Explore the way Rossetti presents nature in her poems edition 1

Rossetti was a poet who used poems to express powerful matters because woman in the 19th century didn’t have a voice within society’s rules; this is shown through women not having the chance to vote. Throughout her poems, references towards nature were widely used to express her emotions and thoughts upon different subjects. Nature is an important factor within Rossetti’s poems as she’s able to use it to portray many different aspects. Rossetti also used nature to express her views on her religion and love towards god. This was subject was argued upon as many people felt Rossetti should praise and worship the spirit of god not the topic of nature. The poem ‘Shut Out’ is about how the speaker is blocked from all the things he/she loves due to sin. In my opinion, the garden symbolises the speaker’s imagination and childhood which he/she can’t engage with because the ‘shadowless sprit’ guards the gate. Within the line ‘A shadowless spirit kept the gate’ demonstrates how something is ceasing the speaker from entering, from a religious view the block may be the speaker’s sinful self. The use of a garden suggests that it’s a personal place for the speaker as is portrayed as their sanctuary. The garden is ‘pied with all flowers bedewed and green’ which creates the image of a beautiful, two coloured paradise. The verb ‘bedewed’ suggest the garden is fresh and youthful which highers the speakers desperation to enter the garden and encourages her to search for a way in. Another way nature shows the greatness of the garden is through the use of contrasting words within the second stanza. Through the line ‘From flower to flower the moths and bees;’ the feeling of protection is created as bees and flowers hold a relationship which easily fits together. Even though a flower and bees are simple within nature they create the process of pollination which suggests that Rossetti finds the simple factors of nature incredible. The poem ‘Shut Out’ also holds religious aspects due to the fact the speaker’s safe haven could link with the Garden of Eden. The religious garden was moulded as a paradise which held great things but also held the power of sin which a person should resist. Rossetti was interested in the Anglo-Catholic movement which implies her poem holds religious qualities through the use of nature. The speaker’s longing for their garden is expressed through the line ‘Let me have some buds to cheer my outcast state.’ The reference the ‘bud’ shows that the speaker will take the smallest aspect of nature from the garden as they know it will be the last time he/she will see the garden. It highlights the desperation the speaker has and creates a sense of determination when they’re turned away but speaks twice to convince the ‘guard’ to allow them access into the garden. I believe that the line ‘Buy one small twig from shrub or tree;’ shows how dedicated Rossetti was to overpower the stereotypical views on ‘silent women’ and state her opinion. The fact that the speaker spoke twice to ask for permission to enter the garden shows power and braveness even though the speaker was answered with a ‘No.’ Another reason nature is used within this line is because a ‘twig’ is a tiny part of nature and doesn’t really hold any importance compared to another aspect of nature such as a flower. The ‘twig’ may metaphorically represent the speaker’s emotions as it can be easily snapped and considered small and unnoticeable within the garden. The speaker is pleading for the twig as if they’re pleading to keep their emotions intact. Another Rossetti poem which uses nature to highlight the speaker’s emotions and views upon a silent sanctuary is ‘Song.’ This poem holds an important message which acts almost as the speaker’s last wish before they die. The use of nature within this poem allows the reader to relate death as a natural process which doesn’t need special services and remembrance through flowers and graves. This poem boldly expresses how Rossetti feels about the life after death through different aspects of nature. Nature is important within ‘Song’ as it acts a metaphor for the speaker’s feelings towards death. Within the line ‘Plant thou no roses at my head’ suggests that the speaker does not want cliché’s during their passing as an act of remembrance. The use of the ‘roses’ empathises how the speaker doesn’t need love and admiration when they are dead as they won’t be able to feel it or admire it. This message implies that nature just like life will develop and die and will not last forever. The act of planting roses seems pointless for the speaker because the petals will decay and rot. Another way Rossetti uses nature to highlight the point that nothing lasts forever is through the line ‘Nor shady cypress tree.’ The tree represents mourning and has a dismal effect upon the poem. The line translates into ‘No mourning’ this demonstrates how forceful Rossetti was about her views upon death which was a difficult topic to discuss being a woman in the 19th century. Although the first four lines of stanza one shows that the speaker doesn’t seem to care if they’re remembered or forgotten when they’ve died, the line ‘be the green grass above me’ suggests that they make feel insecure and scared that they may be forgotten. The image portrayed, is green grass above the grave which acts as a layer of protection for the speaker and gives insight of the speaker’s emotions. The adjective ‘green’ implies peace and calmness which creates a tranquil atmosphere for the poem. Within both poems, Rossetti uses nature to illuminate her thoughts and feelings of a powerful topic. Death and forgiveness of sin are portrayed as a subject which can be talked about and expressed by a woman through the power of nature. This is because nature is a simple part of life which our sense interact with daily.