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Connections, Other themes: - Coggle Diagram
Connections
Morality
Rossetti judges a character's morality through a religious lens. Her Tractarian beliefs rule her decisions with poems such as 'Echo' demonstrating her belief that desire is sinful, "too bitter sweet" and 'Goblin Market' which uses 'Jeannie' in particular to suggest that succumbing to desire is wrong.
However, sometimes characters are not punished such as 'Maude Clare' who despite suggesting she is perhaps pregnant or has an STI, "bless the marriage bed... ankle-deep" has no significant repercussions. It could be argued however that her being left unmarried, unlike "pale" 'Nell', is punishment in itself.
Other characters such as 'John' in 'No, Thank you John' do go unpunished though this is likely due to Rossetti's Victorian audience who's restrictive views on male-female relationships differ from a modern, feminist audience.
Wilde presents differing views on the morality stretching from 'Mrs Cheveley's' perspective of a "modern mania for morality" to the morally absolute 'Lady Chiltern' who claims we should be judges by our "past actions" alone. This binary opposite presents them as the antithesis of each other which furthers the play's ironic elements as Lady Chiltern's resolute in her husband being the "that ideal always" is undermined by the denouement, "I set him up to high".
This shift in Lady C's perspectives could suggest that Wilde would disagree with the absolutist view likely due to his own scandals. At the time of writing Wilde was involved in a homosexual relationship outside his marriage which can to light soon after the play's release.
Therefore, some may suggest Lady Chiltern's change in attitude alongside Robert not being punished for his immoral actions is used to suggest the audience too should forgive Wilde.
The idea of morality is vital to understanding the motives and messages behind both writers however Wilde puts a larger focus on the theme in order to make a subtle statement about the corruption of politicians and in general society at the time. Claiming "all modern fortunes" are based on corruption and focusing his plot on the possible repercussions and worry Roberts immorality caused highlights the theme while Rossetti views it as less significant. This is likely due to her place in society, as a woman, being more restricted leading much of her poetry to be concerned with her religious beliefs and personal struggles.
Gender
Rossetti is considered by many to demonstrate feminist attitudes in her works such as 'No, Thank you John' which as Simon Avery said "asserts a woman's right to say no". However. despite doing work for woman and advocating for their education her devotion to religion meant she was adamantly against the Suffrage movement and remained with the Victorian idea of women remaining in the Domestic Sphere
Despite this, she goes against Patmore's idea of the Angel in the house in poems such as 'Maude Clare' where the female protagonist the poem takes it's name from asserts dominance over 'Thomas' the only male figure who can only repeat her name.
Alongside this the representation of other women in this poem continues Rossetti's suggestion that females can have power through Nell's self-assurance, "I'll love him till he loves me best" even though her marriage is portrayed more as a way to maintain status instead of out of pure romance.
A similar idea is tradition is presented by Wilde who shows even the most defiant 'New Woman' style of character as resorting to marriage for status in Mrs Cheveley. Her representation overall depicts a cruel and assertive woman that many of Wilde's audience would expect from the New Woman idea developing in society.
However, a modern audience would hold less significance in her gender recognising that her immorality does not come from being a woman. Additionally, other female characters such as Mabel demonstrate a moral and uncontroversial idea as her viewpoint often appears, to a modern audience, the most level-headed. This is highlighted through the theme of idealism that Wilde uses to criticise the high standards many women placed on men which was a rising feeling in the Victorian era.
Mabel criticises this in the final scene saying an ideal husband sounds like something "out of this world" and asserting she "wouldn't much like that". This creates a more positive representation of women in comparison to Lady Chiltern's ironic absolute moralism and Mrs Cheveley's immorality.
Both writers demonstrate some concern towards gender inequality but more so for Rossetti due to her personal experiences. Wilde has more interest in the moral actions of his characters and making political and social statements than Rossetti who continually puts gender at the focus of her poems as a way of raising concerns. The symbolism of the mask emphasise this disparity as Rossetti uses it in 'Winter my secret' to highlight the difficulties in society for women being judged while Wilde uses it to demonstrate the immoral secrets concerning his past that Robert keeps from his wife.
Love
Themes of love are significant in both texts used often to exemplify the writer's other concerns such as Gertrude and Robert's love being a large source of torment and used to punish Robert following his immoral actions. Wilde presents love between the Chilterns in a negative light for much of the play to highlight his critique of idealism and women putting men "too high".
Although, by the denouement it is their love that saves their happiness, "It is love Robert" being the play's concluding line. The love between Goring and Mabel has a more positive representation as she rejects ideals, "I should not like that" while also demonstrating a form of true love, "It is a public scandal the way I love you".
These romantic forms of love could be considered more important that the love that for example 'Mrs Cheveley' has for power. She is even willing to give up her freedom as an unmarried woman to marry Goring for status in society. Although less pure than romantic love, Wilde does present love for power and status throughout the play, "power... was the one thing worth having".
Unlike Wilde's portrayal of love, Rossetti's often hinges heavily on her religious beliefs. In poems such as 'Twice' she debates the importance of earthly versus heavenly love suggesting men see her as a commodity, "unripe" and decides she wishes for God to "judge me now" referencing the biblical idea of Judgement day.
Love for God is a theme in many of her poems such as 'A Birthday' where she experiences what many interpret to be a religious awakening claiming, "my love has come to me now". Although, some critics have suggested that she doesn't hide her religious poetry and therefore 'A Birthday' isn't religious.
