Goblin Market

As discussed in Contextual Analysis, Rossetti structures her poem around fairy folklore’s tropes and story beats. Additionally, the various origins of the Fair Folk support many of Rossetti’s possible messages throughout “Goblin Market.”

Following Christianity’s spread throughout Europe, fairies became demoted gods, fallen angels, or Eve’s children whom God made invisible. All of these interpretations place the Fair Folk as opponents of God. The fallen angels and Eve’s children evoke arrogance and defiance against God’s will (Sigmundsdóttir, Alda. The Little Book of the Hidden People. Little Books Publishing, 2015).

Rossetti was a devout Christian. The goblins stand in for the Devil within Rossetti’s religious beliefs framework. The Devil, also a fallen angel, tempts people to sin. Despite hearing warnings, Laura succumbs to the goblin’s offers of food. She then arguably engages in the sins of gluttony, lust, greed, and sloth. Laura longs for the fruit’s pleasures even as the fruit harms her.

As discussed in the Themes section, Laura’s illness and Jeanie’s death also frame the poem as one about confronting illness and mortality. Both Laura and Jeanie’s diseases come after consuming the goblins’ food. The goblins function like the grim reaper. The connection between fairies and death has long existed.