William Browning And Elizabeth Barrett Browning Essay

Elizabeth Barrett Browning was born on March 6, 1806, in Coxhoe Hall, Durham, England. She was the eldest of eleven children born of Edward and Mary Moulton-Barrett (DISCovering Authors). Her father was a “possessive and autocratic man loved by his children even though he rigidly controlled their lives” (Encyclopedia of World Biography). Although he forbid his daughters to marry, he always managed to encourage their scholarly pursuits (DISCovering Authors). Her mother, Mary Graham-Clarke, was a prosperous woman who earned their wealth from a sugar plantation in Jamaica (EXPLORING Poetry). When Elizabeth was “three years old, the family moved to Hope End in Herefordshire,, and she spent the next twenty-three years of her life in this

    I chose to compare and contrast two women authors from different literary time periods.  Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861) as a representative of the Victorian age (1832-1901) and Virginia Woolf (1882-1941) as the spokeswoman for the Modernist (1914-1939) mindset.  Being women in historical time periods that did not embrace the talents and gifts of women; they share many of the same issues and themes throughout their works - however, it is the age in which they wrote that shaped their expressions of these themes.  Although they lived only decades apart their worlds were remarkably different - their voices were muted or amplified according to the beat of society's drum.

A Comparison of The Lady of Shallot by Alfred Lord Tennyson, My Last Duchess by Robert Browning, La Belle Dame Sans Merci by Keats and To His Coy Mistress by Andrew Marvell

In Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s letter in the direction of Napoleon III regarding the banishment of the French creator Victor Hugo, she used many exceptional strategies to try and pardon Hugo. some of tries encompass Browning trying to belittle Napoleon and using sarcasm about how she thinks he's a robust chief but then gives his terrible movements. near the cease of the letter, however, Browning includes her admiration in the direction of Napoleon III. on this letter, Browning has more than one records and other points wherein she will use to counter Napoleon’s emotions dealing with victor Hugo. The English poet, Elizabeth Barrett Browning honestly uses exceptional rhetorical techniques to petition Napoleon.

     Elizabeth Barrett Browning was a plain woman of the Victorian Era that was most remarkably gifted. She “was destined to become known to the world”(Preston xi). Elizabeth Barrett Browning became known for her poetry, because she showed marriages were her women character were often left emotionally unstable.

One literary element that emphasizes the difference across the three texts is conflict. In My Last Duchess, the duke was conflicted because he felt there was an unequal distribution in the love he was receiving. The duke’s main problem was his belief that his love was not valued as it should and this developed his envy. The envy felt by the duke was directed towards those around the duchess who also received attention from her. “... I know not how- as if she ranked my gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name with anybody’s gift…” (32-34) Browning’s evident demonstration of the duke’s issue with the duchess giving others attention helped construct the central idea. To contrast, in Hamlet Shakespeare emphasizes the conflict that erupted in response to the extreme act prompted by envy. Claudius murdered because he was envious and wanted what his brother, the king, had and when Hamlet discovered this he was distraught and brought to the brink of madness trying to seek revenge. “ But howsoever thou pursuest this act, taint not thy mind…” (Act 1, Scene 5) Shakespeare makes sure to detail how Claudius’ envy led to murder and its heavy impact on Hamlet and his state of mind. Lastly, in A Room Of One’s Own it is indirectly revealed that the women were envious of the men. Woolf allows leeway while at the same time asserting that the women were envious due to the circumstances and limitations placed upon them because of their gender. Unlike the other two stories, the conflict that was unraveled led to suicides and the loss of sanity between the women instead of those around them. “.. a highly gifted girl who had tried to use her gift for poetry would have been so thwarted and hindered by other people, so tortured and pulled asunder by her own contrary instincts, that she must have lost her health and sanity..” (Woolf, 21) In this the central idea was revealed and

“My Last Duchess,” by Robert Browning, depicts powerful husbands attempting to control the actions of their wives as they are free to do as they please. In contrast, women are expected to be faithful and attentive only to their husbands. The power and control of the Duke is conveyed by a painting of the Duchess. It belongs to the Duke and is referred to as “my last Duchess” (1). The use of “my” demonstrates the possessive nature of the Duke and his claim of the Duchess as his own personal possession, much like the painting itself. As the Duke persists on forcing domination upon the Duchess, he is greatly displeased to find that she treats and considers him as the same value as nearly any other man.

