In Rossetti’s frightening sonnet, “The World,” themes of physical worldly temptation and pleasures are explored alongside drawing a parallel to the beliefs of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. In the poem, the speaker encounters a deadly woman, who “woos [him] to the outer air [and tempts him with] ripe fruit, sweet flowers, and a full satiety”(Rossetti, 5-6). These material goods, including fruit, which can be an allusion to the tempting produce in Goblin Market, are symbols of material temptation. It can be assumed that if the speaker were to obtain these goods, he would “give her my life and youth [and become] a beast [with] pushing horns and clawed and clutching hands” (Rossetti, 13 ,7, 11). These ideas of temptation are reflective of the biblical story of Adam and Eve within the Garden of Eden. In the story, the characters are tempted into consuming fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and as a result, are corrupted by sin. This story’s influence can be seen within the sonnet, as the speaker character is being tempted into consuming goods that would corrupt his soul.
In a way, this poem is also reflective of the Pre- Raphaelite Brotherhood, how they viewed mechanized goods. According to the British Library, “were a loose and baggy collective of Victorian poets, painters, illustrators and designers” who, at the turn of an age of mass industrialization, wished to share a message of artistic renewal with their society. Many of their pieces are lavish with color, and are drawn and painted by hand. When reading the sonnet with this piece of knowledge, it could be considered that the poem reflects anxieties over the loss of handmade goods to a mechanized society. In falling to the temptation of using goods from this mass produced culture, it could be viewed as a form of “heresy” to the brotherhood, and as a result, was “corrupted.” The reason why this individual could be seen as “corrupted” in the eyes of the Brotherhood was because they sought after and acquired goods that were produced by machines, rather than humans. In a “World” that has been defiled by with mechanized goods, a member of this group would think that society was tainted with sin. Although this viewpoint could be seen as somewhat abstract, it is one of many ways one could read this terrifying sonnet.