Student Question
How does "Good Friday" explore the idea of sacrifice?
Quick answer:
In "Good Friday," Christina Rossetti addresses sacrifice in several ways. Her poem suggests that sacrifices are not always initially felt by everyone. A person might not understand the sacrifice right away, so more work will be required. She also touches on how the reactions of other people influence our own reactions to a sacrifice. If we're not as emotional as other people, are we bad? What is the correct way to respond to sacrifice? Is there one?
In "Good Friday," Christina Rossetti addresses the idea of sacrifice in a number of angles, so let's try and discuss some of the most interesting ones.
The poem starts with the speaking standing beneath Christ's cross. The speaker wonders: "Am I stone, and not a sheep?" The speaker asks themselves this because they do not not "weep."
One idea about sacrifice in the poem is that the person undergoing the sacrifice may not always impact everyone that that the sacrifice is intended for. Christ is on the cross, sacrificing himself for the speaker, and the speaker, who's right "beneath Thy cross" is as unfeeling as a "stone."
The speaker then compares her lack of feeling to the emotion of other women "who with exceeding grief lamented Thee." Indeed, even a "thief" is demonstrating more feeling than the speaker.
In the third stanza, the speaker continues to contrast their own impassivity...
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with the "Sun and Moon." Yes, even the Sun and the Moon "hid their faces" out of respect for Christ.
In the final stanza, the speaker implores Christ to continue to try and reach them.
Yet give not o’er
But seek Thy sheep, true Shepherd of the flock.
Though Christ's sacrifice hasn't appeared to reach the speaker yet, the speaker asks Christ to not give up and to persist in trying to get them to feel something.
Another idea about sacrifice in the poem is that it's an ongoing process. It's not something you do once and then it's over: It is an act that must continue.
A third way that this poem thinks through sacrifice is the feeling of obligation it instills in the viewers witnessing the sacrifice. We might ask why the speaker puts so much pressure on themselves to feel moved and touched by the sacrifice. Also, how do the feelings of others influence the speaker?
It might be helpful to think about what this poem would look like today. What if you were watching someone do something that might be defined as a "sacrifice"? What if a multitude of other people were praising this person and you just felt nothing? Should you feel bad for not appreciating this person's sacrifice? Should you adopt the feelings of the majority to fit in?
Though Rossetti's poem is only 16 lines long, it seems to raise a lot of thought-provoking questions about sacrifice, doesn't it?