Despised and Rejected
Abandoned by friends, a speaker bolts the door and refuses a pleading visitor who speaks of bleeding feet, hands, and heart and offers grace. The voice persists until dawn; after the visitor departs, the speaker finds bloody footprints in the grass and a lasting blood mark on the door.
By Christina Georgina Rossetti · Genre: Christian Allegory, Narrative Poetry · 573 words
First lines
My sun has set, I dwell / In darkness as a dead man out of sight; / And none remains, not one, that I should tell / To him mine evil plight / This bitter night. / I will make fast my door / That hollow friends may trouble me no more.
"Friend, open to Me. " -- Who is this that calls? / Nay, I am deaf as are my walls: / Cease crying, for I will not hear / Thy cry of hope or fear. / Others were dear, / Others forsook me: what art thou indeed / That I should heed / Thy lamentable need? / Hungry should feed, / Or stranger lodge thee here?
Genres
- Christian Allegory — The visitor's bleeding hands and feet and offer of grace give the speaker's refusal to open the door a Christian spiritual meaning.
- Narrative Poetry — Rhymed verse and dialogue follow the speaker's refusal, the visitor's overnight pleading, and the discovery of blood after departure.
Tags
spiritual refusal · grace · abandonment · bleeding wounds · night vigil
What this Textopian page supports
Despised and Rejected is listed on Textopian as a poem by Christina Georgina Rossetti, dated Date unknown.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Poem
- Author: Christina Georgina Rossetti
- Date: Date unknown
- Language: English
- Genres: Christian Allegory, Narrative Poetry
- Length: 573 words
- Structure: 1 section, 7 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Very Easy (5th Grade or below)
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- Work identity for Despised and Rejected by Christina Georgina Rossetti
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