Sonnet 29 – Elizabeth Barrett Browning:

Question 1

Context:

Answer 1

She wrote these sonnets about her future husband, Robert Browning.

Question 2

Summary:

Answer 2

She tells her lover how much she thinks about him when they are not together, but worries her thoughts obscure the reality of him. She reassures him that her thoughts do not compare to the reality of him – and wants him to be a strong presence in her life and to be with him rather than just thinking about him.

Question 3

Form:

Answer 3

Sonnet – traditionally love poetry. Written in the Petrarchan form with eight lines (an octave) followed by six lines (a sestet). The octave consists of a problem and the sestet provides a solution. However, the solution arrives in the middle of line 7 – having it come early and in the middle of a line reflects the her impatience to see her lover. It follows an iambic pentameter - with stressed and unstressed syllables.

Question 4

Structure:

Answer 4

The transition from the problem to the solution shows the difference between thinking about her over and being with him. This is emphasised by the reversal of the first and last lines – she’ll no longer think of him as she’ll be too near him.

Question 5

Language about nature:

Answer 5

An extended metaphor used throughout the poem – her thoughts are wild vines which cover him. Her thoughts are constantly growing and unrestrained. The image of the tree casting off the vines reflects how she wants her lover to be strong, permanent part of her life.

Question 6

Excited Language:

Answer 6

The use of ‘!’ shows how the narrator takes joy in thinking about her lover and looks forward to the thought of being with him. Plosive sounds and dynamic verbs emphasise how much she wants to be with him.

Question 7

Themes:

Answer 7

Longing – To be with, not just think of him.

Intensity – She thinks about him all the time and her language is imperatives which almost order him to be with her.

Celebration – Takes pleasure in her feelings of love for him – she enjoys how her thoughts envelop him. She takes joy in the thought of him being a physical presence in her life.

Question 8

Compare to:

Answer 8

Singh Song, Climbing my Grandfather, Winter Swans, Letters from Yorkshire.