Elizabeth Barrett Browning

First let me say Ms. Browning gets major kudos from me for translating “Prometheus Unbound” and writing the sequel to “Paradise Lost.” Besides those works, Elizabeth Barrett Browning was an inspiration to not only fellow lady writers but all women in general. Topics such as American slavery and child laboring are a few topics she voice her opinion about. By far her most favorite work was ”Sonnets from the Portuguese.” The most familiar line has to be from her 43 poem starting at the first line and it goes “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways,” which until now I had no idea that she was responsible for that famous line. She goes on to say…

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of Being and ideal Grace.
I love thee to the level of everyday's
Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.
I love thee freely, as men strive for Right;
I love thee purely, as they turn from Praise.
I love thee with the passion put to use
In my old grief’s, and with my childhood's faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints!---I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life!---and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.
(from “Sonnets from the Portuguese” poem 43)

Now what is funny about this is that before reading this I thought that the first line belonged to a cartoon character named Roger Rabbit (from the movie “Who Framed Roger Rabbit”), man did I feel silly after reading this. Ok, back to the writing. I mean if this verse is any indication you can tell this women truly knew how to love and love hard. The passion to go against her father and marry her loving mate anyway show her happiness and commitment to love, where as when her brother died and she became bed stricken you saw the pain and disappointment in love. And through a lot of her poems you could see that good versus evil battle, which I believe True love is all about.