A Daughter of Eve by Christina Rossetti Poem Analysis

The poem 'A Daughters of Eve' by Christina Rosetti is written in first person, following the story of a young woman who allowed herself to be 'deflowered' before marriage. It represents her regret about succumbing to temptation and society's views on her value as a woman during the Victorian era.

Rosetti begins the poem using a metaphor with a recollection on how she had been "A fool to pluck my rose too soon". The noun 'rose' connotes ideas of purity and beauty, which is ironic because it contrasts with the fate that is going to befall her - a life without marriage. This implies that she has nothing left since a woman's virginity was the only thing that would have kept them safe in a Victorian society where women were viewed as 'used goods' if they were to let themselves be deflowered before marriage. Alternatively, it could also suggest her anger towards her past self to not consider what would happen to her future if she were to sacrifice everything for a brief moment of pleasure. This evokes sympathy from the reader because she's now viewed as an outcast and has to spend the rest of her life alone after losing something so dispensable and superficial. Perhaps the author is trying to warn people to not make the same mistakes as the protagonist did.

Furthermore, Rosetti uses biblical references to make an allusion towards the story of Adam and Eve with the title: 'A Daughter of Eve'. Eve was the first woman that was formed from the rib of Adam and she's often seen as an untrustworthy person for being portrayed as someone who persuaded Adam to eat the fruit from the tree of knowledge, which caused them both to be exiled from The Garden of Eden. This conveys how the protagonist, like Eve, submitted to temptation and had eaten the forbidden fruit, causing her to be banished from society. However, it could also indicate that this poem is a modern retelling or interpretation of Eve's story. She tried to make her own choices instead of blindly following what God had commanded and she chose to let herself be 'deflowered' before marriage, which contradicted with the Victorian social norms at the time. In adding biblical references, Rosetti tries to criticize the bible because even in the bible, women are viewed as lesser than - being the cause of sin and being made from just a rib of Adam rather than being his equal. This makes the reader think that she has lost her paradise and is now exiled to a life without happiness just because she gave away her virginity.

The poem then uses seasonal imagery through its description of spring with "Talk what you will of future spring". The noun 'spring' signifies ideas of renewal and rebirth, which is ironic because it contrasts with the woman's circumstances. This suggests that she is tired of people talking about a new life or beginning because she is saying 'Talk what you please' which shows that for people like her, there was no hope. On the other hand, perhaps this could imply that she has simply given up and has accepted her looming fate. This poem makes the reader think about how there is no going back to a situation where the woman doesn't have to be alone in life. Perhaps the author is trying to show the inequality for women during the Victorian period because the implication for men weren't as harsh and women were viewed as servants or objects rather than human beings.

Overall, the poem 'A Daughter of Eve' gives a lot of implications for the reader to think about. It makes them feel sorry for the woman because she did not have a choice but to become an outcast, and it also questions society's views on women during this era. I think the poem was written to warn women to make the most of their time and to not do something which will bring short-term benefits but hurt them in the long-term. However, this poem isn't as effective today because virginity isn't valued as high as back then and now women are allowed to have more freedom.