I’ve recently taken to reading more in my spare time. While the children are away at school and my husband gone to work, I must have something to keep my mind busy. I’ve just finished reading a few chapters of the novel Aurora Leigh. I chose it because I always enjoy a good romance, and the fact that Aurora is such a self-determining character makes me envy her. This particular quote reminded me so much of my younger self. I had led a virtuous life until the goblins appeared, and then everything changed. Until then, I lived life unknowing that the experiences that awaited me were even a possibility. Perhaps I can blame my innocence, but I still feel as if there was something greater that sheltered me from reality. It was as if the world had known that once I got a glimpse of that fruit, there could be no other desire as intense. Lizzie, being the protective sister she is, tried her hardest to keep me from the market with pleading and worrisome tales. Unlike me, she was missing out on the pleasure that the fruit could bring, and as Barrett Browning writes, “but that, she had not lived enough to know.” I’ve always been the more adventurous one, while Lizzie remains a caged bird. There is a sort of haunting beauty that comes with loss of innocence, as I know firsthand. Although I am content with my quiet life now, I wonder what could have been had I never heard of the Goblin Market. Would I be completely satisfied to live a simple life? Or is that truly “not life at all"?
Editorial Commentary: The novel Aurora Leigh is an epic poem written by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, which was published in 1856. The first book follows the story of young, orphaned Aurora as she grows up under the guidance of her aunt. Aurora faces pressure from her aunt to learn ladylike manners and fit into the ideal image of a proper Victorian girl; however, Aurora’s love of books soon enlightens her to wish for more out of her life. Aurora dreams of becoming an author, despite the fact that it is a challenging path for a woman to take. Thus, Aurora represents the beginning of the “New Woman,” a term that was later popularized in the 1890s. The new woman is often characterized by her rejection of societal norms, such as obtaining a postsecondary education and demonstrating sexual autonomy. The movement surrounding the new woman was largely brought about by a dissatisfaction with the restraints that Victorian society imposed upon women. This is the same dissatisfaction that Laura feels toward the beginning of Goblin Market, as she must withhold her desires in order to maintain a pure image. Both Aurora Leigh and Laura eventually value their own wishes over the expectations placed upon them, as Aurora pursues writing and Laura ventures to the Goblin Market. The quote from the novel expresses Laura’s feelings that living a life restrained from temptation “was not life at all,” and she goes on to experiment with sexuality in a traditionally taboo way. While both women experiment with gender and sexuality in different ways, they both share a sense of autonomy that is a pivotal point in their development.
Citations:
Browning, Elizabeth Barrett. Aurora Leigh. United States, Society of English and French Literature, 1900.
Picture of the Cover of Aurora Leigh. University of Wisconsin-Madison Library, search.library.wisc.edu/digital/ADUL6YPNIHD3OT9C/ANKQ6WWANI24ZC9B.