In "My Last Duchess", by Robert Browning, the character of Duke is portrayed as having controlling, jealous, and arrogant traits. These traits are not all mentioned verbally, but mainly through his actions. In the beginning of the poem the painting of the Dukes wife is introduced to us: "That's my last Duchess painted on the wall,/ looking as of she were still alive" (1-2). These lines leave us with the suspicion that the Duchess is no longer alive, but at this point were are not totally sure. In this essay I will discuss the Dukes controlling, jealous and arrogant traits he possesses through out the poem.

Written by Robert Browning, “My Last Duchess” is a poem about an egocentric Duke who has a painting of his last wife upon the wall and is trying to impress an ambassador who is negotiating his next marriage. Although it is obvious that the Duke is trying to persuade this ambassador, however, this is where the first mystery is created. It is almost as if he is trying to persuade no one more than himself.

One of the greatest concerns in the theory about feminism is the role that women play in relationships and also the identity that is placed upon them as a lover and as an artist. Many females during the time that Elizabeth Browning wrote "Aurora Leigh" felt discomfort by becoming an artist or anything besides a housewife. As mentioned before this was a stepping-stone for women in this time period. Society put women into separate social classes. And on top of the classes they were categorized in they had the class of being a woman also. With this passage from "Aurora Leigh" Browning describes and criticizes the works of the woman during this time period. The works

The two Browning poems, ‘Porphyria’s Lover’ and ‘My Last Duchess’ were written to convey to the reader how women were treated in that era; as possession, as assets. Both of these poems can be read from different points of view and they also both are what is

Elizabeth Barrett Browning's "How Do I love thee?" This poem by Elizabeth Barrett Browning is one of many she penned for her husband Robert Browning. Using the basic form of an Italian sonnet with its fourteen lines and strict rhyme scheme - she manages to produce a surprisingly passionate poem.

Elizabeth Barrett Moulton-Barrett was born March 6, 1806 in Durham, England to Edward Barrett Moulton-Barrett and Mary Graham Clarke. She was the eldest of twelve. Her father made the family fortune from a sugar plantation. In 1809, the Barretts moved to an estate called Hope End in England. Elizabeth Barrett’s childhood was spent happily at the family’s home in England. She had no formal education, learning solely from her brother’s tutor and from her continuous reading. She managed over the years to learn Greek, Latin, Hebrew, French, Italian, German, and Spanish. She learned rapidly and began writing at an early age.

In “Aurora Leigh,” Aurora decides she will not marry her cousin Romney because not only she not love him, but she also does not want to be held down by him. Women at the time were seen as the property of their husbands; thus, Browning felt that unless they dauntlessly rebelled against the constraints of the patriarchal society, women would be stuck in the same perpetual state of tyranny. With the help of her poetry, Elizabeth Barrett Browning was able to transform the opinions of many and bring social change to an era which, so desperately needed it.

Elizabeth Barrett Browning's poetry has been the subject of much criticism. Her elusive style prompted many critics to question Barrett's method of writing. In fact, some critics, like Alethea Hayter, go so far as to propose that an "honest critique of her work must admit that she often wrote very bad poetry indeed" (15). Accusations against Barrett's work were often targeted at her tendency for anonymity, her excessive development of thoughts, unsuccessful forced rhymes, and more often than any other of her familiarities, her tendency to create her own words. Despite being relatively shunned by the world of poetry, Barrett persisted in writing poetry, even though the majority of her writing