I thought that Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Sonnets from the Portuguese was a beautiful collection of sonnets from what was published in our text. I loved the way that she described her pure and total love for Robert Browning, whom she was courting at the time that she wrote these sonnets. Sonnet 43, one of her most well known poems, was incredible to me the way that she was able to describe her love. It’s almost as if she writes the true definition of love here in all of its greatness.
She begins with, “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.” These lines are some of her most famous lines and actually some of the most well known lines in all of poetry. After this first line, she follows it with 13 exquisite lines answering that very question. She begins, “I love thee to the depth and breadth and height / My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight / For the ends of Being and ideal Grace” (2-4). Here she seems to be describing an inconceivable size and amount of love. Even she herself can not conceive of how great her love is for him. It is fitting that these lines are first in the poem. As she begins to describe her love, she admits that she can not really begin to describe the feelings that she has because of their greatness. In turn, she then continues to describe her love as being with her day and night “by sun and candle-light.” She loves this man as much as any man loves his born rights and freedom, one of mans most treasured possessions. She states, “I love thee freely as men strive for Right.” Lines I found particular moving to me and interesting were, “I love thee with the passion put to use / In my old griefs, and with my childhood’s faith.” (9-10). Elizabeth Browning had grief before she had her love for Robert from some other source. Her love for him is so deep and passionate that all the passions of hers that were once grief or any other emotion, are now in her love for him. In addition, she loves him unconditionally, unquestioningly with her “childhood’s faith.” A child’s faith is known to be one of the deepest, truest faiths known. A child usually does not question or doubt things, they just naturally accept their beliefs as they are.
In Browning’s last lines of the sonnet, she exclaims, “With my lost saints – I love with the breath, / Smiles, tears, of all my life! – and if God choose, / I shall but love thee better after death.” (12-15). It is clear that Elizabeth Browning loves him with everything that she is and wants to be able to give that to him. She believes in her love for him so much that she believes that when they die, she will love him even more in heaven. How passionate! Her love extends beyond what they have in this lifetime. She hopes it to last and grow for an eternity.
3 comments:
Kelly,
I don't think any of us can count the number of ways this poem has been critiqued, but I find yours to have newness of quality-especially at the end. You write "She believes in her love for him so much that she believes that when they die, she will love him even more in heaven. How passionate! Her love extends beyond what they have in this lifetime. She hopes it to last and grow for an eternity." I think this is a fabulous point. Not one that you hear brought up that often. She was in this relationship from the first moment ad infinitum! Really good.
-kyle
Kelly,
Good job in your discussion of this very famous poem. Sometimes it is harder to write about a famous poem than an unknown one, but you are able to bring some new insights to this one.
I loved reading this poem because I am you typical chick flick fanatic. Just like you said, she loves the man with all of her heart and while you are reading this you can actually feel it because the words are so strong. When reading the first few sonnets you can see that she has doubts about this relationship but by the end, it is obvious that she has no regrets.
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