Tennyson’s Poem Question Two
According to mariners, it is not worth wasting time in a hard toil because the ultimate demise awaits us all. This analogy is not true because it despises the divine responsibly accorded to the early humans in the garden of Eden. The poem draws lots of its inspirations from the biblical perspective where Adam was punished for partaking the fruit. In this poem, the author uses the fruits from lotto’s to invade the biblical view where products are availed to people without measure. However, the Mariners are wrong since the poem is founded on the ideal environment which cannot be replicated in reality. The author suggests that even though the Mariners may be attracted to the power of a flower, they may be deceiving themselves since the land of images does not exist in reality. In the last stanza, lottos has been described to be a “hollow” land (Browning, Miller & Greenberg, 1981). This clearly implies that the sailors’ vison is empty and lacks enough grounds to despise the contributions of toil. Things do exist because someone worked for their existence. Therefore, the assertions of the Mariners do not enumerate the source of fruits in lottos land.
Browning’s Poems Question Two
“Porphyria’s lover” and “My Last Duchess” are the two poems that feature men who end up killing their wives. However, the most astonishing thing in this poem is that men feel happier and relieved whenever they kill their wives. According to the author, men murder women in order to gain power that is solely based on gender. Initially, women have more power than men. This can be visualized in “Porphyria’s lover” where a man is depicted to be paranoid (Alfred, 2014). Therefore, murder is the only tool that can be used by men to switch the power dynamics. The high social status of women undermines the position of men in a patriarch society. In the “Porphyria’s lover,” the man’s low social status provides his wife with the power to attend feasts without him. It is very clear in the poem that the man’s low social status hampers his ability to firmly control his wife. A woman’s ability to do whatever pleases her is a sanctioned behavior in a patriarchy society. For instance, in “My Last Duchess,” a woman is depicted to do whatever pleases her without considering the response that can be elicited by her husband. This is a threatening act as it can be seen in the poem where Duchess is angered with her wife’s antics. Such actions provide women with powers which attract negative responses from their male counterparts.
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Rossetti’s “Goblin Market” Question One
Even though the poem explores the sexual eroticism, it harbors concepts of economic exchange. For instance, Laura is able to pay the exotic fruits with a lock of hair. Even though the act satisfies the theory of economic exchange, it is dictated by sexual pleasure. This can be visualized in Lizzie’s denied attempt to pay for the fruits with money (Rossetti & Rossetti, 1996). Furthermore, this poem is also about renunciation. Renunciation is a means of gaining redemption on a spiritual platform. This can be seen in the actions of Lizzie who considers sexual gratification as a temptation. However, Laura has been depicted to harbor no regrets of tasting the fruit in the first place. Therefore, with this assertion, it can also be argued that the poem has no theme of spiritual redemption. Also, the relationship between Lizzie and Laura does not show separation between good and evil. Also, the poem is about aesthetic pleasure. Traditionally, women were associated with beautiful things. Therefore, sexuality can be considered to have an aesthetic value in the society. Also, the use of fruits to symbolize sexuality is an element that reinforces the theme of aesthetic pleasure in this poem.
References
Alfred, L. T. (2014). The Lotos-Eaters. English Literature: Victorians and Moderns , 55.
Browning, R., Miller, R., & Greenberg, R. A. (1981). Porphyria's Lover; My Last Duchess . St. Martin's Press.
Rossetti, C. G., & Rossetti, D. G. (1996). Goblin Market . TC & EC Jack.
