This paper is about the symbolism of the enclosed garden in Pre-Raphaelite works.
When the Pre-Raphaelites first appeared in 1849, their shared concern was the opposition against the Royal Academy of Arts and their promotion of idealized subjects and conventional forms of beauty based on Renaissance artists such as Raphael and Michelangelo.
They aimed to depict nature accurately, which not only meant a break with the aesthetic conventions of their time, but also an unflinching visual scrutiny of social realities. Many of their paintings explored social topics in Victorian Britain, such as the social class system, poverty, working conditions, emigration, and women's role in society.
The latter, in particular, was an essential theme in the works of the Pre-Raphaelites. While women were seen as second-class citizens in Victorian society, physically and intellectually subordinate to men, the Pre-Raphaelites put women and their experiences and struggles in the centre of their work. By using very often a medieval setting, the artists were able to highlight social issues such as adultery and prostitution, in which women mainly were disadvantaged, and underpin the notion that the present era was morally in decline.
Pre-Raphaelite artists like William Holman Hunt and Christina Rossetti use this balance between the archaic and the modern to further draw attention to the situation of women in Victorian society in general.
This paper examines how, alluding to the Garden of Eden, Pre-Raphaelite artists used the enclosed garden as a setting to criticize Victorian gender ideology and to create new representations of women.
Using selected works of William Holman Hunt and Christina Rossetti, I deconstruct the concept of the "fallen woman" as a threat to society, while John Everett Millais' painting "Autumn Leaves" sheds light on the restrictive role of Victorian women in general.
To conclude, the author shows how Christina Rossetti's poem "Shut out" help to shape new identities for Victorian women that go beyond the passive role of a victim in a patriarchal society.
First, however, the following section shows how the Garden of Eden not only had a strong influence on the Pre-Raphaelites but also on the role of women and men in Victorian society.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Garden of Eden as the basis for Victorian Gender Ideology
3. "The Fallen Woman"
3.1. "The Awakening Conscience"
3.2. "An Apple Gathering"
4. Restricted Gender Roles
4.1. "Autumn Leaves"
5. The "Rising" Woman: New Representations of Women
5.1. "Shut Out"
6. Conclusion
7. References
Research Objectives and Themes
This thesis examines how Pre-Raphaelite artists utilized the biblical allusion of the "enclosed garden" to critique Victorian gender ideologies and to construct alternative representations of women that transcend the binary opposition of the "Angel of the House" versus the "fallen woman."
- Analysis of the Garden of Eden as the foundational archetype for Victorian gender roles
- Deconstruction of the "fallen woman" narrative in Pre-Raphaelite visual and literary art
- Examination of the institutionalized restrictions placed upon Victorian women
- Exploration of new female identities that break away from passive, patriarchal victimhood
- Critique of Victorian economic and social inequality through close readings of specific artworks and poems
Excerpt from the Book
3.1. "The Awakening Conscience"
In his painting "The Awakening Conscience" (1853-54), William Holman Hunt dissolves the woman's role as a temptress and the man as her victim, as adopted from Adam and Eve, and exposes the double standard in Victorian society. His work shows a young woman rising suddenly from a man's lap while gazing at the summer garden outside the window. Their physical closeness and the fact that she is partially undressed indicate that they are lovers. The absence of a wedding ring on her ring finger identifies her as a "fallen woman" due to an intimate extramarital relationship.
