Initial Responses to the Poem

For this blog, I will summarize and and analyze three critical essays about Robert Browning's The Ring and the Book.

Summary:

The first essay I read was by Robert W. Buchanan from the Athenaeum. Buchanan opens the essay by calling Browning, "The opus magnum of our [Buchanan and his peers] generation," (787). He also states that readers of The Ring and the Book (RAB) will be unable to decide, "which to admire most, the supremely precious gold of the material or the wondrous beauty of the workmanship. Buchanan says that Browning's work has him so much in awe that he is struggling to write about it; however, he must write his "convictions" as soon as possible. Buchanan describes RAB as the, "Most precious and profound spiritual treasure that England has produced since the days of Shakespeare," (787). He also admits that, although the book is difficult to read, anyone who does not finish it for that reason is only attempting to, "hide his moral littleness, not his mental incapacity," (788).

I chose to read the letter from Edward FitzGerald to Alfred Tennyson because he mentions the previous review in Athenaeum. Fitzgerald writes to Tennyson to ask his opinion on RAB because he is unable to finish it, despite the good reviews by the Athenaeum. He says to Tennyson, "I want to know what you yourself think of this poem; you who are the one man to judge of it, and magnanimous enough to think me capable of seeing what is fine in it," (791). He also mentions how he is unable to read Browning at all and he wonders what the readers of Milton, Shakespeare, Pope, and Tennyson might think of RAB. The reply to FitzGerald's letter did not survive but in another letter FitzGerald says, "It seems to me an audacious piece of defiance to the Public whom he [Browning] has found so long blind to his Merits," (792).

The third review I chose to read was "Richelieu" [unidentified], Vanity Fair 1. The author's opening line describes RAB as, "Deeply, intensely, human," and "a burning protest against the atheistic belief that men and women are creatures of circumstances," and is also, "asserts a Presence in the world," (774). The author compares Browning to a Roman gladiator, defending into the arena and grappling "with terrible realities, and hold death itself in his strong grip," (774). He tells readers who do not want reality to look elsewhere because RAB is not for them. 

Analysis: 

Like FitzGerald, I find RAB very hard to read. I thought it would be simple because it is in poetic form and I though I could read through it at a quicker pace than if it were in novel form; but I was very wrong. Even just reading the two book (V and VII) has been difficult and I find myself constantly re-reading the footnotes and looking up bible verses in order to try and grasp Browning's meaning. Like most of his poems, his meaning is obscure to me and even after doing some outside research I am unable to understand him. 

There is one thing I have found interesting, however, and I didn't think about it until I read the last review in my summary. The author mentions how RAB is a "burning protest of against the atheistic belief that men and women are creatures of circumstances," (774). After reading Tess of the d'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy, the major theme of which is Naturalism and the lack of a "Presence" that guides people, I like the author of the review's idea that Browning is fighting that very idea. Although Tess was published after RAB, the idea of Naturalism was prevalent during the time of RAB's publication and I like to see Browning fighting against that idea. 

Word Cited

Browning, Robert. The Ring and the Book. Broadview Press, Print. 

Initial Responses to the Poem

For this blog, I will summarize and and analyze three critical essays about Robert Browning's The Ring and the Book.

Summary:

The first essay I read was by Robert W. Buchanan from the Athenaeum. Buchanan opens the essay by calling Browning, "The opus magnum of our [Buchanan and his peers] generation," (787). He also states that readers of The Ring and the Book (RAB) will be unable to decide, "which to admire most, the supremely precious gold of the material or the wondrous beauty of the workmanship. Buchanan says that Browning's work has him so much in awe that he is struggling to write about it; however, he must write his "convictions" as soon as possible. Buchanan describes RAB as the, "Most precious and profound spiritual treasure that England has produced since the days of Shakespeare," (787). He also admits that, although the book is difficult to read, anyone who does not finish it for that reason is only attempting to, "hide his moral littleness, not his mental incapacity," (788).

I chose to read the letter from Edward FitzGerald to Alfred Tennyson because he mentions the previous review in Athenaeum. Fitzgerald writes to Tennyson to ask his opinion on RAB because he is unable to finish it, despite the good reviews by the Athenaeum. He says to Tennyson, "I want to know what you yourself think of this poem; you who are the one man to judge of it, and magnanimous enough to think me capable of seeing what is fine in it," (791). He also mentions how he is unable to read Browning at all and he wonders what the readers of Milton, Shakespeare, Pope, and Tennyson might think of RAB. The reply to FitzGerald's letter did not survive but in another letter FitzGerald says, "It seems to me an audacious piece of defiance to the Public whom he [Browning] has found so long blind to his Merits," (792).

