UPHILL
1Does the
road wind up-hill all the way?
Yes, to the very end.
Will the day’s journey take the whole long day?
From morn to night,
my friend.
5But is
there for the night a resting-place?
A roof for when the
slow dark hours begin.
May not the darkness
hide it from my face?
You cannot miss that
inn.
Shall I meet other
wayfarers at night?
10Those
who have gone before.
Then must I knock, or
call when just in sight?
They will not keep
you standing at that door.
Shall I find comfort,
travel-sore and weak?
Of labour you shall
find the sum.
15Will there be beds for me and all who
seek? Yea, beds for all who come.
CONTEXT
Composed in 1858, and published in Macmillan’s Magazine in
1861, Uphill was included in the
devotional section of Goblin Market and
Other Poems. The magazine was one of the most significant literary journals
of the period – incredibly popular, and Rossetti’s publication was significant
in bringing her to the attention of a wider audience.
INTERPRETATION / ANALYSIS
Does the road wind up-hill all the way?
Yes,
to the very end.
Will the day’s journey take the whole long day? From morn to night, my
friend.
This poem, from the religious
section of Goblin Market and Other Poems,
starts with the question / answer format that runs through the whole piece – it
expresses doubt, and the speaker’s need to know what will happen to them in the
afterlife. While this can be read as a very simple exchange between two
characters, it seems more likely given its placement in the collection, that
this is a conversation between a persona and a religious figure – perhaps Jesus
or God themselves, or maybe a vicar or similar representative.
Symbolizing life as a journey is a
fairly well-worn path (excusing the pun!). Rossetti would have been familiar
with Pilgrim’s Progress by John
Bunyan, where the Christian has to plough their way through several cities and
trials on their way to heaven, the Celestial City. The day, or life, is “long”,
from “morn to night” or birth until death. The “up-hill” nature of the journey
implies that life continues to be difficult, and that trials must be
experienced and overcome in order to reach the end. The winding nature of the
road also shows the length of it; there is no direct way through, and everyone
must find their own way. Ending the stanza with “my friend”, though, makes this
journey appear as though there is a welcome waiting at the end, when the
questioner reaches heaven.
But is there for the night a resting-place?
A roof for when the slow dark hours begin.
May not the darkness hide it from my face? You cannot miss that inn.
When the night – or death –
arrives, the questioner longs for a resting place. The night, death itself, is
described in difficult terms, “slow dark”, repeating “darkness”, something from
which the questioner needs solace and shelter. There is a tone of doubt in the
whole poem, not only through the nature of the question and answer, but the
worry that they might miss the inn (“May not the darkness hide it from my
face?”). But the reassuring response is always unequivocal, a short firm
statement: “you cannot miss that inn”.
The sense of doubt here is seen in several of Rossetti’s
religious poems – in Good Friday in
particular, the speaker is worried that because she doubts, her faith will not
be enough to see her through. However here in the question and answer we have
doubt and reassurance – the responder is gentle and kind with the questioner’s
lack of faith.
Shall I meet other wayfarers at night?
Those
who have gone before.
Then must I knock, or call when just in
sight? They will not keep you standing at that door.
This might be a reference to a
particular Bible verse:
Here
I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the
door, I will come in and eat with them and they with me. Revelation 3:20
The imagery of the door is also
familiar in Rossetti’s collection. In Shut
Out, the garden is firmly closed to the speaker and in Winter: My Secret the speaker “cannot ope to everyone who taps”,
and is discerning as to who she opens up to. However when it comes to imagery
of heaven, the door is more often being opened to allow the newly-dead to enter
– a more welcoming, promising view of the afterlife. The reference to
“wayfarers” could be a reference to Rossetti’s own loved ones (see the
contextual information) but it may also be more generic and refer to anyone who
has previously died, and therefore found their own way along the road. The
welcoming tone is again created by the modal “will not keep you standing at
that door”, the implication being that she will be instead welcomed in. The
questioner also will not need to “knock” or “call” – which could be a
suggestion that God is forgiving of all regardless of their beliefs: again, a
reassurance against doubt or loss of faith.
Shall I find comfort, travel-sore and weak?
Of
labour you shall find the sum.
Will there be beds for me and all who seek? Yea, beds for all who come.
Again this might be a close bible
reference:
My Father's house has plenty of
room; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to
prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come
back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. John 14:2-3
Yet despite the reassurance, this safe haven doesn’t come for
free but “of labour you shall find the sum” – not quite welcoming; heaven here is certainly a reward for earthly
endeavour, which reflects Rossetti’s branch of Christianity. Ending the stanza
with “yea, beds for all who come”, echoes the opening “yes, to the very end”,
but with the change to “yea” sounds more archaic and highlights the religious
nature of the poem. Ending with this short, declarative sentence implies the
end to the questions, that even if doubt remains, reassurance has been given.
STRUCTURE AND FORM
•
Primarily
iambic rhythm to create a walking pace and tone, and suggest the regularity
of the walking through life that must happen. This works together with the
stanza structure.
•
Quatrains,
with an abab rhyme scheme – the regularity here could suggest the monotony
and laborious nature of the journey through life towards salvation. Rossetti
did believe that life needed moral works in order to earn a place in heaven –
the “labour” of the poem – and so often expressed life’s difficulties as testing
religious conviction
•
Question/answer
structure – highlights the nature of religious doubt, and the reassuring
nature of the conversation. Is the answerer a version of God or Jesus, a priest
or vicar, or is it someone else who’s giving the doubtful faith? Whichever is
the case, the conflict between doubt and faith – and whether doubt is
crippling, something to be lived with, or something to be overcome, is a
concern of the poem. Questioning here is accepted, even encouraged – because
there will always be reassurance given.
CRITICAL INTERPRETATIONS
In this passage, the door spoken
of refers to the acceptance of Jesus in the human heart. In Uphill, the one
knocking at the door is not Jesus but the traveller. However, the
responsibility for creating an environment in which the door is ready to be
opened lies with the individual - it is the speaker's choice whether or not to
persevere on the journey in time to reach the inn.
CONNECTIONS
Imagery of the door –
Remember, Shut Out, Winter: My Secret
Religion and the afterlife: Shut
Out; Soeur Louise; Good Friday; Song (When I am Dead); Remember Soul-sleep: Remember, Song
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