Victorian Age poetry

Victorian Age                                                      

              The Victorian Age began in the year 1832, and ended in 1901, which was roughly the period during the reign of Queen Victoria. The Age is recognized for its reformations; strict social, political, and sexual conservatism; and frequent clashes between religion and science. This was the time when a new middle class was emerging. The emerging middle class was moving into the upper class, creating social reform. The definition of a gentleman and lady were changing. A gentleman was characterized by any man who had completed liberal education, and it did not matter what class they belonged to.  The dark side of The Victorian Age comprised of child labor and teenage prostitution. Although, the first ever reform bill made it illegal for children to work on the textile mills, child labor still continued on other work stations. Science and technical advances became a niche. The Victorian Age saw Freud’s advances in psychology, Darwin’s theory of evolution and economic theories of Karl Marx (Hughes). Yet, the importance of novels and poetry still remained. Literature prospered in the works of Alfred Lord Tennyson, Elizabeth Barret Browning, Robert Browning, Mathew Arnold, Charles Darwin, The Bronte sisters, and Rudyard Kipling, among many other prolific authors.

There is a distinction between how a man expresses his love compared to a woman expressing hers. The reason I say this is because I read Lord Byron’s love poems of the Romantic Age and found it to be very different from what I was going to read in the Victorian Age. I realized the dissimilarity after reading Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s “Sonnets from the Portuguese” (Browning 1084). It seemed to me that Byron’s love poems were composed of Women’s beauty compared to Elizabeth Browning, who focused more on the relationship, and how she perceived love. The “Sonnets from Portuguese” were a collection of sonnets written for her husband, Robert Browning, who also happens to be a great Victorian poet. I tried to break down and define each of the sonnets. Sonnet 21, as I see it, is the author’s infatuation. She seems to be in total disbelief that such a man as Robert Browning could love her so passionately. Sonnet 22 is more about breaking the social barriers, and falling in love. Sonnet 32 expresses more doubt, but this time it’s a different kind of doubt than the previous expression.  In Sonnet 32, the author reveals her reason for her disbelief. She never considered herself suitable for her husband and that she thought too low of herself. I like how the sonnets reflect the relationship between the Brownings as their relationship progressed. Sonnet 43, which is perhaps the most popular of them all, expresses total submission to love. It is this sonnet that I heard numerous times before neither appreciating the author, nor the period it was written in (Elizabeth Barret Browning 1084).

Robert Browning, on the other hand, wrote very different poems compared to his wife. I found his poem “Porphyria’s Lover” to be very dramatic, and full of imagery (Browning 1252). It gives the reader a clear setting, a confused mind talking to itself (monologue), and love. After reading the footnote, I came to realize the poem was originally written in the title “Madhouse Cells”, to emphasize the speaker’s abnormal state of mind. I already had a sense of abnormality about the speaker before reading the footnote. However, the element that I found most interesting about this poem is that it became a model for many TV serials and movies to be made later. I have seen so many movies where a psychotic character would go and kill the person who he or she is in love with because, for some reason, they can not be together. I am a little unsure if the speaker kills himself in the end or not because the last lines of the poem state,

Her darling one wish would be heard.

And thus we sit together now,

And all night long we have not stirred

And yet God has not said a word! (Browning 1252)                   

  Nonetheless, it became my personal favorite poem because of its immaculate drama.       

            After my initial interest in Browning, I moved on to read “Love among the Ruins” (Browning 1264). I think it’s a contrast between past and present. He tries to weigh past glories with present day love, and says present love is worth more than past glories. In the poem he writes,

For whole centuries of folly, noise, and sin!

Shut them in,

With their triumphs and their glories and the rest!

Love is the best. (Browning 1264)

 My interpretation of this poem is that he gives more value to love and peace than war. It signifies peace, most likely because this was the time period the English colonies were fighting back. I read this poem twice, slowly, and could not help but appreciate the appealing rhythm. Also, I believe the ruined city is a metaphor for glories that do not last forever. King’s glories from the past were not enough to prevent the city from falling to ruins. Yet, the only thing that remains today is the girl with yellow hair, and her potential love for the author.  

             Alfred Lord Tennyson was the most popular of the poets in the Victorian Age. I had to appreciate the use of the term ‘bar’, in “Crossing the Bar”, being a metaphor about the line between life and afterlife (Tennyson 1211). It is very interesting that he requested this poem to appear as his last poem whenever it was published. It’s a very short, sad poem that accepts death in a peaceful manner.

            “Tears, Idle Tears” is a classic Tennyson poem that deifies human tears. In the poem he says,

Tears from the depth of some divine despair

Rise in the heart, and gather to the eyes,

In looking at the happy autumn fields,

And thinking of the days that are no more. (Tennyson 1135)

In this poem, I was introduced to Tennyson’s astonishing ability to play with words. He exquisitely defined the miseries of reflecting to the past in the form of tears. Tennyson refers tears as being “idle”, emphasizing their futility.  It is interesting to note that the author refers the past being “happy”, therefore, the author is taking a displeasure in thinking of the happy days “that are no more” (Tennyson 1135). The poem goes on lamenting on the memories, comparing memories to the sweetness of first love and its regrets.   

