The cry of the children\ Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Publication Context:

Published in August 1843 in Blackwood’s Magazine.

Inspired by the 1842 Royal Commission of Inquiry report on child labor and Browning’s
advocacy for liberal causes.

Epigraph:

Quotes Euripides’ Medea: “Alas, alas, why do you gaze at me with your eyes, my
children.”

Implicates readers in the systemic exploitation and suffering of children.

Structure & Form:

Thirteen stanzas, each with 12 lines (except stanza 4, which has 16).

Rhyme scheme: ABABCDCDEFEF (with minor variations, e.g., ABABCDCDAEAE in the

first stanza).

Repetition of end rhymes (e.g., “brothers”/“mothers”) to unify themes.

Themes:

Child Labor Exploitation: Contrasts the innocence of children with the brutality of
industrial labor.

Despair vs. Hope: Children view death as a release from suffering.

Religious Doubt: Questions God’s presence amid their suffering (e.g., “He is
speechless as a stone”).

Societal Guilt: Critiques upper-class indifference and systemic oppression (“How long,
O cruel nation, will you tread on a child’s heart?”).

Key Literary Devices:

Anaphora: Repetition of “The young…” (stanza 1) and “The old…” (stanza 2) to contrast
innocence with decay.

Metaphor: Compares children’s hearts bound “with a cerement from the grave” to
emphasize their emotional death.

Enjambment: Creates rhythmic urgency (e.g., “Do ye hear the children weeping… / Ere
the sorrow comes with years?”).

Dialogue: Gives voice to the children, amplifying their desperation (e.g., “Our blood
splashes upward, O our tyrants”).
Notable Imagery:

“Pale and sunken faces” of children vs. “young lambs,” “birds,” and “fawns” in nature.

Industrial imagery: “wheels of iron,” “coal-dark underground,” and “cold metallic

motion” symbolizing dehumanization.

Significant Quotes:

“They are weeping in the playtime of the others, / In the country of the free.”

“Weep, let them weep!—They are weary ere they run.”

“The child’s sob curseth deeper in the silence / Than the strong man in his wrath.”

Critique & Legacy:

Praised for its bold social critique but criticized for sentimentality.

Remains a seminal work in Victorian literature for exposing child labor’s horrors.

Sonnet 43: How do I love thee? Let me count the

ways”\ Elizabeth Barrett Browning
• Title & Author
o “Sonnet 43” (often titled “How Do I Love Thee? Let Me Count the Ways”)
is by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, one of the foremost Victorian poets and
a contemporary influence on writers like Emily Dickinson.
• Place in Collection
o It appears in her celebrated sequence Sonnets from the Portuguese,
written during her courtship with Robert Browning.
• Summary of Content
o The speaker enumerates the many dimensions of her love for her
husband: its infinite depth, its presence in everyday needs (by sun and
candle-light), its freedom and purity, its passion drawn from old griefs
and childlike faith, and even its endurance beyond death.
• Structure & Form
o A Petrarchan sonnet of fourteen lines in iambic pentameter, employing
the typical abba abba cdcd cd rhyme scheme.
• Major Themes & Tone
o Infinite Love – Love as boundless in space (“depth and breadth and
height my soul can reach”).
o Everyday Devotion – Love woven into daily life’s simple needs.
o Moral and Spiritual Purity – Love offered freely “as men strive for right,”
purely “as they turn from praise.”
 o Eternal Commitment – A vow to love “better after death” if God so
chooses.
• Key Literary Devices
o Similes (“freely, as men strive for right”; “purely, as they turn from
praise”) to liken love to moral action.
o Consonance and rhythmic repetition to convey ongoing movement of
feeling.
o Religious Motifs (“childhood’s faith,” “lost saints”) underscoring the
sacred nature of her devotion.
• Historical Background
o Browning and Robert Browning exchanged letters and wed in secret to
defy her father’s opposition; he later disinherited her. The sonnet’s
inclusion in Sonnets from the Portuguese reflects both their mutual
literary admiration and her affectionate nickname, “my little Portuguese.”

