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A Voice Within: Three Women Poets
A selection of work by three of the finest women poets of the nineteenth century; Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Emily Dickinson and Christina Rossetti.
- GenresPoetry
64 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1993
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About the author
Elizabeth Barrett Browning
1,008 books702 followersElizabeth Barrett Browning was one of the most respected poets of the Victorian era.
Born in County Durham, the eldest of 12 children, Browning was educated at home. She wrote poetry from around the age of six and this was compiled by her mother, comprising what is now one of the largest collections extant of juvenilia by any English writer. At 15 Browning became ill, suffering from intense head and spinal pain for the rest of her life, rendering her frail. She took laudanum for the pain, which may have led to a lifelong addiction and contributed to her weak health.
In the 1830s Barrett's cousin John Kenyon introduced her to prominent literary figures of the day such as William Wordsworth, Mary Russell Mitford, Samuel Taylor Coleridge; Alfred, Lord Tennyson, and Thomas Carlyle. Browning's first adult collection The Seraphim and Other Poems was published in 1838. During this time she contracted a disease, possibly tuberculosis, which weakened her further. Living at Wimpole Street, in London, Browning wrote prolifically between 1841 and 1844, producing poetry, translation and prose. She campaigned for the abolition of slavery and her work helped influence reform in child labour legislation. Her prolific output made her a rival to Tennyson as a candidate for poet laureate on the death of Wordsworth.
Browning's volume Poems (1844) brought her great success. During this time she met and corresponded with the writer Robert Browning, who admired her work. The courtship and marriage between the two were carried out in secret, for fear of her father's disapproval. Following the wedding she was disinherited by her father and rejected by her brothers. The couple moved to Italy in 1846, where she would live for the rest of her life. They had one son, Robert Barrett Browning, whom they called Pen. Towards the end of her life, her lung function worsened, and she died in Florence in 1861. A collection of her last poems was published by her husband shortly after her death.
Browning was brought up in a strongly religious household, and much of her work carries a Christian theme. Her work had a major influence on prominent writers of the day, including the American poets Edgar Allan Poe and Emily Dickinson. She is remembered for such poems as "How Do I Love Thee?" (Sonnet 43, 1845) and Aurora Leigh (1856).
Born in County Durham, the eldest of 12 children, Browning was educated at home. She wrote poetry from around the age of six and this was compiled by her mother, comprising what is now one of the largest collections extant of juvenilia by any English writer. At 15 Browning became ill, suffering from intense head and spinal pain for the rest of her life, rendering her frail. She took laudanum for the pain, which may have led to a lifelong addiction and contributed to her weak health.
In the 1830s Barrett's cousin John Kenyon introduced her to prominent literary figures of the day such as William Wordsworth, Mary Russell Mitford, Samuel Taylor Coleridge; Alfred, Lord Tennyson, and Thomas Carlyle. Browning's first adult collection The Seraphim and Other Poems was published in 1838. During this time she contracted a disease, possibly tuberculosis, which weakened her further. Living at Wimpole Street, in London, Browning wrote prolifically between 1841 and 1844, producing poetry, translation and prose. She campaigned for the abolition of slavery and her work helped influence reform in child labour legislation. Her prolific output made her a rival to Tennyson as a candidate for poet laureate on the death of Wordsworth.
Browning's volume Poems (1844) brought her great success. During this time she met and corresponded with the writer Robert Browning, who admired her work. The courtship and marriage between the two were carried out in secret, for fear of her father's disapproval. Following the wedding she was disinherited by her father and rejected by her brothers. The couple moved to Italy in 1846, where she would live for the rest of her life. They had one son, Robert Barrett Browning, whom they called Pen. Towards the end of her life, her lung function worsened, and she died in Florence in 1861. A collection of her last poems was published by her husband shortly after her death.
Browning was brought up in a strongly religious household, and much of her work carries a Christian theme. Her work had a major influence on prominent writers of the day, including the American poets Edgar Allan Poe and Emily Dickinson. She is remembered for such poems as "How Do I Love Thee?" (Sonnet 43, 1845) and Aurora Leigh (1856).
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 24, 2019
I really loved this. I haven't read much poetry outside of a few assigned selections back in high school. I've always found it a little daunting and don't really seek it out. Last week I was browsing in a charity shop and this little book caught my eye. I think it has ended up being the perfect introduction for me to three poets that I really want to read more of.
There is a brief biography before each poets section, all interesting enough to send me off Googling for more information and adding biographies to my TBR list!
I found myself instantly taken with Elizabeth Barrett Browning, who is amazingly readable. I hadn't realized that she wrote that famous, "How do I love thee? Let me count the ways."
At first when I began the Emily Dickinson section, I didn't click with her as quickly, but after a poem or two I adjusted to this new voice and found myself enjoying her work just as much.
Christina Rossetti was also wonderful, my favourite being an extract from 'Goblin Market', which was accompanied by a gorgeous illustration by Arthur Rackham.
I am now very fond of this book, and already have favourites that I have read several times. It's prompted me to seek out more work by these poets, and more poetry in general.
There is a brief biography before each poets section, all interesting enough to send me off Googling for more information and adding biographies to my TBR list!
I found myself instantly taken with Elizabeth Barrett Browning, who is amazingly readable. I hadn't realized that she wrote that famous, "How do I love thee? Let me count the ways."
At first when I began the Emily Dickinson section, I didn't click with her as quickly, but after a poem or two I adjusted to this new voice and found myself enjoying her work just as much.
Christina Rossetti was also wonderful, my favourite being an extract from 'Goblin Market', which was accompanied by a gorgeous illustration by Arthur Rackham.
I am now very fond of this book, and already have favourites that I have read several times. It's prompted me to seek out more work by these poets, and more poetry in general.
October 23, 2015
Discovering gems that I had not read before. I particularly enjoy the mini biographies of each poet. This is a nice little book to have around for a rare moment of thoughtful solitude.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews