William Wordsworth once described poetry in the following way: “The spontaneous overflowing power 1”. He could have not described Barrett’s Sonnet43 better, even though he was fifty years older than her. Barrett wrote 44 sonnets about Robert Browning, her husband and contemporary poet. The series was called “Sonnets from Portuguese” by Barrett. Although critics have differing opinions on the matter, most agree that she chose this title to refer to a previous composition about the love of a young girl with Camoens (2), an early Portuguese poet from the 1500’s. Others believe that Barrett and Browning made fun of the title, calling Barrett his little Portugee (3). The sonnet was likely written in honor of Browning, as this essay assumes. Sonnet 43 is the last in the series and has a climactic quality when viewed alongside the other sonnets. This essay will briefly cover the genre and technicalities of the poem before going into more depth to analyze it and determine its effect on the reader.
As we’ve already mentioned, “How do you love me?” is a sonnet. It is a 14-line poem that rhymes with ABBA ABBA CDCD CD, in the Petrarch style. It uses iambic pentameter, which is five feet of unstressed and stressed syllables per syllable. Sonnets are a type of song that originated in Sicily around the 13th Century. The English name comes from the Italian’sonetto, which means ‘little song’. As you can see, love plays a significant role in this kind of poetry. Petrachan sonnets are different from other genre poems in terms of their formal structure. We are introduced to the main theme of the piece in the eight first lines. These are called the octave. Next, we get a twist or volta. Then, the theme is further developed by the six last lines (or setes). Barrett takes this style up a notch with Sonnet 43. Barrett uses the octave to describe the loftiness of her love, drawing parallels between it and religious or spiritual fervour. The sestet includes her feelings for grief and loss, giving her love an even more realistic perspective. In her constative (5) speech act she describes her love in an almost calm, logical, and even philosophical way. This case clearly shows that the recognition of the speech act is what makes it complete.
The poem is still able to convey the feeling of love and passion, and convinces us that it is real and eternal. Let’s take a closer look at the poem. She starts with a question.
“How can you love me?” (l.1)
This is a rhetorical or purely philosophical question. Barrett wishes the reader is open to contemplating the question, anticipating what comes next. There are so many different ways in which the speaker feels she loves the object, Barrett urges the reader to ponder the question and anticipate what will follow.
“I love you to the extent of the height …”(l.
There is more to this than internal rhyme (depth, breadth), it also contains a paradox. She uses abstract analogies for her love and describes it as being three-dimensional. Her love goes beyond physical limits. There is also intertexuality. This could refer to an Epistle from St Paul addressed to the Ephesians. In this Epistle, the Apostle wished to understand “the breadth, breadth. depth and height Christ’s and God’s”. This directly links to the idea that her love is a spiritual thing, which she reiterates in line next, with the mention her soul.
“My soul is reachable …” (l.3)
This line indicates that she feels this love as a part her whole being. Barrett was a religious person, so this would have meant more to her than for someone who is less religious. This love was her core, her life’s purpose. The sonnet’s use of a lot of ‘th’ means that these lines introduce soft, syllable-like ‘breathy syllables, reminiscent of the act or living. These lines have elements of harmony, as the words feeling’, “Being” and “ideal” are used. This helps to bring the poem back to life, rather than it becoming sighy and breathless. This line “For the ends od Being and ideal Grace” (l.4) can be taken to refer to God, who is the beginning and end of all things. This means that she is elevating Browning’s love for God to something beyond the realm of possible. It is brought back to our attention by the words “I love you to the level/ Most quiet need, by sunlight and candlelight” (l.5-6). This suggests that her love for Browning is as essential as food, shelter, water, or shelter. This ‘necessity,’ however, she chooses it from her own free choice (“I love you freely as men strive to be Right”) (l.7) This may also refer to God.
In the following line, she calls her love “pure”, as she does not want any “praise” for what she does. Next, we get the volta. Here, her tone changes. She now describes her love as a passion, something she felt in her childhood and old grievances. He is the love of her childhood innocence or “lost saints”, and she feels it with all her heart. Her final words echo the intense love she has for him.
“I love you with my breath,”
Smiles and tears throughout my entire life! If God wills,
I will love you more after my death.” (l.12-14).
Although it may sound like a gross exaggeration to some, when you consider the religious nature and belief of the poet that there is an afterlife, this poem has a timeless romantic meaning. We can understand the emotional complexity, maturity, and feelings of love that the speaker describes.
Footnotes:
(1) W. Wordsworth and S. Taylor Coleridge. Lyrical Ballads with Other Poems : in Two Volumes, Biggs and Co. Bristol. London : 1800.
(2) Anonymous. “ARTS1030 Introduction into English: Literary Generations”, UNSW Sydney 2010. p24.
(3) Anonymous, “Sonnet 43 – A Love Poem by Elizabeth Barrett Browning”, Cummings Study Guides, Internet, World Wide Web http://www.cummingsstudyguides.net/Guides2/Sonnet43.html (31/03/10)
(4) Ibid.
(5) J. L. Austin. How words can do things, Oxford: Oxford Uni Press (1912).
(6) M. Devitt & Richard Harley, Blackwell’s Guide to the Philosophy of Language.
(7) Anonymous, “What is the analysis of Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s sonnet 43?”, Answers.com, Internet, World Wide Web http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_analysis_of_Elizabeth_Barrett_Browning’s_sonnet_43 (31/03/10)
(8) Jules P. Life, “How do I Love Thee- Elizabeth Barrett Browning”, Living Life with a Passion, p5, Internet, World Wide Web http://juleslife.wordpress.com/2007/06/08/how-do-i-love-thee-elizabeth-barrett-browning/ (31/03/10)
READING LISTE
– Anonymous. “ARTS1030 Introduction into English: Literary Generations”, UNSW Sydney 2010.
– Anonymous, “Sonnet 43 – A Love Poem by Elizabeth Barrett Browning”, Cummings Study Guides, Internet, World Wide Web http://www.cummingsstudyguides.net/Guides2/Sonnet43.html
– Anonymous, “What is the analysis of Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s sonnet 43?”, Answers.com, Internet, World Wide Web http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_analysis_of_Elizabeth_Barrett_Browning’s_sonnet_43
Austin, JL. Using words to communicate ideas, Oxford: Oxford Uni Press (1912).
– Devitt M. & Harley R. Blackwell’s guide to the philosophy of language, (2003)
– Life, JP, “How do I Love Thee- Elizabeth Barrett Browning”, Living Life with a Passion, p5, Internet, World Wide Web http://juleslife.wordpress.com/2007/06/08/how-do-i-love-thee-elizabeth-barrett-browning/
Wordsworth, W and Taylor Coleridge. S, Lyrical Ballads with Other Poems : in Two Volumes, Biggs and Co. Bristol. London : 1800. Preface.