Matthew Arnold’s “Dover Beach”:

• Author & Historical Context
o Written by Matthew Arnold in the mid-Victorian era, “Dover Beach”
reflects anxieties about the decline of Christian faith in England as
scientific ideas (e.g., Darwin’s evolution) gained prominence
• Form & Structure
o A dramatic monologue in four stanzas totaling 37 lines, with a notably
irregular opening “sonnet” stanza (rhyme scheme abacebecdfcgfg)
signaling a break from poetic convention
• Voice & Perspective
o The poem is delivered by a single speaker (often read as Arnold himself),
who addresses an implied companion—shifting from quiet description to
moral reflection and intimate appeal
• Content & Progression
o Stanza 1: A calm sea and fleeting light across the Channel symbolize
fading faith.
o Stanza 2: The speaker invites his companion to “come to the window,”
then focuses on the “grating roar” and “tremulous cadence” of the
waves, which carry an “eternal note of sadness.”
o Stanza 3: Alludes to Sophocles hearing the same sound on the Aegean;
introduces the central metaphor of the “Sea of Faith” that once girdled
the world but now “withdraws.”
 o Stanza 4: A personal plea—“Ah, love, let us be true / To one another!”—
against a bleak backdrop where the world offers “neither joy, nor love, nor
light… nor peace,” and “ignorant armies clash by night.”
• Major Themes
o Loss of Faith: The receding “Sea of Faith” as a symbol of waning religious
certainty.
o Human Misery & Isolation: The waves’ ebb and flow mirror the “turbid
ebb and flow / Of human misery.”
o Science vs. Tradition: Implicit tension between emerging scientific
thought and established belief.
o Personal Connection: In a “darkling plain” world, genuine human love
becomes a refuge.
• Key Literary Devices
o Imagery & Metaphor: The sea’s movements and the “Sea of Faith” evoke
spiritual decline.
o Allusion: Reference to Sophocles situates the poem in a broader human
history of suffering.
o Sound Devices: “Grating roar,” “tremulous cadence,” and enjambment
convey both physical and emotional rhythm.
o Contrast & Juxtaposition: Tranquil natural scene vs. “confused alarms
of struggle and flight.”

Crossing the bar \ Alfred Tennyson

📌 About the Poet:

• Alfred Tennyson (b. August 6, 1809) is a major Victorian-era poet.

• His poetry often reflects grief over the death of a close friend.
• Themes include death, faith, and religion, capturing a central conflict of the
Victorian age.

📌 Title Meaning:

• “Crossing”: Can mean moving from life to death, or a Christian prayer.

• “Bar”: A sandbar, metaphor for the boundary between life and death.
📌 Poem Summary:

• The poem symbolizes the speaker's acceptance of death.

• Imagery like sunset, twilight, and evening bell signal the end of life.
• He wishes for a calm departure without sorrow.
• Expresses hope to meet his “Pilot” (a Biblical reference to Christ) after death.

📌 Literary Devices:

• Allegory: The poem is a metaphorical journey from life to afterlife.

• Puns: “Crossing” and “bar” have layered meanings.
• Imagery:
o Visual: “Sunset and evening star”
o Auditory: “Evening bell”, “call”
• Figures of Speech:
o Simile/Personification: “Seems asleep”
o Metaphor: “Boundless deep”, “the dark”
o Allusion: “Pilot” = Christ

Tithonus" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson:

📌 Poem Summary:

• Form: Dramatic monologue in blank verse (unrhymed iambic pentameter).

• Tithonus laments the curse of eternal life without youth.
• He describes the bitterness of aging beside the ever-young Aurora.
• He wishes to die and return to nature, finding eternal life unnatural and painful.
• He sees Aurora every morning but feels tormented by her youth and his decay.

📌 Key Themes:

1. Grief:
a. Tithonus mourns his lost youth and condition.
b. Reflects Tennyson’s broader exploration of personal loss and sadness.
2. Time:
 a. Time is both endless and destructive for Tithonus.
b. The poem critiques the idea of escaping time’s limits (like death).
3. Nature:
a. Nature is cyclical—birth, decay, death.
b. Tithonus's unnatural state separates him from this cycle, causing
suffering.
4. Death:
a. Death is portrayed as a release, not a tragedy.
b. Tithonus longs for the peace of death, rather than the torment of living
forever.

📌 Poetic Techniques:

• Dramatic monologue reveals Tithonus’s internal agony.

• Symbolism: Aurora = renewal; Tithonus = decay.
• Contrast between mortal and immortal, youth and age, nature and unnatural
existence.

“Up-hill” by Christina Rossetti

📌 Poem Overview:

• Title: Up-hill
• Author: Christina Rossetti
• Form: Dialogue-based lyrical poem, written in ABAB rhyme scheme.
• Structure: 4 stanzas of 4 lines each.
• Voice: Two speakers — one asks questions, the other gives reassuring answers.

