The Rose Bargain

“We found a squat ironwood tree, and in the divot of its roots we left our matching baby necklaces, one strung with a small pearl L charm and the other with a matching I.”

Smith’s use of jewelry as symbols is showcased in this passage as the necklaces come to represent Lydia and Ivy’s desire to travel to the Otherworld. This passage foreshadows the fact that Lydia is taken there, even though she cannot remember her experiences for most of the novel.

“Men never do understand. The slow death of being cast out of society is a fate few are strong enough to bear.”

This develops the theme of Societal Limitations on Victorian Women, implying that men don’t have to worry about their reputations; they can sleep with many women without suffering any consequences. By contrast, if women are seen alone with men, their lives and reputations can be ruined in an instant.

“Maybe if you’re special enough, one of Them will love you.”

When Ivy was a child, she longed to marry a fae, and her childish, short-sighted wish ironically foreshadows her reluctant marriage to Bram. However, the image of being “special” is undermined because he only marries her to overthrow his mother and seize power for himself.

“But the sun catches the jewels in the May Queen tiara, and I picture giving it to my parents. They could sell it for more money than we’ve seen my entire life.”

In this passage, the tiara represents a form of wealth and a key to financial independence for Ivy’s entire family. Ivy’s fixation upon this prize, which Mor herself regards as a mere trifle, highlights The Ruinous Impact of Upper-Class Corruption, for the queen has no conception of the extent of her own wealth—the merest fraction of which can vastly improve the lives of her oppressed subjects.

“It’s like this that we are delivered to her, like flowers in a bouquet waiting to be pressed between the same pages. Beautiful at the cost of being fragile and stuck forever.”

This passage describes the debutantes lining up to make their bargains with Mor. The simile compares the young women to flowers, which represent delicacy and immobility when dried and preserved. The image of being “stuck forever” also highlights the Societal Limitations on Victorian Women.

“I couldn’t fathom why people would ask for something as boring as a prettier face.”

Ivy dreams about bargaining for powers like being able to create rain, but she ultimately tries to have Lydia’s bargain undone, prioritizing her sister’s needs over her own superficial desires.

“Together they’re a complete set, Bram the sun, Emmett the moon.”

This metaphor accurately projects a sense of the two princes’ personalities, setting them up as foils of one another. Bram is bright, while Emmett is moody. Ironically, however, the end of the novel reveals that Bram’s brightness is just a façade, for unlike the steadfast Emmett, he proves to be as changeable as the moon.

“That is the point of tonight’s ball, after all, to spread the news of every girl’s new bargain. It always seemed unfair to me that the boys can make their bargains whenever they want.”

This passage develops the theme of Societal Limitations on Victorian Women, for the ladies’ bargains in the Pact Parade are more public and ceremonial than the men’s. Furthermore, they usually bargain for ways to make themselves more marriageable, while men bargain for success in business.

“We’re as on display as the boats are.”

The bitter tone of this passage comments upon the objectification that the debutantes endure as the press covers the tournament and the queen’s subjects speculate on who will win. This image also illustrates the Societal Limitations on Victorian Women.

“We’re both shocked at his sudden casualness. It’s as if a curtain has fallen and the real Bram is in front of us.”

In this moment, when Bram lets down his guard in front of Greer and Ivy, the shift in energy foreshadows the later revelation that his every action is a performance; the real Bram delights in torturing humans.

“I pass him the deck and have him shuffle, then pull a card. The devil smiles up at us from the table.”

Throughout The Rose Bargain, Emmy’s tarot cards often play a symbolic role, albeit a rather heavy-handed one, and in this scene, Emmy’s declaration that the devil represents betrayal foreshadows Bram’s manipulation of the love that both Emmett and his mother hold for him.

“She is not a wife. She is a queen.”

Bolingbroke says this about Mor, emphasizing the fae queen’s status as the ultimate ruler of England: a position that renders her immune from the Victorian-style limitations that shackle the human women in the narrative.

“I’ve been sewing since before I could read.”

One societal expectation of women is that they only work in the domestic sphere, completing tasks like embroidery and household management. Ivy was taught to master these stereotypical feminine tasks in order to become a good wife, and these endeavors where clearly thrust upon her before she had the chance to grow intellectually.

“But it’s Faith I’m jealous of. She’s dressed as Romeo’s Juliet.”

This allusion to Shakespeare’s famous tragedy Romeo and Juliet highlights the different forms of forbidden love that run rampant in Smith’s novel, and the plays tragic ending also suggests that The Rose Bargain may not end with a “happily-ever-after” scenario.

“Lydia and I, always two sides of the same coin. Her hurt is spilled out onto the floor, messy in a way that demands it be witnessed. Mine shoved so deep down, my steps are heavier with the weight of it.”

This passage develops Lydia and Ivy’s status as foils to one another. While Lydia has public breakdowns, Ivy represses her feelings, and it is also Ivy’s task to play the part of the hero while Lydia is magically restricted to languish in social disgrace and isolation.

“I sit and I read and I wait for the end of the world.”

This bleak statement on the part of Eduart, who gained immortality from Mor at the price of being universally loathed and shunned, captures the man’s hopeless outlook; only the end of the world itself will ever free him from the torture of his unending, lonely existence, and his plight illustrates The Hidden Cost of Bargains.

“Why would a despot provide a record of her people’s hatred toward her?”

This rhetorical question develops the novel’s focus on The Ruinous Impact of Upper-Class Corruption. Mor spends her time hiding evidence of humans’ attempts to overthrow her because by controlling her subjects’ access to information, she can toy with them more easily.

“It’s got a faded crest under the words The Swan.”

In this passage, the swan image marks the moment when Emmett and Ivy spend the night at an inn, engaging in a classic “forced proximity” trope. Just as swans mate for life, Emmett and Ivy’s love is kindled at the inn called The Swan.

“Eight little portraits of Queen Moryen on the coins stare up at us judgmentally.”

This passage suggests that although the queen is omnipresent, she is not omniscient. Her image appears everywhere; she can’t be avoided. However, she doesn’t know that some of her bargains do not torture humans, as when Emmy does not mind losing the ability to taste sweets because she doesn’t like them to begin with.

“His gaze pins me like a shadowboxed butterfly.”

This simile conveys the idea that Emmett’s “gaze” claims Ivy, as though she is a specimen trapped in a lifeless display. The moment conveys a sense of possessiveness even as Ivy consents to let Emmett kiss her.

“The Others passed through freely, looking to make bargains and use fragile humans as their playthings.”

This quote exemplifies The Ruinous Impact of Upper-Class Corruption. The Others are bored because they are immortal and have no material concerns, and they therefore toy with humans as a form of drama or entertainment.

“We exchanged our vows, and he placed on my head a heavy golden crown that he said had once belonged to his mother.”

The symbolism the crown injects a note of irony into the scene, for as Bram crowns Lydia twice in the Otherworld, he does not seek to empower Lydia, but to disempower his mother.

“My wedding band lies right where I left it.”

In this scene, Lydia’s wedding band symbolizes Bram’s desire to possess and control her, just as he controlled her when she first came to the Otherworld.