Commonplace

by Christina Rossetti, Andrew Motion (Foreword)

This is a delightful novella of love, matrimony, and sisterhood firmly in the tradition of Jane Austen, and displaying all the imaginative flair and linguistic prowess that distinguish Christina Rossetti's best-loved verse. When William Charlmont is lost at sea, his devoted wife lies dying in childbirth and charges Catherine, their eldest daughter, to await his return. Years later, and now in her thirties, Catherine remains faithful to her promise, resigning herself to a life of spinsterhood. Her two sisters, however, are under no such obligation, and while Lucy loves and loses from afar, the carefree Jane resolves to make a prosperous marriage and become a lady of fortune. Commonplace is a charmingly witty tale of the tortuous path a girl must take to secure a suitable match. One of the most important of the Victorian women poets, and a member of the Pre-Raphaelite movement, Christina Rossetti is best known as the author of Goblin Market and Other Poems.

Genres: Fiction, Classics, Short Stories, 19th Century, Victorian

112 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1870

About the author

Christina Georgina Rossetti, sister of Dante Gabriel Rossetti, wrote lyrical religious works and ballads, such as "Up-hill" (1861).

Frances Polidori Rossetti bore this most important women poet writing in nineteenth-century England to Gabriele Rossetti. Despite her fundamentally religious temperament, closer to that of her mother, this youngest member of a remarkable family of poets, artists, and critics inherited many of her artistic tendencies from her father.

Dante made seemingly quite attractive if not beautiful but somewhat idealized sketches of Christina as a teenager. In 1848, James Collinson, one of the minor pre-Raphaelite brethren, engaged her but reverted to Roman Catholicism and afterward ended the engagement.

When failing health and eyesight forced the professor into retirement in 1853, Christina and her mother started a day school, attempting to support the family, but after a year or so, gave it away. Thereafter, a recurring illness, diagnosed as sometimes angina and sometimes tuberculosis, interrupted a very retiring life that she led. From the early 1860s, she in love with Charles Cayley, but according to her brother William, refused to marry him because "she enquired into his creed and found he was not a Christian." Milk-and-water Anglicanism was not to her taste. Lona Mosk Packer argues that her poems conceal a love for the painter William Bell Scott, but there is no other evidence for this theory, and the most respected scholar of the Pre-Raphaelite movement disputes the dates on which Packer thinks some of the more revealing poems were written.

All three Rossetti women, at first devout members of the evangelical branch of the Church of England, were drawn toward the Tractarians in the 1840s. They nevertheless retained their evangelical seriousness: Maria eventually became an Anglican nun, and Christina's religious scruples remind one of Dorothea Brooke in George Eliot's Middlemarch : as Eliot's heroine looked forward to giving up riding because she enjoyed it so much, so Christina gave up chess because she found she enjoyed winning; pasted paper strips over the antireligious parts of Swinburne's Atalanta in Calydon (which allowed her to enjoy the poem very much); objected to nudity in painting, especially if the artist was a woman; and refused even to go see Wagner's Parsifal, because it celebrated a pagan mythology.

After rejecting Cayley in 1866, according one biographer, Christina (like many Victorian spinsters) lived vicariously in the lives of other people. Although pretty much a stay-at-home, her circle included her brothers' friends, like Whistler, Swinburne, F.M. Brown, and Charles Dodgson (Lewis Carroll). She continued to write and in the 1870s to work for the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. She was troubled physically by neuralgia and emotionally by Dante's breakdown in 1872. The last 12 years of her life, after his death in 1882, were quiet ones. She died of cancer.

Reviews

[Jan-Maat]

I came upon this volume in the library with some mild excitement, firstly it was very slim, secondly although I recognised Rossetti by name and and knew she was a poet, I did not know that she had ever written prose, so I succumbed to curiosity - since I was not killed, this establishes that I am not a cat. Well, how can I put this, these stories are no lost or unjustly neglected treasures, rather mid-Victorian pieces more or less religious, with the odd splash of something else, like a dash of Worcestershire Sauce.

The stories in this collection are:
Commonplace
a tale of money and marriage or sex and shillings: a story of three sisters, the ending the best point - I don't mean that in the sense of good riddance but the atmosphere around the eldest sister defines and concentrates resignation in an impressive way. Inescapable conclusion is that the author knew that feeling.
I noted
the geography, the sisters live out in a remote place, London as exchange point where one can meet people - particularly potential husbands.
pretensions and pretence
eating mutton is good for the complexion of women of about the age of thirty dare I guess it was a favourite of Rossetti's?



