Hypnotic Melody in "Echo"

Known to early-20th century historians as a prominent Victorian feminist, Christina Rossetti actually lived a quiet, conservative life that was greatly affected by her staunch adherence to the doctrines of the Evangelical branch of the Church of England. Two separate engagements to be married were broken due to religious differences. Rossetti was not able to overcome these disagreements with any potential spouse; she was never married and lived as a recluse for the last fifteen years of her life. Perhaps because of these obstacles in the path of her romantic life, a major theme demonstrated in Rossetti’s poems is the longing for true, lasting love. From an early age, she also suffered from several severe health problems, including a mysterious disease, which was diagnosed sometimes as angina and sometimes as tuberculosis. She was eventually to die of cancer at age 64. It is possible to speculate that because of her health problems, Rossetti constantly felt that her death was imp...