                Mathew Arnold, I felt is the John Keats of the Victorian Age, who was the pick of the poets for me. I read the first few stanzas of the poem “The Buried Life”, and it stirred me a great deal (Arnold 1356). There is always a buried pain in love. It exemplifies the Victorian period in a way that emphasize love in this era was more complex compared to the love that was expressed in the Romantic Age. Poems go deeper into the emotions, which are more realistic and more relatable to the contemporary world. An observation that I came across was that nature is not the central element of the Victorian poems, but it is described extensively as the setting of the poems or as a metaphor. While “Crossing the Bar” by Tennyson uses the “bar” as a metaphor, Browning’s “Love among the Ruins” mentions the ruined city as the setting. In both occasions, nature is not the central element, but is significant concept used to portray the main point.

                “Dover Beach” by Mathew Arnold is another famous poem that shares stereotypical traits of Victorian Age. Arnold’s “Dover Beach” follows the same path, begins with an observation in nature.

The sea is calm tonight

The tide is full, the moon lies fair

Upon the straits-on the French coast the light

Gleams and is gone; the cliffs of England stand, (Arnold 1368)

The roaring sea brings the thought of human misery. The author once again calls for love and peace, realizing frequent wars and struggle contributes to despair. He implies the “sea of faith” to be withdrawing, and calls for mankind to take responsibility for their own actions based on moral grounds. The poem ends making a historical reference to a battle where the invaders slaughtered many of their own men, emphasizing to seek morality against war to end human misery (Arnold 1386).       

                Charles Darwin is one of the major authors whose work exemplifies the Victorian Era. He is the person who embodied the clash between religion and science. Setting aside his academic work, his personal life is an example of a big conflict. Darwin developed an interest in geology and biology, when he was studying to become a clergyman. I am amongst the people who believe science and religion do not go along well together, and centuries ago, Darwin was already appreciating the significance of both religion and science at the same time. Also, I noted that he wrote “The origin of Species” in a scientific manner and did not involve religion, as one might expect from a clergyman.  However, he mentions religion when he states, “I see no good reason why the views given in this volume should shock the religious feelings of anyone” (Darwin 1539). “The Origin of Species” is an example of how Darwin’s scientific perspectives triumphed over his religious beliefs.

              The Victorian Age was the buffer between the Romantics and the present 20^th Century authors and their works. It is significant because it contains the elements of both past and present. The Victorian Age saw the creation of literature still centered on individual life and experiences, a huge leap of progress in the field of science, and more appreciation for literary writers and authors. Victorian literature is so intense that it still has a profound influence on modern literature and media. The compositions of Robert Browning, Mathew Arnold, Alfred Lord Tennyson, and Charles Darwin among many other authors of this Age still shine as much bright as it shone before.  

Works Cited

Hughes, Faye. "Romanticism." British Literature Class. Central Connecticut State University, New Britain. Summer 2010. Lecture.

Browning, Elizabeth Barret. “Sonnets from Portuguese.”  Norton Anthology of English Literature, Package 2. 8th ed. Greenblatt. Vol. D. W W Norton & Co Inc, 2006. 1084 Print.

Browning, Robert. “Porphyria’s Lover.”  Norton Anthology of English Literature, Package 2. 8th ed. Greenblatt. Vol. D. W W Norton & Co Inc, 2006. 1252 Print.

Browning, Robert. “Love among the Ruins.”  Norton Anthology of English Literature, Package 2. 8th ed. Greenblatt. Vol. D. W W Norton & Co Inc, 2006. 1264 Print.

Tennyson, Alfred Lord. “Crossing the Bar.”  Norton Anthology of English Literature, Package 2. 8th ed. Greenblatt. Vol. D. W W Norton & Co Inc, 2006. 1211 Print.

Tennyson, Alfred Lord. “Tears, Idle Tears.”  Norton Anthology of English Literature, Package 2. 8th ed. Greenblatt. Vol. D. W W Norton & Co Inc, 2006. 1135 Print.

Arnold, Mathew. “The Buried Life.”  Norton Anthology of English Literature, Package 2. 8th ed. Greenblatt. Vol. D. W W Norton & Co Inc, 2006. 1356 Print.

Arnold, Mathew. “Dover Beach.”  Norton Anthology of English Literature, Package 2. 8th ed. Greenblatt. Vol. D. W W Norton & Co Inc, 2006. 1368 Print.

Darwin, Charles. “The Origin of Species.”  Norton Anthology of English Literature, Package 2. 8th ed. Greenblatt. Vol. D. W W Norton & Co Inc, 2006. 1539 Print.