Introduction of the Poem: The poem entitled “Death Be Not Proud” is one of his popular “Holy Sonnets.” It deals with the theme of death. After Anne More’s death in 1617, John Donne was haunted with the fear of death. He was highly dejected at the death of his beloved wife. He felt himself alone. … Read more
Introduction of the Sonnet: This sonnet is addressed to Mr. W. H. It throws light on the matchless qualities of true love. In this sonnet the poet points out the immortality of true love. Shakespeare declares that true love is really the greatest power in the world. He points out the difference between true love … Read more
The “Porphyria” persona’s romantic egotism leads him into all manner of monstrously selfish assumptions compatible with his own longings. He seems convinced that Porphyria wanted to be murdered, and claims “No pain felt she” while being strangled, adding, as if to convince himself “I am quite sure she felt no pain”. He may even believe … Read more
Porphyria’s Lover is a dramatic monologue, a poem in which a speaker talks to a silent listener about a dramatic event or experience. Browning is considered to be one of the earliest and greatest practitioners of this form, and Porphyria’s Lover is his first poem in this style. The dramatic monologue offers readers intimate insight … Read more
The poem was written just before the start of Queen Victoria’s rule, as societal standards were shifting towards repressiveness (and particularly towards repression with respect to female sexuality) but not in the heyday of Victorian principles, which didn’t occur until much later in the century. Porphyria is the disease which is believed to have caused … Read more
Tintern Abbey can be called a condensed spiritual autobiography of the poet. Like the Immortality Ode and Prelude, it deals with the subjective experience of the poet, and traces the growth of his mind through different periods of his life. Nature and its influence on the poet’s first visit, in 1793, to the valley of … Read more
The famous poem, “The Tintern Abbey” is called by Myres as “the consecrated formulary of Wordsworthian faith.” This poem is autobiographical in that it traces the development of the poet’s love of Nature from his boyhood to manhood. In the beginning, Nature was only secondary to the poet’s animal pursuits. In the second stage, his … Read more
The Lady of Shalott is not a simple romantic narrative. There is a hidden meaning behind this poem. For its subject – matter the poem has a lady who is doomed to live all alone. If she ever dared to leave her tower or to peep out of the window, she would meet her end. … Read more
The Lady of Shalott is a fascinating poem characterized with several elements of romanticism. Romanticism is often characterized as the ‘Renaissance of wonder’. It is also considered as synonymous with medievalism. Some critics find melancholy, some addition of strangeness to beauty, some liberalism, as the main features of romanticism. The Lady of Shalott is undoubtedly … Read more
Tennyson was a great descriptive artist. His art is essentially picturesque in the sense that he uses words as the painter uses his brush and colours for conveying his inner thoughts and feelings through his paintings. About his pictorial quality, Steadman has remarked, “Leaving the architecture of Tennyson’s poetry and coming to the sentiments which … Read more