However, the painting does not depict her as the instigator of this so-called immoral behaviour but rather as a victim of a male-dominated society. For one thing, this is illustrated by the man's glove on the floor. In the 19th century, gloves played a significant role as an indicator of social status and a way of communication, especially between men and women; for a man leaving both gloves on "situated the encounter within the bounds of formality and not the realm of the intimate" (Vincent 195). Thus, by depicting the man keeping one glove on while he has carelessly discarded the other one, Hunt points to the man as the one who instigates this inappropriate relationship due to his unwillingness to commit to her fully. His physical attitude towards her as well emphasizes his power over her. His arms are wrapped around her, which presents her quite literally as a kept woman. However, the most significant depiction of the power relations between the man and the woman in the painting can be seen in the image of the cat and the bird under the table. The wounded bird trying to flee from the cat's claws is a blunt representation of the "fallen woman" in the painting trying to escape from her lover's hold and her life as a social outcast. Hunt offers an alternative narrative to the women as a temptress of men and person responsible for the expulsion from paradise by presenting the man as the source of the woman's misfortune.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: Presents the historical context of the Pre-Raphaelites and defines the thesis’s aim to explore the "enclosed garden" as a setting for criticizing Victorian gender ideology.
2. Garden of Eden as the basis for Victorian Gender Ideology: Explores how the biblical story of the Fall shaped the binary classification of women as either virtuous "Angels" or ostracized "fallen women."
3. "The Fallen Woman": Investigates the representation of the "fallen woman" through William Holman Hunt’s painting and Christina Rossetti’s poetry, highlighting the double standards of Victorian morality.
4. Restricted Gender Roles: Analyzes the themes of transience, sin, and social exclusion in John Everett Millais's "Autumn Leaves," emphasizing the entrapment of all women in Victorian society.
5. The "Rising" Woman: New Representations of Women: Discusses the emergence of more autonomous female figures in art, particularly analyzing Rossetti’s "Shut Out" as a critique of patriarchal barriers.
6. Conclusion: Summarizes how Pre-Raphaelite artists successfully used symbolic gardening imagery to challenge rigid gender norms and change societal perceptions of women.
7. References: Compiles the comprehensive list of primary and secondary sources utilized in the research.
Key Terms
Pre-Raphaelites, Victorian Gender Ideology, Enclosed Garden, Fallen Woman, Angel of the House, Christina Rossetti, William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais, Patriarchy, Social Ostracism, Biblical Symbolism, Gender Roles, Victorian Hypocrisy, Female Agency, Moral Superiority
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this publication?
The work explores how Victorian Pre-Raphaelite artists and poets used the "enclosed garden" archetype—derived from the Garden of Eden—to critique the restrictive gender roles and binary representations of women prevalent in 19th-century Britain.
What are the primary thematic areas explored?
The central themes include the categorization of women as "angels" or "fallen," the social and legal subordination of women, religious hypocrisy, and the struggle for female autonomy.
What is the primary research objective?
The objective is to reveal how Pre-Raphaelite art and poetry provided an alternative, critical narrative that challenged the Victorian status quo and advocated for, or at least highlighted, the need for gender equality.
Which scientific methods are applied in this work?
The author employs qualitative literary and art-historical analysis, conducting close readings of specific poems and paintings while linking them to historical gender studies and religious (biblical) interpretations.
What does the main body of the text analyze?
The main body examines canonical Pre-Raphaelite works (such as "The Awakening Conscience," "An Apple Gathering," "Autumn Leaves," and "Shut Out") to dissect how they mirror, reflect, or subvert the patriarchal constructs of the era.
Which keywords best describe this research?
The research is best characterized by terms such as Pre-Raphaelite symbolism, Victorian gender ideology, biblical tropes in literature, and feminist art history.
How does the author interpret the symbol of the cat and the bird in Hunt's work?
The author interprets this imagery as a blunt representation of the "fallen woman" struggling against the predatory nature of the male-dominated society, refusing to portray the man as an innocent victim.
What role does the "iron bars" imagery play in Rossetti’s "Shut Out"?
The author argues that the "iron bars" symbolize the feeling of imprisonment and the physical/social entrapment women experienced when they were excluded from the benefits of full participation in Victorian society.
Does the work suggest that the Pre-Raphaelites succeeded in changing societal views?
The author concludes that while the artists primarily aimed to transform the art world, their realistic and empathetic depictions of women contributed significantly to shifting the broader societal perception of the female condition.
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- Sara Hille (Autor:in), 2020, The symbolism of the enclosed garden in Pre-Raphaelite works, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1254004
