Rossetti expert Jan Marsh visits Putney

By Ellie Bowen-Thomas, Year 13

On Wednesday 28 September, Year 12 and Year 13 English Literature students were lucky enough to have writer Jan Marsh come into Putney and deliver a speech about poet Christina Rossetti and her famous poem, ‘Promises Like Pie-Crust’. 

Jan Marsh is a British writer who specialises in the Victorian Period, with a particular focus on the Pre-Raphaelite era and William Morris. Jan has written 47 books, including excellent biographies on Christina and Dante Gabriel Rossetti. She is the self-proclaimed ‘biggest fan of Rossetti’ which was definitely evident through her extensive and captivating talk. In addition to this, Jan Marsh also curated an exhibition on the Pre-Raphaelites called ‘Pre-Raphaelite Sisters: Models, Artists, Muses’ for the National Portrait gallery. Despite all this knowledge, Jan actually admitted being reluctant to begin exploring the Pre-Raphaelites and Rossetti’s poetry. We were incredibly glad she found her passion in this topic, as the insight she offered proved invaluable and inspired us to explore Rossetti’s work further.

In the talk, Jan spoke in great detail of how Rossetti began her poetry journey, writing small poems at the age of 12, having them printed on her grandfather's private press and given to friends and family. Jan also highlighted Rossetti’s great devotion to High Anglicanism, explaining how Rossetti volunteered at St. Mary Magdalene House from 1859-1870. Jan elaborated on the underlying meanings of two of Rossetti’s poems, ‘Promises like Pie-Crust’ and what is considered to be Rossetti’s greatest work, ‘Goblin Market’ (influenced by the period of time spent at St. Mary Magdalene).

Jan explained how pie-crust is easy to break, alluding to Rossetti’s past relationships and how she experienced an inability to uphold promises of marriage with James Collinson and Charles Cayley. She also discussed how ‘Goblin Market’ is a moral tale with a warning against self-indulgence, emphasised by the verbal delights in the poem’s structure.

From hearing the expertise Jan had to share with us, we all gained a better understanding of Rossetti’s life and how Rossetti became the poet we all know today. To learn how deeply Rossetti’s personal life affected her poetry will enhance our own understanding as Year 13s continue to delve into Rossetti’s works.

Overall, it was a very insightful talk and I know all the Year 12 and Year 13 students greatly appreciated Jan taking the time to come to Putney to talk to us.