📌 Main Themes:

1. Life as a Journey:
a. The poem uses the metaphor of an uphill road to represent life's
challenges.
b. The road represents the difficult path of life — long, hard, and uncertain.
2. Death and Rest:
a. The “inn” symbolizes a final resting place — possibly death or Heaven.
 b. The questioner seeks comfort after life’s hardships, and the guide
assures them of rest, shelter, and welcome.
3. Faith and Salvation:
a. The tone and dialogue echo Christian devotional literature.
b. The poem reflects Rossetti’s religious beliefs, portraying death as relief
and Heaven as a promised end.

📌 Literary Features:

• Symbolism:
o Road = life
o Night = death
o Inn = Heaven / rest
o Guide = Christ / divine presence
• Dialogue Form: Creates a spiritual conversation, drawing readers into
reflection.
• Tone: Alternates between anxiety (questions) and reassurance (answers).
• Rhythm: Alternating iambic trimeter and pentameter reflects the steady climb
of life.

📌 Interpretations:

1. Life to Death Journey: The inn represents Heaven, reached after life's
hardships.
2. Life's Struggles: The poem shows hope and support for the weary.
3. Purgatory View: Less common, suggests a spiritual waiting period before
reaching Heaven.

Alfred Lord Tennyson's lyrical poem "Come Down,

O Maid."
Poem Overview

• Form: Lyrical, with iambic meter and a consistent rhyme scheme.

• Tone: Pleading, emotional, fluctuates between longing and melancholy.
• Speaker: Addresses a “maid” elevated both literally and metaphorically.
 • Main Appeal: The speaker urges the maid to “come down” to connect
emotionally and physically.

Key Themes

1. Longing and Desire: Central theme—deep emotional yearning for connection.

2. Nature and Beauty: Nature imagery emphasizes purity and beauty.
3. Innocence and Purity: The maid symbolizes unattainable purity.
4. Isolation and Connection: Explores emotional distance and the human need
for closeness.

Symbolism

• The Maid: Represents idealized love, innocence, and emotional distance.

• Nature: Reflects the speaker’s emotional state and the purity of love.
• Elevation and Descent: Symbolizes barriers to intimacy and the desire to
overcome them.

Historical Context

• Published: 1833, Victorian Era.

• Victorian Influence: Reflects societal ideals of purity in women and emotional
restraint, yet acknowledges complex desires.

Literary Devices

• Imagery: Vivid descriptions of the maid and natural world.

• Symbolism: Especially in the maid's position and natural elements.
• Rhyme and Rhythm: Enhance lyrical quality and emotional tone.
• Repetition: Highlights the speaker’s persistent yearning.

“Porphyria’s Lover” by Robert Browning,

📌 Summary of the Poem

• Setting: A stormy evening in a countryside cottage.

• Characters: The speaker (Porphyria’s lover) and Porphyria.
• Plot:
o Porphyria enters, warms the room, and seductively offers herself to the
speaker.
o The speaker remains passive, then concludes that Porphyria truly
“worships” him.
o To preserve the moment of perfect love, he strangles her with her hair.
o He then plays with her corpse, sitting with it all night, and justifies the act
by noting that “God has not said a word.”

🧠 Analysis

• Tone: Shifts from romantic and intimate to eerie and disturbing.

• Mental State of the Speaker:
o Clearly delusional and unreliable.
o Justifies murder as an act of love.
o Believes Porphyria wanted to be with him “forever.”
• Social Commentary:
o Implies a class difference between Porphyria (wealthy) and the speaker
(poor).
o Porphyria’s inability to defy societal norms becomes the speaker’s
justification for murder.

💡 Themes

1. Possession and Control: The speaker seeks to own Porphyria completely.

2. Love and Madness: Love is twisted into an act of violence.
3. Class and Social Constraints: Class difference may be the obstacle to their
union.
4. Morality and God: The speaker equates divine silence with moral approval.
✍️ Literary Devices

• Dramatic Monologue: Entirely from the speaker’s perspective—subjective and

unreliable.
• Personification: Nature mirrors the speaker’s turmoil (e.g., “sullen wind”).
• Irony: The lover sees murder as an act of preserving love.
• Imagery: Vivid and unsettling descriptions of the murder and corpse.

🧾 Conclusion

The speaker is a disturbed sociopath who confuses possession with love. The poem
critiques Victorian ideals of romantic love, power, and gender roles through its chilling
narrative.