NationStates Jolt Archive

A little survey: what do you think the subject of this poem is (who/what is being described)? (no fair looking it up on the web)

By day she woos me, soft, exceeding fair:
But all night as the moon so changeth she;
Loathsome and foul with hideous leprosy
And subtle serpents gliding in her hair.
By day she woos me to the outer air,
Ripe fruit, sweet flowers, and full satiety:
But through the night, a beast she grins at me,
A very monster void of love and prayer.
By day she stands a lie: by night she stands
In all the naked horror of the truth
With pushing horns and clawed and clutching hands.
Is this a friend indeed; that I should sell
My soul to her, give her my life and youth,
Till my feet, cloven too, take hold on hell?

~Christina Rossetti

Post-war Japan.

Post-war Japan.

Hmm ... post-war Japan is a little post-Christina Rossetti.

The Boer War?

Sounds like it's about a chick to me; and it's really starting to sound like the chick I've been seeing.

Sounds like it's about a chick to me; and it's really starting to sound like the chick I've been seeing.

:eek:

It's about sex. All Victorian poetry is about sex. They had to write about sex instead of having it because they wore so many clothes it took forever to get undressed and then, when they did, they were too tired to actually have sex.

There's no one who's worse at riddles than I am, so I'll pass.
It's about sex. All Victorian poetry is about sex. They had to write about sex instead of having it because they wore so many clothes it took forever to get undressed and then, when they did, they were too tired to actually have sex.
:p

I'm good at sigging stuff, though.

*sigs*

Christina Rossetti? Interesting. I actually would know of her brother Dante Gabriel much more seeing as I study art history.

Upon first glance the girl that the poet describes immediately put me in mind of Shrek (princess Fiona is cursed by night) but that's probably only because I saw it a few days ago! :p

Honestly? Perhaps the woman being described is a prostitute/unfaithful; but I think that it probably goes deeper than that. Or maybe the 'she' is really a thought or a temptation that seems to plague her at night? I'm not great at interpreting poetry, but those are my thoughts, anyway.

I hope that you're not getting help on an assignment...

I cheated...

She must be the archtypal emo. Jeez...

edit: actually. the first time I read it through I got a hint of what it might be related to, but couldn't be bothered to figure it out on my own.

A little survey: what do you think the subject of this poem is (who/what is being described)? (no fair looking it up on the web)

By day she woos me, soft, exceeding fair:
But all night as the moon so changeth she;
Loathsome and foul with hideous leprosy
And subtle serpents gliding in her hair.
By day she woos me to the outer air,
Ripe fruit, sweet flowers, and full satiety:
But through the night, a beast she grins at me,
A very monster void of love and prayer.
By day she stands a lie: by night she stands
In all the naked horror of the truth
With pushing horns and clawed and clutching hands.
Is this a friend indeed; that I should sell
My soul to her, give her my life and youth,
Till my feet, cloven too, take hold on hell?

~Christina Rossetti

First thought would be someone disenchanted with their arrival in the US, and the poem would be about the Statue of Liberty.

A generalised poem about the dichotomous nature of nature... an essay on a specific city.... I can think of a number of possibles. I'll go think about it.

A generalised poem about the dichotomous nature of nature...

I was going to go with that, too, but the whole lie and truth and sell my soul bits don't exactly fit into that.

I was going to go with that, too, but the whole lie and truth and sell my soul bits don't exactly fit into that.

Well, expanding on my thought a little... I think the 'nature' might be less a world nature... and more a 'wordly' nature.

I know nothing about the poet, so I don't know the political or religious leanings... but it could easily be about the way the 'love' of the daylight hours becomes the 'lust' of the nightlight hours.... a rejection of physicality, of the flesh? The 'nature' of the human creature?

A city? By day beautiful and filled with the colors and sounds of people going about their business, by night infested with crime, drugs and gangs?

I would say marriage. But that's just me.

A Succubus?
Or is it a metaphor, if so, I would go with some sort of war.

*unlurks*
I know what it's about. :p

Keep guessing y'all.

Its either about religion being a temptress or the lack of religion being one?? Or maybe the woman is just babbling.

i read up on it but im not convinced

i think its really about opium

Sounds like it's about a chick to me; and it's really starting to sound like the chick I've been seeing.
Haha! :D

That's not too far off (re the "seeing" bit)...

I made my guess and I'm done. If the answer isn't going to be posted soon then can you please TG me with it? Thanks.

isnt it time to fill us in on your interpretation of this poem?