Critical analysis of critics of Rossetti

Kathryn Dorothy's brief synopsis and critical analysis of Christina Rossetti’s 'Goblin Market' takes an very basic approach to the poem. Dorothy has identified the relationship between the sisters to be Rossetti's main point of the poem, to express 'there is no love, that of a sister.' However, I feel as if Dorothy missed a major underlying meaning within the bond between Lizzie and Laura.

Dorothy mentions "The strong-willed Lizzie, in a desperate attempt to save her sister, returns to the goblin men that only she can now hear and offers to buy their fruit, although she adamantly refuses to join them at their feast. After bravely resisting the evil creatures’ attacks, during which her mouth and face are smeared with fruit juices, Lizzie makes her way home." Dorothy is keen to point out the clear and literal figures of the sister, and I believe that she missed metaphorical points.

I think Dorothy has taken a very surface read analysis rather than delving deeper into the meanings of the relationships and problems the two sisters face in the poem. I believe that within the sisters, there is a representation of Adam and Eve. From "Like two blossoms on one stem," you understand that there are many similarities between them physically. Mentally, they are opposites, from the way that Laura gave in so easily to the 'Goblin Men' and how Lizzie remained strong enough to save her sister. Within this I see Laura as a representation of Eve and how she also ate the forbidden fruit, causing the problems.

As Rossetti is a clear Anglican believer, I can denote from this that God and Christ, are hidden within her poetry, sometimes its clear to see the links, and sometimes it takes a more in depth look into the words and what they really mean. Dorothy mentions the religious background of Rossetti but she has almost addressed it to be looked past. For Rossetti, no love is purer than the love of Christ, therefore this precious bond between the two siblings has to be something more than just family, but a bond between, Adam and Eve and God and his children.

Dorothy's angle on the poem acknowledges "Rossetti’s devout Anglican upbringing, in which her mother and her sister played such intrinsic roles, probably made her shrink from the idea of the fulfillment of love. To the quiet and often clinically depressed Rossetti, this may have been a way of reconciling her love of man with her love of God." This remark, shows the consideration of Rossetti's Religious background but still, Dorothy remains loyal to the idea of the family bond and how that is the purest form of love and how important it is to share between siblings.

I do agree with most points Dorothy has made, I believe there is a bond between the sisters that is vital, because the determination there is to help the other sibling is a force that is immortal. However, I believe that the 'Goblin Men' are metaphorical representations of the conscious and unconscious battles we have within ourselves.