"Standing afar off for the fear of her torment"

Question 1

SAOFTFOHT:
Each of the 1st 3 stanzas are started with double questions = reinforcing of the plight of the fallen woman

1. ‘I t t e? i t n e b t’
2. ‘H s n f? H s n c f?’
3. ‘W s b d a? v a?’

Answer 1

1. ‘Is this the end? Is there no end but this?’ inquisitive speaker allows CR to put forth v. subversive views in terms of questioning the actual fate of the fallen woman -is she perhaps positing the idea that this ‘solidified’/predestined fate is far too rigid & we as a society gravely need to re-evaluate our stance towards ‘fallen women’. The finality of ‘end’ suggests a fated path - perhaps a reflection of Victorian era beliefs regarding the irrecoverable nature of one’s reputation once a sexual transgression has occurred.
2. ‘Hath she no friend? hath she no clinging friend?’ persona switches to more of an incensed, furious tone as this doubled questioning forces a societal reflection upon the cruel treatment of teh fallen woman i.e. her ostracization from social circles. Becomes a voice for advocacy, depicting the complete lack of support and sisterhood afforded to these women who have become victims to the lapsarian cultural frame.

AO3: CR worked in Highgate penitentiary.

3. Will she be done away? vanish away?
   connotations of disappearance is reflective of the societal banishment and shunning of ‘fallen women’. ‘vanish away’ evocative of a permanent fading of something, perhaps metaphorical for the fleeting nature of reputation or even societal desires to expunge all traces of the scourge that is fallen women.

Question 2

Key quotes: SAOFFOHT

1. ‘N o e f p/A f a b’
2. ‘W s u h f/Q f t w h o e’
   3.’l a d/…l t s t s…/a n b d.’
3. ‘I s o f s s a.’

Answer 2

1. ‘No other end for pride/And foulness and besottedness.’ Definitive, authoritarian Vocalisation of old testament attitudes through the syndetic listing of ‘pride/foulness…besottedness’, providing an itemised list of this woman’s sins. Definitive quality perhaps suggests that their is no escape from this fate.
2. ‘Who stare upon her fall/Quake for themselves with hair on end.’ Depiction of society as utterly self-absorbed and selfish, completely unable to proffer actions of humanity or compassion to those in need. The observing act of non-intervention ‘stare’ evokes teh sense of a society that delights in/derives entertainment from the suffering of others, AO3: aestheticisation of the outcast female through paintings, especially the suffering of teh defenceless female who has suffered a ‘fall’ from grace - perhaps a biblical allusion to Lucifer’s devolvement from an Angel to Satan himself? Their self-obsessive state is furthered through ‘quake for themselves’ as society appears all too fearful of the consequences of transgressive behaviour yet experiences no sense of urgency to assist the fallen woman.
3. ‘like a dream/…like the shades that seem…/are nought by day.’ Motif of intangible life, the ethereal, abstract image of a woman dissipating as if only a dream is perhaps suggestive of how under a patriarchal system women are often unable to fulfil/reach their full potential and so are limited to mere dullened ‘shades’ of themselves. This is reinforced through the declaration that they are ‘nought by day’, the fallen woman has been completely eradicated form existence as she is of non-value.
4. ‘In solitude of fire she sits alone.’: The destructive, pain-fuelled image of a land of fire acts as hell symbolism/a metaphor for hell itself, enforcing the notion that the only fate for a transgressive, subversive woman is eternal punishment in hell as her sins of teh flesh have violated her pact with God. Perhaps however this hell symbolism reflects the harsh and brutal backlash a woman within the lapsarian culture of Victorian England may face, punctuated by the recurring image of a ‘solitary waiting woman’ who is left in a complete state of stasis, unable to form human connections.