|I have listened to the programme and was delighted to discover it was almost 45 minutes long. Briefly I will say what I found interesting.
I found the bit about the 'Pre-Raphealite Brotherhood' interesting as I had never heard of them before, and therefore was unaware that they influenced her poetry in such a significant way. Making her poetry more bright, vibrant, jewel like and very carefully observed. Which I think you can definitely see in her works, such as Goblin Market.
I was interested in the way they described her breakdown and ill health affecting her and making her have a more melancholic outlook on life.
I thought they analysed Goblin Market very well. I was intrigued by their comparison of the Eucharist and the section in the poem in which Laura sucks the fruit juices from her sister. They likened it to something like taking the blood of Christ into you, which of course offers a completely different interpretation to the ideas that we came up with about Rossetti maybe having some form of repressed sexuality. So I found this very enlightening in a way as I would never have seen this in a religous light, and I think it shows just how much Rossetti was influenced by her religion.
I was also interested in the idea they presented that the sisters in Goblin Market are representative of Rossetti and her sister. I think it quite odd that Rossetti saw herself as the less faithful one and would even suggest in the poem that she would give in to temptation (or at least insinuate this, if the characters are supposed to display an element of her and her sister).
Finally I thought they interpreted Rossetti's views on feminism well. I had always assumed when reading her poetry that she had a strong sense of feminism, so I was surprised to hear that she was against votes for women etc.
I hadn't really realised that Rossetti always seems to identify the ideal Christlike condition with women as apposed to men, for example showing women as redemptive figures and men as inadequate. I think this is important as it shows that although she had total faith in the patriarchal nature of the Church and society etc, she still considered it important to use her faith to portay women in a very positive and enpowering way.
