includes a summary, relevant context and language analysis of 'Passing and Glassing', one of the poems in the a level english Rossetti anthology. I recieved an A* in english using these notes.
Passing and Glassing is about the passing of time, aging and the fading of beauty.
Publication history and relevant context:
Passing and Glassing was published in 1881. Having been diagnosed with Graves’ disease
in 1872, she may have had a greater sense of her mortality. Confronted with the idea of
aging at a fast rate, she may have had a greater awareness of the important elements of life.
In letters she sent to her family, Rossetti often wryly referred to her appearance, once
mentioning, ‘Still I am weak and less ornamental than society may justly demand.’ This is
revealing of the pressures society put on women concerning their appearances.
Older women were often ridiculed in society, kept out of art and literature, excluded, and
mocked.
Rhyme scheme: AABBBCCD
Themes:
- The transience/impermenance of beauty
- Aging
- Loss
Analysis
All things that pass
Are woman's looking-glass;
Each stanza starts with the same refrain, ‘All things that pass’, introducing the idea of time
passing and loss. The looking glass is used as an extended metaphor to reflect the extent of
female anxiety; society impacts the way women view themselves through the constant
pressures surrounding appearance. Evidently, Rossetti was aware of the fact that she didn’t
conform to these expectations due to Graves’ disease- this may serve as a criticism of
Victorian ideals of beauty. It also introduces the idea of literal and figurative self-reflection.
They show her how her bloom must fade,
The use of the modal verb ‘must’ indicates the inevitability of time passing. Aging and the
loss of outer beauty will and should happen as it is a natural progression. ‘Bloom must fade’
highlights how a woman’s worth was tied to her beauty, which would ultimately fade, thus
suggesting that her worth would decline as she ages.
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