The third review I chose to read was "Richelieu" [unidentified], Vanity Fair 1. The author's opening line describes RAB as, "Deeply, intensely, human," and "a burning protest against the atheistic belief that men and women are creatures of circumstances," and is also, "asserts a Presence in the world," (774). The author compares Browning to a Roman gladiator, defending into the arena and grappling "with terrible realities, and hold death itself in his strong grip," (774). He tells readers who do not want reality to look elsewhere because RAB is not for them. 

Analysis: 

Like FitzGerald, I find RAB very hard to read. I thought it would be simple because it is in poetic form and I though I could read through it at a quicker pace than if it were in novel form; but I was very wrong. Even just reading the two book (V and VII) has been difficult and I find myself constantly re-reading the footnotes and looking up bible verses in order to try and grasp Browning's meaning. Like most of his poems, his meaning is obscure to me and even after doing some outside research I am unable to understand him. 

There is one thing I have found interesting, however, and I didn't think about it until I read the last review in my summary. The author mentions how RAB is a "burning protest of against the atheistic belief that men and women are creatures of circumstances," (774). After reading Tess of the d'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy, the major theme of which is Naturalism and the lack of a "Presence" that guides people, I like the author of the review's idea that Browning is fighting that very idea. Although Tess was published after RAB, the idea of Naturalism was prevalent during the time of RAB's publication and I like to see Browning fighting against that idea. 

Word Cited

Browning, Robert. The Ring and the Book. Broadview Press, Print. 

The Politics of Dramatic Form

In this blog, I will (attempt to) summarize and analyze Isobel Armstrong's 'The Politics of Dramatic Form'. 

Summary: 

Isobel Armstrong's "Polictics of Dramatic Form," begins by talking about Browning's 'Prophyria's Lover' and 'Johannas Agricola' and how he has a running dialogue throughout them both. Armstrong mentions Mill's 'What is poetry?' and 'The two kinds of poetry', which both make the distinction between the two kinds of knowledge: knowledge granted by expressive feeling and phycological experience and the knowledge granted by the scientist. Armstrong then goes on in the next paragraph to say, "the purest form of expressive lyric is feeling dramatized as 'soliloquy' but this drama is not a public transition between actor and audience," (558) . She emphasizes this point later by discussing Browning's 'Propheria' and 'Johannas' and the different realities each speaker is living. Neither speaker is interacting with an audience or even acknowledges there is anyone listening to their dialogue. Armstrong explains how, in the context of each poem, the real world does not exist. In 'Propheria', it is as if the speaker has created his lover in his own imagination as a fantasy, rather than the women being a real life person. In 'Johannas', she explains how the speaker has an odd relationship with God (his listener?) and how it is as if time has stopped. So in each poem, it is as if the real world does not exist. 

The next half of the essay is 'The Dramatic Poem and the Theory of Finction'. One section of this half of the essay that made the most sense is the paragraph that starts by Armstrong quoting Bentham, "To be spoken of at all, ever fictitious entity must be spoken of as if it were real,"  and "Ficticious entity bears some relation to some real entity," (571). Armstrong relates these ideas to words such as, "God, love, [and] soul," (571). Armstrong also discusses the ways in which Browning does and doesn't use the different ideas of Mill and Fox throughout his poetry. She concluded her essay by stating, "Browning's poetry becomes a dare with the status of the fiction, an analytical process which ceaselessly investigates the nature of utterance and its representations and their cultural meaning," (575).

Analysis:

I realize that my detail in the summery are a little bit lacking but  had an extremely difficult time understanding anything the essay was talking about. Even after reading through the essay twice, I could not really figure out what Armstrong was actually trying to say. To me, I felt like she kept talking about things that did not really connect (although I am sure they do connect in. I just don't understand how). As I said above, the only part of the essay that actually made sense to me was the one about fiction and how it always related to something in real life. It seems to relate to Browning because, as we have discussed in class, he tends to take already existing monologues and uses a character within them to create something new. Also, I just really love to read fiction so it was very interesting to read that quote. In conclusion, I could really use some clarification of this essay and how it connects.

Religion and Factory Reform

In the blog, I will summarize Appendix B: Religion and Factory Reform from Elizabeth Barrett Browning (EBB) Selected Poems. I will then analyze The Cry of the Children based on my reading. 

