Sonnet 43, by Elizabeth Browning Flashcards
(21 cards)
Summary
It is a dedication of love, where the poet uses reference to the natural world and to God in order to express her passion towards her lover.
Form and structure
- composed of 14 lines (traditional sonnet) and a regular but flexible rhyme scheme (not traditional)
–> There are rhyming couplets yet the poem avoids a perfect rhyme scheme
–> Perhaps this reflects their relationship - unconventional but with close unity. - At the beginning of the poem she makes references to her love being limitless and she also reinforces this at the end in the last line ‘I shall but love thee more after death.’
What type of poem is this?
Autobiographical
(poet is the speaker)
Petrarchan sonnet
What name did she publish her sonnets as?
‘sonnets from the Portuguese’
What type of poem are sonnets usually?
love poems
How does this poem relate to the poet?
It is very personal and deeply intimate
–> spiritual and holy
In which era did Elizabeth Barret Browning live in?
Victorian era and was apart of the Romantic movement –> nature imagery/nature informs their understanding of the world
–> feelings, emotions, passionate/intense with their emotions
–> freedom, rebel
Who was the sonnet written for?
Her husband, Robert Browning.
‘How do I…
…love thee? Let me count the ways!’
‘I love thee freely..
…as men strive for Right’
‘I love thee purely…
as they turn from praise;’
‘I love thee with…
…the breath, Smiles, tears, of all my life!’
‘I shall…
…but love thee better after death.’
opening line
‘How do I love thee?’
suggests an intimate conversation between lovers
measurement imagery
‘depth’, ‘breadth’ and ‘height’
suggests her love is comprehensive and allows her to reach impossible extremes
Quote that shows she has replaced her faith in God with her love for her husband
‘lost saints’
Context
- Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s brother drowned at a young age and as a result her father was very over-protective
She eloped against his wishes with the poet, Robert Browning, showing how important love was to her. - Elizabeth’s Barrett Browning’s father disinherited her after she married Robert Browning
Title ‘Sonnet 43’
It was number 43 out of 44 sonnets that Browning wrote as part of her collection. Sonnets are generally love poems and this poem is one of the most famous sonnets ever written
What does ‘count the ways suggest!’?
By using the verb ‘count’ this could
suggest that there are many ways that
she loves him and there are too many to mention
Analysis on ‘level of everyday’s’
explaining that even though she loves him passionately she also loves him on a regular day to day basis
What does ‘by sun and candlelight’ suggest?
she loves every part of every day and her love does not falter
By using the image of the ‘sun’ could suggest that he is her life source and that she cannot live without him
By using the image of ‘candlelight’ this could suggest that that he lights up her dark thoughts.
