CHRISTINA ROSSETTI “GOBLIN MARKET”

Christina Rossetti’s Goblin Market, published in 1862, is a haunting narrative poem that weaves a gothic tapestry of temptation, sisterhood, and redemption. The poem follows two sisters, Laura and Lizzie, who encounter goblin merchants peddling forbidden fruits with an eerie, siren-like call. This excerpt captures the goblins’ seductive chant, luring the sisters with an abundance of otherworldly produce—a metaphor for sin and desire. The gothic elements shine through in the unsettling, supernatural presence of the goblins, the forbidden allure of their fruits, and the underlying dread of corruption, which resonates with themes of innocence lost. Rossetti’s vivid imagery and rhythmic repetition evoke a sense of enchantment tinged with danger, making Goblin Market a quintessential gothic work that explores the darker edges of human longing and the consequences of giving in to temptation. This poem offers a chilling yet beautiful reflection on the perils of the unknown. 

I’ve selected a short excerpt (lines 27–54)

“……….

Morning and evening

Maids heard the goblins cry:

“Come buy our orchard fruits,

Come buy, come buy:

Apples and quinces,

Lemons and oranges,

Plump unpeck’d cherries,

Melons and raspberries,

Bloom-down-cheek’d peaches,

Swart-headed mulberries,

Wild free-born cranberries,

Crab-apples, dewberries,

Pine-apples, blackberries,

Apricots, strawberries;—

All ripe together

In summer weather,—

Morns that pass by,

Fair eves that fly;

Come buy, come buy:

Our grapes fresh from the vine,

Pomegranates full and fine,

Dates and sharp bullaces,

Rare pears and greengages,

Damsons and bilberries,

Taste them and try:

Currants and gooseberries,

Bright-fire-like barberries,

Figs to fill your mouth,

Citrons from the South,

Sweet to tongue and sound to eye;

Come buy, come buy.”

Complete text of Goblin Market is available on the Poetry Foundation website, a trusted resource for classic & contemporary poetry. You can find it at:  https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44996/goblin-market 

Book: The Complete Poems of Christina Rossetti, edited by R.W. Crump (Louisiana State University Press, 1979–1990)