The goblins in Goblin Market are meant to represent the archetype rake character who attempts to take the sisters’ virtue. Although described with animalistic traits, or the general label of ‘goblin’ identifying them as mythic creatures, the seducers of the poem are men. The use of describing them as various animals, highlights the seeming ‘animalistic’ quality of the human being or the male instinct to take a woman’s virginity (Rossetti Lines 69-77). However, similarly to the ‘Rake’ characters seen in various Victorian novels, these goblin men were, to Laura, “sounded kind and full of love” (Rossetti Line 79). This is to say, Rake characters often played the role of seducing young girls for their pleasure and were known to even go so far as
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Whereas the poem talks about the need of revisiting the goblins, it is the fruit that Laura searches for specifically. From the moment she spies on them, Rossetti heavily emphasizes how unique the fruits are by claiming its exoticism and stating that they seem from places unknown. Furthermore, these fruits while seemingly "perfect in their beauty and sweetness” still holds “something sinister about them” (Hill 460). Lizzie, nevertheless, notices the dangerous quality to the fruits. She warns her sister not to eat them by saying “[t]heir evil gifts would harm [them]” (Rossetti Line 66). However like Jeanie, Laura eats the fruit, participating in an implicit sexual exchange with the goblins. By considering the fruits as the symbol for desire or female sexuality, Laura embraces her first initiation to womanhood, while Lizzie turns away from it. These fruits which have a unique taste are only meant to be tasted once, as the goblins will disappear afterwards. Therefore as symbolizing as taking ones virginity, the act of eating the fruit remains as irrevocable to parallel the impossibility to retrieve one's virginity. Female virtue is meant to be protected until marriage, and to eat the fruit offered by goblin men, rather than waiting for marriage leads you to certain death. Laura later describing the fruit as "the fruit forbidden" further hints to it as being the ultimate sin for a woman to transgress, accepting her own fate as doomed (Line 479). Yet, while the fruit offered by the goblins seem to take away her desires, Lizzie is able to restore it by re-offering the fruit. In this way, "Lizzie appears to have restored her sister by recirculating the energetic energies first set into motion by the goblin market" (Carpenter 429). It shows that the fruit in itself is not inherently bad. Rather as pointed out by Marylu Hill, “Laura is never punished for the fact of her desire – she
Whereas the poem talks about the need of revisiting the goblins, it is the fruit that Laura searches for specifically. From the moment she spies on them, Rossetti heavily emphasizes how unique the fruits are by claiming its exoticism and stating that they seem from places unknown. Furthermore, these fruits while seemingly "perfect in their beauty and sweetness” still holds “something sinister about them” (Hill 460). Lizzie, nevertheless, notices the dangerous quality to the fruits. She warns her sister not to eat them by saying “[t]heir evil gifts would harm [them]” (Rossetti Line 66). However like Jeanie, Laura eats the fruit, participating in an implicit sexual exchange with the goblins. By considering the fruits as the symbol for desire or female sexuality, Laura embraces her first initiation to womanhood, while Lizzie turns away from it. These fruits which have a unique taste are only meant to be tasted once, as the goblins will disappear afterwards. Therefore as symbolizing as taking ones virginity, the act of eating the fruit remains as irrevocable to parallel the impossibility to retrieve one's virginity. Female virtue is meant to be protected until marriage, and to eat the fruit offered by goblin men, rather than waiting for marriage leads you to certain death. Laura later describing the fruit as "the fruit forbidden" further hints to it as being the ultimate sin for a woman to transgress, accepting her own fate as doomed (Line 479). Yet, while the fruit offered by the goblins seem to take away her desires, Lizzie is able to restore it by re-offering the fruit. In this way, "Lizzie appears to have restored her sister by recirculating the energetic energies first set into motion by the goblin market" (Carpenter 429). It shows that the fruit in itself is not inherently bad. Rather as pointed out by Marylu Hill, “Laura is never punished for the fact of her desire – she