Love in Victorian Poetry

Paper Summary:

Robert Browning, Matthew Arnold, and Lord Alfred Tennyson are three poets that present us with very different perspectives on the subject of love in relation to women. The writer explains that there is no doubt women struggled in conventional romantic roles, and an examination of these poets will help us understand the complicated connection between women and love. It shows how Robert Browning's poetic visions of love are not calm, peaceful, or logical. Instead, love is often brutal and selfish. Tennyson and Arnold present us with women who are equal to men in love and sometimes struggle in an attempt to break free of social restraints. The writer concludes that each poet allows us to see women from different perspectives and, thus, allow us to understand why love in the Victorian age was a complicated matter.

From the Paper:

"Robert Browning's poetry places women in a more traditional role in Victorian society that often works to their demise. In fact, it is safe to say that Browning's poems bring characters to life and death, literally. Love can sometimes result in death. In "Porphyria's Lover," "My Last Duchess," and "Count Grismond," we witness the darker side of love. The females in these poems suffer at the hands of their lovers. Browning also focuses on the very worst aspects of jealousy. In "Porphyria's Lover," the narrator is consumed with jealousy and a desire to possess her in the worst way. All logic is lost in his passionate moment and he decides he must kill her to keep her. Moreover, he feels "happy and proud" (32) and he feels his heart "swell" (34) when he knows he will kill her. He wants to make her immortal in his world and becomes fixated on the thought of keeping her "perfectly pure and good" (Browning Porphyria's Lover 36). Here we see a woman that suffers at the hand of her lover. She is helpless and hopeless and becomes eternally silent. In fact, it is safe to assume that she never had a chance once the narrator made up his mind."

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