Abby Gier

10:30-11:45
akgier@asu.edu
Rossetti “Goblin Market”
Rossetti, Christina. 2018. “Goblin Market.” Cove Collective Editions, edited by Antony Harrison
and Lorraine Janzen Kooistra. Accessed February 19, 2024.
https://editions.covecollective.org/edition/goblin-market/goblin-market
Galawdewos. 2015. The Life and Struggles of Our Mother Walatta Petros. A
Seventeenth-Century African Biography of an Ethiopian Woman. Translated and edited
by Wendy Laura Belcher and Michael Kleiner. Princeton and Oxford: Princeton
University Press.

Rossetti “Goblin Market”

A. Question: What does the story “Goblin Market” symbolize?

B. Thesis: According to Rossetti, “Goblin Market” symbolizes prostitution, religion, and addiction.

C. Claim #1: Rossetti argues
that her writings can be a symbol
of prostitution because the
goblins resemble men and their
desire for women’s bodies and
time.
C. Claim #2: Rossetti
explains that “Goblin
Market” can be symbolized as
a religious story because
women are selling their purity
when they buy the goblins’
fruit.
C. Claim #3: Rossetti argues that
her story can be a symbol of
addiction because once the women
eat the fruit, their health
deteriorates as they crave more.

D. Evidence: D. Evidence: D. Evidence:

‘“Their hungry thirsty roots?”’
(Rossetti 2018, 2).
“Nay, take a seat with us,
Honour and eat with us,”
(Rossetti 2018, 9).
‘“Buy from us with a golden
curl.”’(Rossetti 2018, 4).
“Her hair grew thin and
gray;” (Rossetti 2018, 7).
“Afterwards, when both were
wives With children of their
own;” (Rossetti 2018, 13).
“She never tasted such before,
How should it cloy with length of
use?” (Rossetti 2018, 4).
“I ate and ate my fill, Yet my
mouth waters still;” (Rossetti 2018,
5).

E. Reasoning: Rossetti allows E. Reasoning: Another E. Reasoning: Rossetti expands on

for the reader's imagination to
recognize one of the many
symbols her story represents, in
which one of those is
prostitution. Rossetti argues that
prostitution is an allegory for
allegory Rossetti’s story
represents is religion. Rossetti
argues that “Goblin Market”
can be symbolized as a
religious story because once
women buy the fruit, they are
the idea that her story, “Goblin
Market”, can be a symbol for
addiction. Addiction is the process
of choosing to consume a drug.
From there, one then craves this
drug immensely, and is unable to
“Goblin Market” because the
goblins have the desire for
women’s bodies and time. The
goblins resemble men and their
desire for women. As we see
from the text, the goblins do not
desire money, but women’s
bodies and time. This relates to
prostitution because men lust for
the use of women and their
bodies for pleasure. Within the
story, Rossetti elaborates on the
idea that women should
succumb to the desires of men
through prostitution and give
them what they desire. Like the
fruits, women taste them and fall
into the desire to have them.
This is similar to prostitution
because once women begin
down the path of prostitution, it
is difficult for them to escape it.
actually selling their purity.
From the story, Laura
purchases the fruits with a
lock of her hair, rather than
money. This symbolizes
Laura giving up a piece of her
soul, identity, and body in
order to have what she wants.
This is similar to the idea of
religion because one’s actions
can lead to them giving up
their purity. As Laura’s hair
grew thin and gray, this
symbolizes that a piece of her
identity is gone. However,
near the end of “Goblin
Market”, we see both sisters
become wives and live a
happy life. This shows that
even though someone has
sinned in the eyes of God,
there is capability for
salvation.
fight the desires. If one does not
consume this drug when wanted,
the body goes through
withdrawals. In the story “Goblin
Market”, Laura chooses to eat the
goblins’ fruits. After that, she
craves these fruits and is unable to
take her mind off of them. Once
Laura’s body does not consume the
fruits, her body goes through
withdrawals, and her physical and
mental health starts to decline. This
is a clear representation of real life
addiction. The fruits symbolize a
drug that once one consumes, they
are unable to stop the desire to
consume it again. As drugs have
always been a common thing
throughout the world, this
symbolization is extremely eye
opening to readers and gives an
insight to how drugs truly affect
one's body and social relationships.

F. Conclusion: Moreover, Rossetti’s story “Goblin Market” can be interpreted many ways. However,
Rossetti argues that her story can be closely related to prostitution, religion, and addiction. For
prostitution, the goblins symbolize men and how they desire to have women’s bodies and time as they
seek for women to buy their fruits. Religion can be represented as Laura gives away a piece of her
hair, it is a symbol for giving away her purity. Even though this is a sin, the story shows how salvation
can be achieved. Lastly, addiction can be interpreted as the fruits of the goblins are a symbol of drugs.
Rossetti shows how drugs in real life can affect a person as she explains the effects Laura goes
through. In conclusion, Rossetti allows for the audience to use their imagination and interpretation to
correlate her writings with real life examples.

G. Intertextual Relationships: Throughout the story “Goblin Market”, Rossetti clearly identifies the
strong relationship between women and how they should stand together and support each other.
Walatta Petros would also agree with this idea. The text states, “As soon as our holy mother Walatta
Petros and Eheta Kristos saw each other from afar, love was infused into both their hearts, love for one
another, and they exchanged the kiss of greeting” (Galawdewos 2015, 115). Galawdewos also believed
in women standing together and supporting one another. They supported the idea that women should
be companions and help each other. Both Rossetti and Galawdewos argued for the relationship
between women and that it should be a uniting movement, rather than tearing eachother down. This is
a key idea expressed in both Rossetti’s “Goblin Market” and Galawdewos The Life and Struggles of
Our Mother Walatta Petros.