Comments | kellyrfineman: An Echo From Willowwood by Christina Rossetti

kellyrfineman

An Echo From Willowwood by Christina Rossetti - a Poetry Friday post

Mar 20, 2009 00:31

Christina Rossetti was remarkable. The poem I'm featuring today was sent to me by one of my dearest friends a while back. I think it's another example of her exceeding her brother's talent. It's thematically similar to some of the Willowwood sonnets crafted by her brother, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, following the death of a woman named Lizzie Siddal, ( Read more... )

rossetti, poetry friday, sonnets, iambic pentameter, poems, poetry

Comments 12

anonymous March 20 2009, 12:56:59 UTC

You're not alone on the swooning. It *is* heart-breaking. I'd love to read Dante's water-looking verses and compare.

Jules
7-Imp

kellyrfineman March 20 2009, 21:03:09 UTC

That is entirely possible - they may even be findable online.

random commenter rowanda380 March 20 2009, 13:18:51 UTC

It looks like a lovely poem, lots of beautiful images. But I wish I could read these iambic poems in the correct rhythm, I never seem to get it.

Re: random commenter kellyrfineman March 20 2009, 21:05:25 UTC

The best idea is to read them in the natural way. The iambic part is entirely an organizational tool, and isn't supposed to be integral to reading the poem or enjoying it. Besides, Christina occasionally flips a foot around into a trochee or uses a spondee - point being, the words are the thing.

p_sunshine March 20 2009, 13:29:40 UTC

Definitely swoon worthy. ♥
It feels like a painting. Usually stories tell more than one event, and this one just blasts you with the emotions of a single moment, like an image does.

kellyrfineman March 20 2009, 21:06:21 UTC

Ooh - what a lovely observation. And it may in fact be ekphrastic (based on art), because it's entirely possible that rather than aping her brother's poem about a painting, she was referring to the painting itself.

anonymous March 20 2009, 13:32:26 UTC

I like the heart in heart, each for each. Lovely, heartwrenching poem!
I read your article at KidMags the other day, too! Well done!
Kelly Polark

kellyrfineman March 20 2009, 21:06:54 UTC

Thanks for the compliments on the KidMags article. And yeah - this poem is really something, I think.

cloudscome March 20 2009, 23:10:25 UTC

I have to agree with you - Christina's poem is nuanced with so many layers. I have always liked her work. Thanks for sharing this today.

kellyrfineman March 21 2009, 01:01:54 UTC

I never learned her work in school, but I've been setting out to remedy it. Did you see the Rossetti poem that Tanita posted today? It was glorious.