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Elizabeth Barrett Research Paper

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Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s is one of the most recognised and revolutionary Victorian women poets her poetry is some of the most respected of that time. The themes Browning discusses in her poetry range from love, motherhood and death to poems which embody political and social themes. Barrett was a poet of the ‘Romantic Period’ and as a result her poetry is saturated with symbols of love in particular she expresses her love for close companions. ‘Lionized by her contemporaries, Elizabeth Barrett was considered a possible contemporary of William Wordsworth as poet Laureate of England; she enjoyed a wide popular recognition.’[1] This recognition made her receive wide critical acclaim, in particular her poems which deal with love and women’s psychology garnered a huge response from Victorian readers as her poetry was insightful and certainly not typical of Victorian women’s poetry; Elizabeth Barrett was a ‘risk-taker’ and her poetry was brazen. Her poetry discussing the theme of love contains rich …show more content…

This image also depicts the magnitude of love as the words "depth and breadth and height" show the immensity of Elizabeth Barrett’s love. In each stanza Barrett’s love is compared with many everyday things and ideas; as the poem progresses her love gains strength and reinforces her ideas. The repetition of, ‘I love thee,’ throughout the sonnet makes this proclamation of love even more convincing.

It is clear that Elizabeth Barrett’s love is genuine and sturdy the poem paints a picture for the reader of what true love really feels like. The sonnet is rich with alliteration and imagery which add to the intensity of the poems profound affect on the reader.
I love thee to the level of every


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