Summery:

This compilation of experts from various journals and other writing can be broken into two separate parts. The first involves EBB's use of religion in her poems, as well as the harsh working conditions of the Victorian Era. First, I would like to focus on the region portion. The various authors of the works highly regard EBB's use of religion in her poetry. Samuel B. Holcomb states in his work Death of Mrs. Browning, "We rejoice to be able to assert, most distinctly, that Mrs. Browning, though no sectarian, is eminently a Christian poetess," as well as calling her "the Shakespeare among her sex," (321-322). Holcomb mentions how, although EBB was very aware of the ideas of modern science and had explored the controversies of her time, it is evident through her poetry that she never wavered from her true faith. Throughout many, if not all, or her works, she recognizes, "a Divine Creator of all things, a Being of perfect love and wisdom, who is to each and all of His numberless creatures really and truly a Heavenly Father and person protector," (322). Several other authors discuss EBB's focus on The Virgin Mary. Although many other artists (including poets and authors not only painters and sculptors) attempt to portray Mary's true essence, one author says none are able to do so besides EBB, whose writing is, "the portraiture of Mary's soul, such as in material lineaments no art could express" (324). The remainder of the section on religion discusses EBB's use of poetry to capture the deepest aspects of Mary.

The next section of Appendix B is called Factory Reform however, it is mainly just several account on the harsh working conditions (particularly for children) during the Victorian Era. During that time, child labor was a problem that was running rampant. Children were desired in factories because they had small hands that could easily fit into small areas of machinery. Although it was very dangerous work, many families could not provide for themselves and children were forced to begin working at early ages. Many of the excerpts in this section were first-hand accounts of what the working conditions were like for children. They describe various young people during work hours and what those young people thought of their work. Although many did not blame the people they worked for, they did often wish for a better life. The excerpts described the children of being dirty, malnourished and with hardly any clothing. It also describes a horrific accident that caused the death of one boy and severe injuries to others. As a part of their jobs, children were forced to work with dangerous heavy equipment and accidents happened often. One specific passage talks about 10 year-old Eliza Field, who has been working in one factory for at least a year. She was a religious girl but, "has never heard of Heaven; nor Jesus Christ," (328). Eliza had gone to school when she was very young but was forced to start working before the age of nine. 

Analysis:

When I frost saw the title of Appendix B, the two subjects seemed very random and I did not understand why they had not separate "religion" and "factory reform" into different appendices. Soon after starting the section in Appendix B on "factory reform" the reasoning behind the odd pairing clicked and I completely understood. EBB's The Cry of the Children is mixture of a religious piece as well as a call for factory reform. EBB uses incredible imagery to bring to life the suffering of the young working children. In the fourth stanza of the poem, the children admit that they could die before their time and recall one girl, named Alice, who had died young. However, they do not see death as something to be afraid of. In fact, they almost welcome it. Like Alice, if they die there will be no one trying to wake them saying, "Get up…it is day," (152). Death is an escape from their suffering and, "it is good when it happens," (152). The children do not mention any word of heaven or God when they talk about death; however, they realize life will be better for them once they do die. To these children, God does not exist and they are on there own. They have suffered so much throughout their young lives and they say, "We look up for God, but tears have made us blind," (155). They do not know God and if they knew Him once, their faith has left them. 

I think EBB made a bold statement with this poem. From reading Appendix B, I have realized that she is gifted in bringing out deep religious messages in her poems. She seems to praise all that is God, including Jesus and Mary. However, with this poem, EBB brings to life the fact that deep, true suffering can break even the strongest faith: the faith of a child. If there is anything I have learned since I started working with children, it's that they have almost unfailing trust. They believe in things adults cannot believe in. A child's faith is the purest and deepest faith. The young people in The Cry of the Children, many of which are no older than 10, have been broken through work and no longer have faith in God. EBB could have easily turned this poem strictly into a religious work by giving the children unfailing faith in their God. It would not have had the same effect though. This poem was meant to be a call for reform. EBB created very real images of the never-ending suffering of children and she really hit that image home when those children are faithless and cynical. Those are qualities only seen in adults and we believe no child should have those qualities. Seeing those suffering children almost standing right in front of us strikes a deep emotion deep inside that sticks with the person who reads the poem. It is that emotion that EBB needed in order to try and make a change.

Work Cited

Stone, Marjorie, and Beverly Taylor. Elizabeth Barrett Browning Selected Poems. Broadview Editions, Print.

