Twice - "Refine with fire its gold..."

• In 'Twice', the quote "Refine with fire its gold, Purge Thou its dross away, Yea, hold it in Thy hold, Whence none can pluck it out", the use of Plosive Imperatives ("Purge" and "Pluck") create a sharp, forceful sound, reflecting the speaker’s intense emotional state - This sonic violence mirrors her desire for decisive divine action - cleansing and securing her soul with no hesitation - The plosives cut through the verse with urgency, emphasizing the gravity of her plea
• In 'Twice', the quote "Refine with fire its gold, Purge Thou its dross away, Yea, hold it in Thy hold, Whence none can pluck it out", the use of Plosive Imperatives ("Purge" and "Pluck") carry a sense of authority and finality, elevating the divine subject as one capable of definitive action - The words "Purge" and "Pluck" demand transformation and protection, establishing God’s omnipotence in contrast to the ineffectual human love depicted earlier - Their sonic weight reflects the speaker’s recognition of divine power as superior and absolute
• In 'Twice', the quote "Refine with fire its gold, Purge Thou its dross away, Yea, hold it in Thy hold, Whence none can pluck it out", the use of Plosive Imperatives ("Purge" and "Pluck") suggest not gentle refinement but violent removal - purification through fire, suffering, and force - These imperatives echo the idea that spiritual rebirth is not painless but must involve struggle and excision of sin or weakness - The plosives convey this harsh but necessary cleansing
• In 'Twice', the quote "Refine with fire its gold, Purge Thou its dross away, Yea, hold it in Thy hold, Whence none can pluck it out", the use of Plosive Imperatives ("Purge" and "Pluck") allows the speaker to release pent-up pain and desperation in a structured, almost liturgical way - "Purge" and "Pluck" become expressions of inner turmoil externalized through prayer, granting her a sense of clarity and control through powerful, deliberate language - This is the voice of a woman no longer pleading with man but declaring her worth before God
• In 'Twice', the quote "Refine with fire its gold, Purge Thou its dross away, Yea, hold it in Thy hold, Whence none can pluck it out", the use of Plosive Imperatives ("Purge" and "Pluck") and earlier in the poem, gentler imagery like "skylarks pipe" and "friendly smile" dominate; the plosive imperatives now mark a tonal and thematic shift - Where human love was soft and untrustworthy, divine engagement is sharp, clear, and transformative - The sound pattern change mirrors the speaker’s transition from passivity to spiritual determination
• In 'Twice', the quote "Refine with fire its gold, Purge Thou its dross away, Yea, hold it in Thy hold, Whence none can pluck it out", the use of Diacope ("Hold") intensifies the sense of divine protection and care, reinforcing the security the speaker now finds in God - This diacope stylistically mirrors the act of being held tightly - linguistically enclosing the heart within God’s grasp - It underscores the permanence and strength of divine love in contrast to the fragility of human affection
• In 'Twice', the quote "Refine with fire its gold, Purge Thou its dross away, Yea, hold it in Thy hold, Whence none can pluck it out", the use of Diacope ("Hold") affirms a spiritual belonging that transcends earthly claims - It suggests not only God’s ability to hold the heart, but His rightful ownership of it - echoing themes of surrender and salvation - The diacope thus conveys a devotional intimacy, with the heart resting fully in divine possession
• In 'Twice', the quote "Refine with fire its gold, Purge Thou its dross away, Yea, hold it in Thy hold, Whence none can pluck it out", the use of Diacope ("Hold") evokes both a physical and spiritual grasp, presenting God’s embrace as inescapable and deeply comforting - It draws attention to the act of being seized and secured, contrasting with the earlier human rejection - God’s "hold" becomes an eternal grasp - firm, unwavering, and redemptive - offering the speaker the safety and certainty she was denied before
• In 'Twice', the quote "Refine with fire its gold, Purge Thou its dross away, Yea, hold it in Thy hold, Whence none can pluck it out", the use of Diacope ("Hold") and Structurally, the diacope "hold... hold" encloses the line in a rhythmic frame, much like God’s protection encircles the speaker’s heart - This creates a sense of closure and containment, mimicking the spiritual peace the speaker longs for - The technique makes the line feel self-contained and resolved, mirroring the speaker’s newfound inner stability
• In 'Twice', the quote "Refine with fire its gold, Purge Thou its dross away, Yea, hold it in Thy hold, Whence none can pluck it out", the use of Diacope ("Hold") creates a rhythmic echo that mimics something fixed and unchanging, reinforcing the sense that once the speaker is in God's grasp, there is no turning back - This diacope suggests inevitability - not just of divine judgement, but of spiritual protection, as if her soul is now locked into its destined path - The line functions almost like a vow or divine seal, assuring the reader that God's embrace is permanent and cannot be undone
• In 'Twice', the quote "Refine with fire its gold, Purge Thou its dross away, Yea, hold it in Thy hold, Whence none can pluck it out", the use of Metaphor ("Refine with fire its gold") compares the speaker’s heart or soul to gold being refined through fire, evoking the image of suffering as a means of moral or spiritual purification - This aligns with Victorian religious ideals that associated pain with divine refinement, suggesting that only through intense trials can one be made worthy - Rossetti uses this metaphor to imply that the speaker’s love, once flawed, can be spiritually transformed
• In 'Twice', the quote "Refine with fire its gold, Purge Thou its dross away, Yea, hold it in Thy hold, Whence none can pluck it out", the use of Metaphor ("Refine with fire its gold") and Gold symbolises inner value or the soul’s worth, but fire is needed to reveal and purify it, suggesting that true virtue emerges only through ordeal - Rossetti implies that emotional suffering - especially through human rejection - has brought the speaker to a higher spiritual plane - Thus, divine refinement contrasts with human judgement, which sees only the "unripe" exterior
• In 'Twice', the quote "Refine with fire its gold, Purge Thou its dross away, Yea, hold it in Thy hold, Whence none can pluck it out", the use of Metaphor ("Refine with fire its gold") echoes the Biblical passage in Matthew 3:11, where Christ is prophesied to "baptize... with the Holy Spirit and fire" - The metaphor thus invokes spiritual rebirth through divine power, presenting God as the one who cleanses not just with water, but with purifying, illuminating fire - Rossetti may be aligning the speaker’s transformation with the sacred act of baptism, reinforcing her submission to divine judgement and grace
• In 'Twice', the quote "Refine with fire its gold, Purge Thou its dross away, Yea, hold it in Thy hold, Whence none can pluck it out", the use of Metaphor ("Refine with fire its gold") and where human love failed to see the speaker’s worth, God’s fire penetrates beyond the surface, purifying what man could not understand - The metaphor positions divine love as active, transformative, and intense, unlike the cold, evaluative gaze of the male figure earlier in the poem - In this way, fire functions as a redemptive contrast to earthly neglect
• In 'Twice', the quote "Refine with fire its gold, Purge Thou its dross away, Yea, hold it in Thy hold, Whence none can pluck it out", the use of Metaphor ("Refine with fire its gold") carries connotations of divine judgement, where fire is both terrifying and merciful - it destroys impurity but preserves what is true - Rossetti suggests that God’s fire will not consume the speaker, but refine her into something more spiritually whole - This duality reflects Victorian anxieties around salvation and damnation, captured in a single purifying image