Goblin Market

The title poem of Christina Rossetti’s first commercially published collection of poetry, Goblin Market and Other Poems (Macmillan, 1862), “Goblin Market” has always delighted, perplexed, and inspired readers. A poetic fairytale expressed in deceptively simple form, and imbued with Pre-Raphaelite sensuality and spiritual symbolism, “Goblin Market” met its first public with two... more

The Harlot's House

Oscar Wilde

"The Harlot's House" (1885; 1904) suggests why Oscar Wilde came to embody Victorian decadence and aestheticism, not just for his time and place but globally and ever since. This relatively early poem contains many of the aesthetic, political, and philosophical complexities that have come to characterize Wilde and the fin de siècle. This edition of "The Harlot's House" brings together some of the... more

Heart of Darkness

Joseph Conrad

Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, first published serially in 1899 and then in book form in 1902, explores with unparalleled intensity the enormity of European imperialism in Africa. A prescient instance of what would become the literary movement known as modernism, the novella also experiments with frame narration and features a complex, highly figurative style. This edition of Heart of... more

A Mystery in Scarlet

Robert Louis Stevenson

Robert Louis Stevenson wrote rhapsodically about his favorite penny dreadful, A Mystery in Scarlet (1866), by "Malcolm J. Errym," the pseudonym of "Sweeney Todd" creator and working-class London radical James Malcolm Rymer (1814-84), whom Stevenson considered a "genuine influence." Illustrated by the celebrated Hablot K.

The Were-Wolf

Clemence Housman

Clemence Housman invented her gothic story to entertain the women in her wood-engraving class in London in 1884. She first published "The Were-Wolf" in the 1890 Christmas number of Atalanta, where it was illustrated by Everard Hopkins.

About COVE

COVE is The Central Online Victorian Educator, a scholar-driven open-access platform that publishes peer-reviewed Victorian material. It is maintained and supported by NAVSA, BAVSA, AVSA and a number of independent institutions. Although all peer-reviewed material is open access, we charge a modest amount for use of our tools and the creation of non-peer-reviewed material. If you are interested in getting involved or in supporting the project financially, please contact General Editor Dino Franco Felluga.