The Lost Titian
Period piece. Venetian setting.

Vanna's Twins
Italian flavour - specifically Neapolitan (but not from Naples), no ice cream though, just Mid-Victorian woe.

Pros and Cons
Mid-Victorian religious wit. God save me.

The Waves of this Troublesome World
The brunt of the story is the author beating the reader heavily with the parable of the Good Shepherd, my back and shoulders ache and I doubt if even any of the remaining deeply committed Anglicans will be hugely impressed with seriously this is a spoiler the slow rescue of a Methodist back to the one true Church established to allow Henry VIII to marry who he would , aside from that the setting of mid-Victorian poverty in Hastings makes the story almost a God-Mother to The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, just too much of the old opium of the people for my taste.

[Axl Oswaldo · Rating 5 out of 5]

[4.5/5]

“Abrió la ventana a las maravillosas estrellas y a la luna de agosto y, asomándose, aspiró una honda bocanada del aire fresco de la noche. Dejó de pensar en personas, aconteci- mientos y sentimientos; con el corazón henchido y exaltado con una gratitud nueva en ella, profunda, transportadora.”

Estoy más que encantado con esta pequeña novela.
La historia de las hermanas Charlmont contada en apenas unas 90 páginas aproximadamente me ha parecido muy bella y acogedora, además de que me llevo una buena impresión de la manera de escribir de Christina Rossetti, tan detallada pero yendo siempre al grano, quien por otra parte es mejor conocida por su poesía (que sí o sí debo leer en algún momento).

Algo más que me gustaría añadir sobre Lugares comunes es que se siente como una novela de Jane Austen, o al menos guarda un cierto parecido con sus obras, lo que me hace pensar en la posible influencia de Austen en la novela de Rossetti. Sea como fuere, es un total acierto para mí y la recomiendo mucho.

[Krista · Rating 4 out of 5]

Η Ροσέτι, Βικτωριανή συγγραφέας και αδελφή του Προραφαηλίτη ζωγράφου Ντάντε Γκαμπριέλ, στις Κοινοτοπίες παρουσιάζει τους "κοινούς τόπους" για μια αστή γυναίκα της εποχής της, που δεν ήταν άλλοι από την ανιδιοτελή αφιέρωση στην οικογένεια, τον ανεκπλήρωτο έρωτα και τον γάμο από συμφέρον. Η πραγματικότητα ήταν πολύ πιο σκληρή για τις γυναίκες πιο χαμηλών στρωμάτων αλλά αυτά τα γράφει καλύτερα ο Ντίκενς και ο Ουγκώ. Το έργο είναι σύντομο αλλά ευχάριστο και η μετάφραση καλή.
Άραγε υπάρχουν όντως σημεία στο κείμενο που αποτελούν ψήγματα μοντερνιστικής γραφής ή πρόκειται για απειρία της Ροσέτι? Τείνω να πιστεύω το πρώτο.

[Bethany · Rating 3 out of 5]

Though I could agree with the introduction’s criticism of the story, I did enjoy Commonplace! I didn’t realize until it ended that this volume does contain some short stories, as well. I only found one of them interesting (Vanna’s Twins) and it was so sad!

[Manuel Alfonseca · Rating 3 out of 5]

ENGLISH: Simple short story by Dante Gabriel Rosetti's sister, best known for her poems, of which I like especially "Song," "A birthday," and "Remember."

This novel has been compared with those of Jane Austen (especially "Pride and Prejudice"), because it deals with three sisters and the marriages of the two youngest. They even have similar names: Catherine (Kitty), Lucy (Lizzy) and Jane, and the younger sister is the first one to get married. But in my opinion the resemblance does not go much further. Mr. Darcy, for instance, isn't there at all.

ESPAÑOL: Sencilla novela corta de la hermana de Dante Gabriel Rosetti, más conocida por sus poemas, de los que algunos me gustan mucho, especialmente "Song", "A birthday", y "Remember".

Se ha comparado esta novela con las de Jane Austen (especialmente "Orgullo y Prejuicio"), porque trata sobre tres hermanas y los matrimonios de las dos más jóvenes. Incluso tienen nombres parecidos: Catherine (Kitty), Lucy (Lizzy) y Jane, y la hermana menor es la primera que se casa. Pero en mi opinión el parecido no va mucho más allá. El señor Darcy, por ejemplo, brilla por su ausencia.

[leni_hermanni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Commonplace people, commonplace minds, tedious activities... Yet all indicative of an era and distinctive attributes of unavoidable societal functions. I like the tale of the three sisters (although the youngest is obnoxious) and the description of the variety of familial bonds that can be formed according to every member's personality, which is why this short story remains relatable.

