Sister Maude & Brothers Comparison

In ‘Sister Maude’ Rossetti presents a sister addressing a much hated sister on the role she had in her lover’s death. The speaker has an attitude of hatred and attacks her sister, with blunt accusations. The repeated rhetorical questions of ‘Who told my mother of my shame, who told my father of my dear?’ are very direct and create a tone full of anger and bitterness. . The monosyllables in the words make the attack sharp and cutting. By putting these as the first line, it suggests that the speaker is caught up in her bitter need for revenge and can think of nothing else. The direct address appears almost to address the reader themselves as if they are the sister, and adds a maniac quality to the speaker in this dramatic monologue. Ironically, the bitter rage of the speaker leads us to see her almost as a madwoman. There is no sympathy in our reaction to her. As a Christian, perhaps Rossetti wishes to reveal the danger of selfish love.

Similarly, in ‘Brothers’, the speaker begins with powerful verbs that suggests he is unhappy with his brother’s constant presence. The first word is ‘saddled’ with him, suggesting that he does not want to be with him, and creating the image that he feels weighed down. Furthermore, verbs like ‘skipped’ and ‘spouted’ appear to patronise his brother as childish and irritating. The tone, is much more reflective and the free verse makes the speaker appear reflective, as if the speaker is confiding with the brother now they are older. However, it is the speaker’s attitude as a child which ultimately appears the more childish. The focus on ages, ‘that I was nine and he was ten’ highlights how little the speaker truly knows and is quite humorous for us to read. Perhaps Forster is commenting, through his autobiographical poem, on how we are often make decisions as children that often have far reaching consequences.