Victorian Views on Robert Browning

In this blog, I will summarize and analyze three critical articles on the views of Robert Browning during Victorian time. 

Summery: 

The first article I read was written by George Eliot (Mary Anne Evans) which was taken from her unsigned review in The Westminster Review. Eliot begins the article by saying Robert Browning's "poems have a 'majestic obscurity' which repels not only the ignorant but the idle," (498).  She says that in many cases, poetry is read in an easy, rhythmic manner where the reader can just flow with the poem without much thought on the content. However this is not the case with Robert Browning's poetry. She says when reading Browning's poetry, the reader must "exert himself, but he will exert himself to some purpose. If he finds the meaning difficult to access, it is always worth his efforts," (498). She praises Browning for his originality and the way he writes his deep, intellectual thoughts with artistic beauty. However, Eliot does offer some criticism of Browning mentioning "the worst poems in his new volumes are, in our opinion, his lyrical efforts; for in these, where he engrosses us less by his thought, we are more sensible of his obscurity and his want of melody," (500). Although lyric Browning's strong point, Eliot praises him as a poet and an intellect.

Browning's Alleged Carelessness, written by William Morris, addresses Browning as "high among the poets of all time… it is a bitter thing to [Morris] to see the way in which he has been received by almost everybody," (501). Morris defends Browning against the obscurity that he is accused of by critics. Many critics of the time believed that Browning's poetry was so obscure, it could hardly be understood by any reader. Morris counters this by saying that it is true Browning can be obscure in his writing, but only a perfect poet could write without being obscure. Morris says it is not Browning's obscurity that makes his poems hard to understand but the shallow brains of the reader. If poetry was meant to be light easy literature, than Browning's poems would in fact be too obscure but poetry is not light and easy. Morris defends Browning further by comparing him to the early careers of Tennyson and Ruskin, saying if they were judged only by their early work, as Browning was at the time, they would not be as famous as they are. 

The third article was the only one I read that was not in favor of Browning, as least not as a poet. Alfred Austin, the author of this particular article, does praise Browning for his deep intellectual thinking. He begins his essay by dividing poets and and philosophers into two separate "countries" so to speak. The natives of each country are fluent in their own languages and costumes but are able to cross into each other. To Austin, Browning is a native of the philosophical country, but one who often travels to that of the poets. Although he may go their often, poetry is not his first language, therefor he does not paster it like a true native, or poet, would. In fact, Austin goes as far to say, "Browning is not a poet at all… but a deep thinker" (510). Like Morris, Austin compares Browning to Tennyson but not at all in the same way. Austin says admirers of Tennyson "need be in no fear lest Mr. Tennyson should be displaced by any critic in his sound senses to make way for Mr. Browning. When men desire to behold the flight of an eagle, and cannot get it, they do not usually regard the tramp of an elephant as a substitute," (512).

Analysis:

After reading the articles, I found myself agreeing more with the first two than with the third. Reading Robert Browning's poetry is definitely difficult and it does require me to search every line for meaning but it is not so obscure that it is impossible to understand. When we first started this class, we read the article about the role of the reader in Browning's poetry, and it mentioned how Browning himself said he wants his readers to be engaged fully while reading his writing. I think he accomplishes that is a beautifully artistic way, especially in his dramatic monologues. His speakers always have knowledge that we as the readers to not, and for this reason we have to delve fully into the text to discover what this information is and find meaning otherwise hidden. I can obviously see how this can be seen as obscurity and I can also see how it could easily get out of hand. Browning does not let this happen though. With enough thought, some meaning can be drawn from his words and like Eliot says, the work is always worth it. 

I do not agree with Austin's claim that Browning is not a poet at all. His poetry may be unconventional, especially during the Victorian Age, but that does not make him any less of a poet. Austin's reluctance could stem from his close-mindedness and his inability to accept anything new (but this is only a guess. I don't know anything about Alfred Austin). Browning deep intellectual thoughts, mixed with his poetic abilities give his works an element of suspense and surprise. It allows the reader to come to their own conclusions, rather than just feeding them shallow, however beautiful, words. I have not read much poetry in general so I am not pretending t be an expert. However the little poetry I have read by both Browning and Tennyson suggests to me that, just like very other form of literature, there are many different forms. The spectrum of poetry is just as broad as any other form of literature. So to say Browning is not a poet because his works are not like those of Tennyson is like saying Twilight, for example, is not a good series because it is not the same as Harry Potter. They might be very different and have very (very) different followers, but they are still great series. Stephanie Meyer is just as much an author as J.K. Rowling, though their works may be different; Robert Browning is just as much a poet as Tennyson.

