Jessie Cameron by Christina Georgina Rossetti
Jessie Cameron rejects a neighbor’s son who persists in pleading with her on a beach as the tide rises. Neither returns home, and the whereabouts of their bodies remain unknown; the narrator cannot say whether he helped or hindered her at the end.
By Christina Georgina Rossetti · Genre: Ballad, Narrative Poetry · 1,199 words
First lines
"Jessie, Jessie Cameron, / Hear me but this once," quoth he. / "Good luck go with you, neighbor's son, / But I'm no mate for you," quoth she. / Day was verging toward the night / There beside the moaning sea, / Dimness overtook the light / There where the breakers be. / "O Jessie, Jessie Cameron, / I have loved you long and true. " -- / "Good luck go with you, neighbor's son, / But I'm no mate for you."
Genres
- Ballad — Rhymed stanzas, repeated refusals and direct dialogue tell of a rejected suitor and two deaths whose circumstances remain unknown.
- Narrative Poetry — The verse follows a confrontation on the beach through the rising tide, the pair’s disappearance and subsequent reports of strange sounds and glimpses.
Tags
ballad · unrequited love · rejected courtship · rising tide · disappearance · sea
What this Textopian page supports
Jessie Cameron 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: Ballad, Narrative Poetry
- Length: 1,199 words
- Structure: 1 section, 10 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for Jessie Cameron by Christina Georgina Rossetti
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
- Readability and classroom-planning context
- Passage-specific claims should cite the exact /read/ URL for the relevant chapter or paragraph