Context - Up-Hill

• 'Up-Hill' was published in Rossetti’s 1862 collection 'Goblin Market and Other Poems', which established her as a major Victorian poet - The poem reflects Victorian literary traditions of allegory and moral instruction, using a simple dialogue form to explore complex themes of mortality and the afterlife - Its meditative, accessible style appealed to a wide audience, especially in a period preoccupied with death and spiritual certainty
• Rossetti’s devout Anglican faith deeply influenced her writing, and 'Up-Hill' echoes Christian beliefs about life as a pilgrimage toward heaven - The poem reflects the Tractarian movement’s emphasis on personal suffering, divine grace, and eternal rest - Its final message of inclusion - “beds for all who come” - aligns with Rossetti’s vision of a merciful, forgiving God
• Written during the Victorian era, 'Up-Hill' engages with 19th-century concerns about death, doubt, and the afterlife, especially in the face of growing scientific inquiry - Victorians often turned to poetry for spiritual reassurance, and Rossetti’s work offered a comforting, structured response to existential uncertainty - The poem reflects societal anxieties while providing hope rooted in moral perseverance
• Though not officially a member, Rossetti was closely associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood through her brother Dante Gabriel Rossetti - The poem mirrors the Brotherhood’s values of spiritual depth, medievalism, and symbolic simplicity - Its focus on purity, inner struggle, and timeless moral truths aligns with Pre-Raphaelite ideals of beauty fused with meaning
• 'Up-Hill' by Christina Rossetti employs the Extended Metaphor of a journey to represent the trials of life and the promise of rest in death - Written in the mid-Victorian era, the poem reflects the period's preoccupation with morality, mortality, and spiritual certainty - Its question-and-answer format provides a meditative tone, offering reassurance in the face of existential doubt - The poem’s simplicity and allegorical depth made it widely accessible to Victorian readers seeking moral clarity