Work Cited

Loucks, James, and Andrew Stauffer. Robert Browning's Poetry: A Norton Critical

         Edition. 2nd. W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2007. Print.

The Pragmatics of Silence... Wagner Essay Summery and Analysis

In this blog, I will summarize and analyze Jennifer A. Wagner's essay "The Pragmatics of Silence, and the Figuration of the Reader in Browning's Dramatic Monologues." 

Summery

The introduction to Wagner's essay highlights the role of silence in dramatic monologue and the function of silence is continuously undermined by various factors. Wagner says, "Browning critics have long noted that the typical speaker of a Browning monologue is aggressive, often threatening, nearly always superior, socially and/or intellectually, to the auditor" (576). Because of this fact, the auditor has no choice but to listen and "is often (in) a silence of intimidation" (576). Browning's "My Last Duchess" is the perfect example of this intimidation induced silence of the auditor so much so that the presence of a listener is not even apparent until more than half way through the poem. The auditor is cast into the shadows as if the speaker was speaking to himself. However we know he is there when the speaker comments on an unseen facial expression. In this way the auditor makes himself known and, although he is silent, brings himself into the light and makes himself known. For the reader, on the other hand, silence is optional, therefor undermining the speaker and the intimidating silence the speaker is trying to force on the auditor and the audience. The reader is able to completely engage in the speakers speech and sympathize yet pull herself away in order to judge. Wagner also mentions Browning own meaning behind his dramatic monologues. Through his work, Browning wanted to the active engagement of the reader. She highlights Browning's attempt to emphasize the journey rather than the destination. 

Analysis 

This essay really helped me to understand the thought process behind Robert Browning's writing. Before I read this, I could not connect to his poems in a positive way. I thought they were just morbid and I was a little disturbed. However, after reading this essay, I realized there is a deeper meaning to his poems than I could have ever guessed (there usually is). The end of Wagner's essay really put it into perspective when she mentioned Browning's own quotes about how the reader should not just fallow along the text but be actively involved with it. His dramatic monologues are not just an interaction between the speaker and the auditor but an intwining relationship between the speaker, the auditor and the reader. They are all interconnected and the true meaning of the poem cannot be drawn out without the cooperation of all three. After I read this essay, I went back and read through all the poems we have read so far, and I tried to engage myself the way Browning would have wanted me to in the first place and I was able to understand both the sympathy and the judgment in a way that I could not before. Wagner's parallels between the speaker, auditor and listener made the reading experience much more challenging as well as rewarding. 

Work Cited

Wagner, Jennifer A. “The Pragmatics of Silence, and the Figuration of the Reader in Browning’s Dramatic Monolugues.” Robert Browning’s Poetry. Ed. James F. Loucks and Andrew M. Stauffer. 2^nd Edition. New York: W.W. Norton, 2007. 275-259. Print.

Robert Browning

On May 7, 1812, Robert Browning was born to Robert and Sarah Browning in a small English suburb, Camberwell. Like Elizabeth, Robert was an accomplished youth and spent most of his time reading and  by age 14, he knew Latin, Greek, Italian and French. He attened the University of London but withdrew from the school in order to learn at his own pace. He began his writing career by trying to write his own stage dramas, however, he was unsuccessful. After this, began pick apart existing plays, taking one character and molding him/her into one that often resembled Robert himself. This form of writing became known as dramatic monologue. This new form of writing did not earn him popularity with Victorian critics and it was only with the publishing of a series of pamphlets called Bells and Pomegranates that his career began to be looked at with favor rather than criticism. Robert's major works include Paracelsus, Sordello, The Ring and The Book along with various assortments of published poems. In 1845, Robert Browning began to become familiar with Elizabeth Barrett's works of poetry and resolved to meet her. After a short courtship, Robert and Elizabeth married (against the wishes of her father) and eloped to Italy where Elizabeth gave birth to their son Robert Weidemann Barrett Browning.
Although Robert's works never reached the popularity of his wife's during her lifetime, they quickly began to gain momentum. He continued publishing his writing twenty years after her death and became known as one of the greatest poets of his time (along with Tennyson). Robert Browning died in 1889 and is now buried in in the Poets Corner of Westminster Abby.