddle rapidly, which could suggest that there is more going on beneath Laura’s elegant surface. The swan is ‘rush-imbedded’, possibly suggesting being stuck in the rushes, could suggest that Laura feels trapped.
- vessel = could refer to a ship, often linked to femininity
- poplar = type of tree, symbol of fertility
- moonlit = moon, symbol of chastity
- the contrast between moonlit and poplar could show how Lizzie feels trapped between her natural urges and societal expectation.
- launch = idea of opportunity, suggests freedom
8
Q
Goblin Market: key imagery + language (stanza 4)
A
- trooped = like the military, masculine connotation and imposing force
- leering = staring in a sexually unpleasant way
- tendrils = these cling and wrap around any object, a metaphor for the entrapment of Laura. This could also be a metaphor for the wider oppression of women in society
- longed = could suggest Laura’s immaturity, idea of a child who sees something and wants it, but is too young to have the resources to buy it
9
Q
Goblin Market: key imagery + language (stanza 5)
A
- sweet-tooth = highlights her own lust and sexual curiosity
- all my gold is on the furze = the only gold Laura has is the flowers, which are a sign of her innocence and youth
- windy weather = the windy weather shakes the flowers with which she is associated; this is a metaphor for the events that will destroy her innocence and peace.
- golden curl = highlights she is giving away her chastity and femininity, succumbs to temptation
- women connected to nature, men linked to money + corruption
- ‘you have much gold upon your head’ = once hair is cut, a loss of innocence is presented. In the text, Laura willingly exchanges her hair for the fruit, which could be seen as a metaphor for prostitution.
- sweeter than honey from the rock = reference to Psalm 81:16
- she never tasted such before = a reference to her previous virginity and now sexualisation
- wine = another Biblical reference
- flung the emptied rinds away = lost all sense of control
- kernel-stone = could suggest she’s now dried up, there’s no hope for her, she’s given in to temptation (links to AAG)
10
Q
Goblin Market: key imagery + language (stanza 6)
A
- upbraidings = she’s telling her off
- twilight = foreshadowing of fate, twilight signifies not only the transition from day to night, but from safety to danger and innocence to knowledge
- do you not remember Jeanie = the fact that Laura should remember her implies that this is a story told before and often
- wore their flowers = she showed no shame + didn’t care, links to AAG. Flowers = symbol of virginity, once ‘plucked’ = fallen woman
- she pined and pined away = talking about the effect on Laura, no longer an object of desire for her virginity had been lost (sex interpretation)
- no grass will grow = infertility could highlight her impurity and uncleanliness
- then fell…never blow = recalls the Persephone myth
- ‘Nay, hush’ (said by Laura) = she’s completely controlled by her desire for the fruit. She’s unwilling to listen to reason.
- ‘Nay, hush’ (said by Lizzie?) = the fact that they echo each other implies an unconscious bond still exists
- I ate and ate my fill = Laura has become addicted to the fruit. No matter how much she has, she can never have enough (could support the interpretation that the poem is a warning against opiates)
- tomorrow night I will / Buy more = Laura no longer needs enticing: she is already hooked, suggests addiction
- fresh on their mother twigs = Laura has become enticed by the fruits. She has been hypnotised by the goblins’ chants, repeating them to Lizzie in a similar structure and form and using the same sort of tempting language the goblins used to describe their fruits.
11
Q
Goblin Market: key imagery + language (stanza 7)
A
- sense of unison presented, feeds in to idea of them potentially being the same person
- the sisters are opposites in their response to temptation, but it can also be interpreted that this is one person possessing conflicting desires
- ivory + gold + moon = all traditional images of purity. Laura still compared, despite succumbing to temptation
- awful kings = emphasises how women are viewed as objects for men to use for their own sexual gratification and then discard
- cheek to cheek and breast to breast = the sisters have reunited physically as well as spiritually. The unity here highlights sisterhood - could suggest that, because they are so similar, it could happen to either of them
12
Q
Give some different Goblin Market interpretations
A
- children’s fairytale
- sex and sexuality
- presentation of masculinity
- critique of commerce in the Victorian era
- religious narrative of salvation and sacrifice
- womanhood and power
- an addiction narrative
- elements of the Gothic
13
Q
Goblin Market interpretation: children’s fairytale
A
- goblin creatures are common in fairytales
- relatively simple vocabulary
- balladesque narrative makes it story-like
- happy ending
14
Q
Goblin Market interpretation: sex and sexuality
A
- contrasting descriptions of Laura and Lizzie, similarities with Jeannie
- description of the rape of Lizzie
- men are wholly in control
- glimmer of homosexuality + incest
- happy ending resolution, protest that ‘fallen women’ shouldn’t be made to suffer for the rest of their lives
- contrast of the two sisters’ actions
15
Q
Goblin Market interpretation: presentation of masculinity
A
- animalistic description of the goblins
- goblins’ vicious, active verbs as they assault Lizzie, controlling + assert complete power
- when they have what they want, they cast the woman aside, not caring that she is ruined
- they take everything from a woman (take Laura’s hair and Lizzie’s money)
- disappearance of the men at the end, although the girls are wives and mothers, their husbands aren’t mentioned
