How Do I Love Thee Figurative Language

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Recommended: Elizabeth B Browning - How Do I Love Thee

"How do I Love Thee" by Elizabeth Barrett Browning is considered to be one of the greatest love poems of the 19th century. The theme of the poem depicts Browning's devoted love for her future husband. Throughout the poem, Browning pours her heart out to the audience. Each line increases with intensity and from one line to the next expressing her deepest feelings. The author wants the reader to know that love can be a very powerful, strong, and irrepressible emotion that can even outlast death. In the poem "How do I love thee" Browning incorporates figurative language throughout the poem. Some examples of figurative language used in the poem are metaphors, similes, and diction to express her deep passion and intense love for her significant …show more content…

A Simile compares one thing to another thing using "like" or "as". Lines 7-8 show similes being used. Browning states, "I love thee freely, as men strive for right." "I love thee purely, as they turn from praise." These two lines seem to be pretty straight forward when she says "I love thee feely" and "I love the purely". This is Browning loving her significant other without force but with recognition of her love. The complication may come when referring to the second half of both lines when she describes "loving thee feely" as "men strive for right" and "loving thee purely" as " they turn from praise". Thinking of line 7 if it is switched around to say "men strive right" in a "free" way could mean that it is a choice that man can choose or choose not to do right. This means that people try to do the right thing because they feel like they have to do but this says something entirely different. Maybe Browning feels that she has to love her significant other. Line 8 suggest the word "purely" which could mean that Browning's love is "pure". The second half of line 8 says "they turn from praise" could mean that she is not looking for praise for writing the poem. Browning seems to love no matter the thought of recognition or

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