Naji Rizig British Literature Mrs. Boagni 1 April 2014 Biography Robert Browning was born on May 7th, 1812 in Camberwell, London, England. He is the son of Robert and Sara Anna Wiedmen Browning. Despite growing up in a middle class family he is considered to be one of the major two poets of the Victorian era. He attended boarding school from the age of eight until he was sixteen. He then enrolled at the University of London in 1828. However he withdrew from the university after a few months because he believed he did not belong there. As a result most of his education came from tutors and the many books found in his father’s library. During this time he read many famous works such as Alexander Pope’s Iliad of Homer as well as many romantic poems. His favorite poet was Percy Bysste Shelley. The first poem Browning wrote is Pauline which was published in 1833. In 1846 he met his soon to be wife Elizabeth Barrett and they quickly fell in love. They went to Italy where they would later get eloped, had a son and lived there till the death of his wife in 1861. After her death, Browning and his son moved back to England and published “The Ring and the Book”. It was a series of dramatic monologues related to seventeenth century murder cases. It was the book that eventually established his reputation. He continued on to publish Dramatic Idyls in 1879 through 1880 and received world-wide fame. Browning is most widely known for creating the dramatic monologue. In 1881 the Browning Society was built. Robert Browning and Victorian Literature The Victorian era was a time of harmony, prosperity and national self-confidence for Britain. It was the era of Queen Victoria’s reign from 1837 up until her death in 1901. The novel became the most impo... ... middle of paper ... ...e Victorian era was the high point of the dramatic monologue. Most of Browning’s works have something in common. Browning believed in recitation with states of mind and he believed in extreme states of mind. Poems that had this reoccurring theme include “Porphyria’s Lover,” “Johannes Agri-cole in Meditation,” “Soliloquy of the Spanish Choister,” and “My Last Duchess”. Browning strongly believed in equality among the social classes as well as among genders; this is seen in his poems. Religion played a big part in the Victorian era as well as in Victorian poetry. Lord Alfred Tennyson’s Ulysses was published in 1842 and is said to be the first real dramatic monologue. Robert browning is credited for perfecting the dramatic monologue and made his first poem in the dramatic monologue poetic form thus combining both Romantic and Victorian themes together.
For it is a commonplace of our understanding of the period that the Victorian writer wanted above all to “stay in touch.” Comparing his situation with that of his immediate predecessors, he recognized that indulgence in a self-centered idealism was no longer viable in a society which ever more insistently urged total involvement in its occupations. The world was waiting to be improved upon, and solved, and everyone, poets, included had to busy themsel...
The Victorian era is considered an era of rapid change and development in almost every field of science and politics. However, it is also known for being an era of contradictions. The era is known for its growth and prosperity, one of great political change and economic wealth. Major advancements were being made across all of the fields of science, technology, and medicine. As all of these were changing for the better, society and moral codes remained strict and outdated. Women were not allowed to wear revealing cloth...
Buzard, James, Linda K. Hughes. "The Victorian Nation and its Others" and "1870." A Companion to Victorian Literature and Culture. Ed. Herbert F. Tucker. Malden: Blackwell Publishers, 1999. 35-50, 438-455.
Kirschen, Robert M. “The Victorian Period.” University of Las Vegas. 17 Nov. 2010. Web. 30 Apr. 2014. https://faculty.unlv.edu/kirschen/handouts/victorian.html
"Robert Browning." Critical Survey of Poetry: English Language Series. Ed. Frank N. Magill. Vol. 1. Englewood Cliffs: Salem, 1982. 338, 341.
Nathaniel Hawthorne is one of the more well known and well respected American authors to this day. Hawthorne was born and raised in Salem, Massachusetts to a Puritan family which had a long New England history. Although Hawthorne was not extremely interested in the idea of higher education he did attended and graduated from Bowdoin college. In 1842 Hawthorne was married to Sophia Peabody and they had three children together until Nathaniels untimely death in 1862 at the age of 59. His short stories are just one of the many reasons for his popularity. Hawthorne like most writers has his own method with which he writes. The term which is most often used when discussing a writer's method of writing is called style. Nathaniel Hawthorne writes with a style which is unique to him and that is what makes his writing so special. In the short stories The Ministers Black Veil, Young Goodman Brown, and The Birthmark patterns in Hawthorne's style become evident. In his writing Hawthorne uses a formal tone, long descriptive sentences which are full of complex vocabulary, a very dark/gothic tone, his characters are often victims of alienation and scrutiny, and lastly it can be noted that Hawthorne inserts autobiographical elements into each of his characters.
The Victorian Era was the time of the British rule of Queen Victoria, and how during her time pe...
his formative and adolescent years. As time goes on, in 1821, Nathaniel enters Bowdoin College
In essence, Elizabeth Barrett Browning dramatic monologue proved a powerful medium for Barrett Browning. Taking her need to produce a public poem about slavery to her own developing poetics, Barrett Browning include rape and infanticide into the slave’s denunciation of patriarchy. She felt bound by women’s silence concerning their bodies and the belief that “ a man’s private life was beyond the pale of political scrutiny” (Cooper, 46).
Robert Browning frequently wrote dramatic monologues to enhance the dark and avaricious qualities in his works. Browning's use of this particular style is to "evoke the unconstrained reaction of a person in aparticular situation or crisis" (Napierkowski 170). A poem may say one thing, but when mixed with dramatic monologue, it may "present a meaning at odds with the speaker's intention"(Napierkowski 170). This change may show the reader more insight into the poem without directly stating the underlying facts. The reader is allowed to "isolate a single moment in which the character reveals himself more starkly" (Napierkowski 171). Browning's use of dramatic monologue "disposes the reader to suspend moral judgement" (Napierkowski 171) causing a haughtiness to hover over many of his works.
To start with, some information is in order about the Victorian Period itself. Queen Victoria, England’s longest reigning monarch, sat on the throne from 1837 to 1901. The span of time is referred to as the Victorian Period (Abrams 1860). At the death of Queen Victoria, her subjects reacted in such a way that they rebelled against many of the ideas put forward during her reign. Even her own country recognized her life and rule as a distinct historical period separated from the rest (Abrams 1861).
Nathaniel Hawthorne, known for his use of allegory and symbolism, is now one of the most studied authors. He became famous for his novels and short stories that revealed the portrayal he had of the world. His works have been properly recognized for more than a century. Hawthorne’s perspective of life comes from his history that gave him a sense of inherited guilt. Even with the setbacks during his journey to success, Hawthorne managed to surpass them and become the wonderful writer he is known to be.
"History in Focus." : The Victorian Era (Introduction). Institute of Historical Research., Apr. 2001. Web. 29 Mar. 2014.
The Victorian Era in English history was a period of rapid change. One would be hard-pressed to find an aspect of English life in the 19th century that wasn’t subject to some turmoil. Industrialization was transforming the citizens into a working class population and as a result, it was creating new urban societies centered on the factories. Great Britain enjoyed a time of peace and prosperity at home and thus was extending its global reach in an era of New Imperialism. Even in the home, the long held beliefs were coming into conflict.
The Victorian age and the Modern Literature era are two very different times for the literature world. Each era had a big impact through literature, politics, and economics. The Victorian era was a time of change during the reign of Queen Victoria between 1837 to 1901. The Modern Literature era also known as the Twentieth Century and After increased popularity in literature due to the rise of industrialization and globalization from roughly about the 1910 's to the 1990 's. Even though, both of these eras made an impact towards the way people see literature, their literature work is very different in terms of themes, subjects, purposes, and techniques.