#this book by jan marsh is so insightful. it's truly flipping a lot of my expectations and previous assumptions | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

britneyshakespeare · 2 years

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It seems hard to me when I look at her sometimes, and think how many without one tithe of her genius or greatness of spirit have granted them abundant health and opportunity to labour through the little they can do or will do, while perhaps her soul is never to bloom nor her bright hair to fade, but after hardly escaping from degradation and corruption, all she might have been must sink out again unprofitably in that dark house where she was born. How truly she may say, 'No man may care for my soul.' I do not mean to make myself an exception, for how long I have known her, and not thought of this till so late—perhaps too late. But it is no use writing more about this subject; and I fear, too, my writing at all about it must prevent your easily believing it to be, as it is, by far the nearest thing to my own heart.

Dante Gabriel Rossetti writing of Lizzie Siddal's health in a letter dated 23 July, 1854

#european date orientation even tho it feels unnatural to my american brain #quotes #pre raphaelite #dante gabriel rossetti #rossetti #lizzie siddal #elizabeth siddal #elizabeth eleanor siddall #he really did admire her. not just the vague and vain concept of 'love' but he truly respected and appreciated her.#as much as a young victorian man could anyway......#this book by jan marsh is so insightful. it's truly flipping a lot of my expectations and previous assumptions #i didn't realize how deeply he cared for her in all the years they were just courting. ppl made it sound like he encouraged her only a bit #in her artistic pursuits but he gave her all the credit and praise for everything.#lizzie could make one stroke on a canvas and he'd start crying #i think ppl confuse his later lurid affairs as a widower w him being a playboy in his 20s. which doesn't appear to be the case.#i remember reading somewhere years ago that there was no evidence he committed adultery in their (albeit short) marriage but ppl assume #based on what they know about him. but he and lizzie were still very young when she died and he was much more bright-eyed and bushytailed #it seems in her very early adulthood.#didn't yeats also lose his virginity when he was like 40??? and he of course got around w a lot of women once he did.#ppl always make assumptions of what historical figures must've been like based on their modern assumptions of how ppl behave #jan marsh is smashing my entire schema of dgr as a young man and im kinda here for it #the girlies are gagging for guggums

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