In her poem, “Goblin Market,” Christina Rossetti used the Goblins and their market as an extended metaphor of women being drawn to the sexual promises/desires of men. Two sisters have two different experiences with the Goblins. One goes willingly and becomes enamored with the “fruit” she devours and begins to waste away. The other goes in order to save her sister; she ignores their calls and is attacked/ravaged by the Goblins. When the second sister, Lizzie, goes to the Goblins and refuses their advancements, Rossetti describes the scene as, “White and golden Lizzie stood,/Like a lily in a flood,/ Like a rock of blue-veined stone/ Lashed by tides obstreperously, –/ Like a beacon left alone/ In a hoary roaring sea” (408-413). She uses similes in order to paint a picture of Lizzie’s bravery. In the description she uses the word “obstreperously” in one of her similes. Obstreperous means “clamorous, noisy or vociferous” (Oxford English Dictionary). Lizzie stood against the goblins like a rock that is lashed by the clamorous and rough sea. This definition could make sense when talking about ocean waves. However, it also has another definition that fits the poem better. Obstreperous can also mean, “Noisily or aggressively resisting control, advice, etc.; turbulent, unruly; aggressive, argumentative, or bad-tempered” (Oxford English Dictionary). The tide that is hitting against her are the Goblins, they are “unruly,” “aggressive,” and “bad-tempered.” The word is able to encompass the unruly waves of an ocean, but also portray the aggressiveness of the Goblins who seek to get at her. Rossetti seeks to portray the falling of a woman, but also the strength and sacrifice a woman can possess. In showing how Lizzie stands against the obstreperous Goblins to save her sister, Rossetti paints a different picture of a fallen woman. Although it sounds as though she is raped, she is still portrayed as more of a self-sacrificing hero than a fallen woman.
Elyssa Reisman
Oxford English Dictionary. Obstreperous, adj. www.OED.com. (Oxford University Press: England) Date Accessed: October 15, 2012.
