Friday, July 02, 2010

Of the most romantic poem I've ever laid my eyes on

Have you ever read a romantic poem before? This poem is on my top list of my most favorite love poems. 

How Do I Love Thee

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
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.
I love thee to the level of every day's
most quiet need, by sun and candlelight.
I love thee freely, as men strive for right.
I love thee purely, as they turn from praise.
I love thee with the passion put to use
in my old griefs, and with my childhood's faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
with my lost saints. I love thee with the breath,
smiles, tears, of all my life; and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.

-Elizabeth Barrett Browning-

The first time I read this poem was in my first year in college (2002). When I first read it, I thought it was the most romantic poem a person has ever made. But then, before college I had only read poems from the poets of my country (and believe me, they are very good!), so I thought that there might be more brilliant poems I would find in the future. 

I was wrong. I read Shakespeare's, Robert Frost's, Jane Austen's, The Bronte sisters' (Emily's, Anne's, and Charlotte's) , D.H. Lawrence's (one of my faves, I'm going to write about him later), and many more. And I never, ever find more beautiful love poem. 

No words I say could describe my feelings whenever I read this poem. I have tried do explicate (profiling the poem as well as the poet) the poem several times with no success.

I always think of Mrs. Browning as a very brave woman. Why do I think so? Because she lived in the Victorian period. Well, I don't know how women lived during that period but I'm quite sure that they were not used to expressing their feelings for a man so openly like she did. It could be uncommon, or even considered inappropriate. 

Elizabeth Barrett Browning was a great woman. And hey, did you know that Edgar Alan Poe's famous poem, The Raven, was actually influenced by one of Mrs. Browning's poems

Robert Browning was a damn lucky man to have the woman as his wife.   

12 comments:

  1. good poem! It beautifully conveys the romantic mood of the author:) we read with a girl like vmeste.ochen .. even memorized a few lines

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  2. Yes, it is. Do you write poems?

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  3. This is a oldie but a good one. So is Elizabeth barrett Browning the author of this. You where talking about several other authors and I didn't quite get if she was the actual writer.

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  4. Yes, Browning is the writer. I wrote her name just right after the poem :)

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  5. I have heard about this poem in my high school. My English teacher was a good fan of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, she reads almost all of her poetry.

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  6. I believe this too. So true yet it has a childish description.

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  7. I'm so glad I found this blog and this poem. It has made my day, thank you so much!

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  8. Nice one. I like the lines very much. Thank you so much.

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  9. This poem is good, it reflects that the author maybe during that time was indeed, deeply inlove. There's a lot of beautiful and romantic poems out there that you have to discover and be inspired with.

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  10. It is an old but a very romantic poem. Good job!

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  11. Yes!it's an amazing poem first ever made by human. I am fond of romantic poem,because it makes me feeling fresh and enthusiastic.
    I like this poem!

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  12. Awesome! and really heart touching. Thanks for posting it. Keep up the good work.

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