[Ralph Dratman]

I'm on page 44 of the volume Commonplace and Other Stories.

I like the texture of the story Commonplace. It reminds me of Jane Austen, but this narrator's relation to the reader feels more casual, less formal. As a long-time enthusiast for Goblin Market, I am hoping to learn more about Christina Rossetti's view of her own world and its inhabitants. Commonplace seems to have just a hint of Goblin Market's magical environment, with its two mysterious sisters who live in a special world all their own. So far I am enjoying it very much.

[Katherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mixed bag. I enjoyed Commonplace, even though it doesn't have much tension--you could see a lot of Austen's influence, and the prose was really biting and clever. "The Lost Titian" was a big departure, and reminded me oddly of "The Cask of Amontillado," but I kind of enjoyed it. The last three stories, though, got progressively more cloying and sanctimonious, and overall I think the book as a whole is a letdown after the first story. Still interesting to read more Rossetti, as I had only read "Goblin Market" before this.

[Tyrannosaurus regina · Rating 2 out of 5]

What are going to stay with me from this collection of short pieces are a few astute observations, some nice turns of phrase, and the emotional impact of "Vanna's Twins". Otherwise, the construction of the stories themselves felt quite weak, and it was too overtly religious for my taste. It turns out I am a much bigger fan of Christina Rossetti's poetry than her prose.

[Anna Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this novelette and collection of short stories. I've only ever read her poem "Goblin Market" so far, so this work was quite different, focusing on themes on religiosity and love.... but I really enjoyed it. A very nice collection.

[Carm9n · Rating 3 out of 5]

Here my impressions...
http://carmenyamigos.blogspot.com.es/...

[Lectora Cualquiera · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hay que ser muy talentosa para, en apenas 90 páginas, crear personajes tan bien desarrollados y una historia tan bien planteada. Es el caso de Christina Rossetti. Las tres hermanas Charlmont, Jane, Catherine y Lucy, representan tres personalidades muy distintas. Especialmente enternecedora resulta Lucy, tímida, insegura y, a la vez, fuerte. Catherine, la mayor, con esa carga impuesta por su madre siendo ella apenas una niña; y Jane, frívola...y divertida. En medio, desengaños amorosos, bodas por conveniencia, amor fraternal y segundas oportunidades. Todo lo que se le puede pedir a una buena novela victoriana💜.

[Colette Coen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do love Rossetti's poetry but I found the novella and short stories haven't travelled well through the centuries. The novella, in particular, is more tell don't show, but a couple of the stories were very poignant.

[Fátima · Rating 3 out of 5]

La novela pequeñita es increíble, la disfrute mucho. Tiene una prosa muy bella también y las 3 hermanitas son lindas cada una a su modo. Si solo hubiera leído la novela le pongo 5 estrellas pero los relatos le restan al libro.

Algunas historias son muy de catecismo y tiene el mismo argumento para dos de ellas, eso me pareció poco creativo. Mi cuento favorito fue Hero pero porque es muy extraño.

Me gustaría leer más de Christina, definitivamente.

[Sara Pernas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Novela corta muy austeniana pero con el tono pesimista/conformista, y sin duda más realista con la posición y expectativas de las mujeres, más propia de autoras posteriores.

[Lau · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lamentablemente no he logrado conectar con el estilo de la autora. me recordó un poco a Jane Austen pero peor, y no me ha gustado. no digo que sea mal libro pero no es para mí

[Miss lecturas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Una pequeña novela escrita por Christina Rossetti, más conocida por su aporte a la poesía; es la historia de tres hermanas y su afán por conseguir un matrimonio provechoso.
Jane se casará por interés con un rico viudo, el cual tiene una hija. Es el claro ejemplo de un compromiso sin amor. Sin embargo, su hermana Lucy sí logra casarse con el hombre al que ama. La última de las hermanas, Catherine, decide ser una mujer soltera.
Me ha faltado un desarrollo de personajes, todo sucede de forma muy precipitada en pocas páginas. No me ha convencido la narrativa de la autora, que pretende asemejarse al estilo de Austen pero sin ningún tipo de ironía ni sentido del humor, centrándose en cómo era la vida de las mujeres en el S.XIX y su preocupación por el matrimonio.
No logras conocer ni empatizar con los personajes, ya que todo sucede atropelladamente.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ingen recension.

[Boris Abi · Rating 1 out of 5]

so Damn boring. Ugh.