Other poems such as 'Uphill' and 'Good Friday' however make direct reference to her love for God and desire to connect with her religious beliefs. S. Avery has suggested that she "interrogates religious ideas with a degree of tension" however, throughout these she never doubts the truth behind her religious ideals and maintains a deliberation more over to what extent she feels God's love not how much she loves him.
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Both Wilde and Rossetti present themes of love through much of their work. While Rossetti does this predominantly through the lens of religion only occasionally touching on themes of love for power and status, Mrs Cheveley creates a more prominent demonstration of this in AIH. Despite this, Wilde's demonstrations of love are significantly different to Rossetti's in other ways, particularly the focus he puts on romantic love which Rossetti doesn't feature as much.
Through Goring and Mabel and the Chilterns he explores the benefits and drawbacks of romantic relationships to highlight other themes such as idealism and morality that are of more importance to him personally. The homosexual relationship he was engaging in during his time writing the play may however, have influenced his portrayal of love and should be considered.
Power
Rossetti presents both male and female power and uses the dynamic between the two as a focus of many of her poems. 'No, Thank you John' places the power in the hands of the females much like 'Maude Clare' and 'Winter, my secret' however this is often twisted to conform to her religious beliefs or societal standards.
'The World' for example presents the devil-like creature, "feet cloven" as a woman, "she woos me". This negative portrayal of female power aiming to corrupt him is also present in poems such as to some extent Maude Clare where all three females are shown to have corrupt motives whether that is possible pregnancy to ruin the marriage or marriage for status not love, which a modern audience would view as immoral.
These assertions of power are often interpreted as Rossetti establishing a proto-feminist voice however all have almost sinister undertones. There are plenty of male characters who demonstrate their power such as the "shadow-less spirit" that locks her out of the Garden of Eden in 'Shut Out'.
Wilde presents power as deeply intertwined with corruption to demonstrate his didactic message and concerns about the corruption of politicians. The reference to the 'Panama Canal' alongside his portrayal of Robert is meant to highlight the corruption within government and characters such as Lady Markby who say government does "a great deal of harm".
Power is also explored through the character of Mrs Cheveley. Certainly the leader of corruption and set in her mission for power she attempts a wide range of crimes to assert power over even male figures, playing into the negative Victorian stereotype of the 'New Woman', including blackmail, theft and, though not criminal immoral, asking Goring to marry her.
These all present power in a negative light and put those characters who seek it in opposition to those such as Mabel and Goring who view it as unimportant. Scenes such as Robert and Goring's initial discussion of his past highlight this contrasting "power... is the only thing worth having" with "nobody is incapable of doing the wrong thing".
Both writers tend to present power in a negative light demonstrating harsh repercussions for those who seek power by suggesting that the ways of achieving power are immoral and sinful in themselves. Very few characters escape punishment of some sort across the texts. This is likely due to both of their perspectives of outsiders in England as Rossetti was Italian and Wilde was Irish. This gave them a perspective of English society that other writers were unable to see and they could therefore see the power in a more truthful light.
Religion
While religion is a huge part of Rossetti's work due to her devout Tractarian beliefs Wilde is significantly less concerned with it. The subject is discussed very little in his works being protestant his whole life, having grown up with Irish parents, and converting to Catholicism on his death bed.
Rossetti's religious beliefs are integral to her identity and imagery appears in much of her works. While 'A Birthday' appears to present a religious awakening, "my love has come to me" and 'Uphill' presents what many interpret to be a dialogue with God to reassure worries about the afterlife, "beds for all who come" other poems notably lack christian consolation.
'Shut Out' for example is often seen to be a representation of God as a "shadow-less spirit" locking her out of the garden of Eden, "My Garden, mine". This struggle between religion and human desire is presented in 'The World' using devil-like imagery and in 'Twice' where she settles on God over man.
While not simple her relationship with religion is shown to be vital to her identity and something she continuously interrogates according to S. Avery with a "degree of tension".
This may suggest that later in life religion was a consideration for him probably having developed after his public scandal over his homosexual relationship and it's detrimental consequences. However, this does not appear to be a key theme or consideration during his production of AIH.
Society
Unlike Wilde, Rossetti's questioning of society and interrogation of it's ideals often comes from a religious perspective or one concerned with the position of females and the domestic sphere. Poems such as 'Maude Clare' illustrate this presenting three empowered and self-assured characters that are confident in their actions, "I'll love him till he loves me best".
The "nipping an biting" alongside the metaphor of the "shawl" in 'Winter, my secret' creates the suggestion that society is overly judgemental to the point of harming women and the female speaker leaving the audience questioning if there even is a secret by the end, "guess" emphasises the push-back that females can create. However, due to her pious nature the highly religious society of the time is not openly criticised.
It is clear from much of her work that the traditional mourning and funerals of the Victorian era were not something she agreed with, "nor... cypress tree" but her work only ever subtly rebels with harsher messages being put in third person to separate herself from the idea, such as in 'From the antique'.
Wilde's play is rampant with messages that go against much of society's ideals but they are disguised subtly in order to pass the census. His aim was to force corrupt politicians to leave the theatre feeling guilty and perhaps doubting the security of their place in government. Particularly versions that remove Lady Chilten's final line which reassures Robert that it is "love" she feels for him. Society is also critiqued through secondary characters such as Lady Basildon who shows the paradoxical nature of it through her scene being hungry then "never eating supper" and wanting to be "morbid". Additionally, Goring is a large part of Wilde's extrapolaions of his concerns and many consider him to be Wilde's mouthpiece
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