Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Sonnet 31 “Thou comest! all is said without a word”  

Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Sonnet 31 “Thou comest! all is said without a word”  

Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s speaker in sonnet 31 “Thou comest! all is said without a word” continues to explore her self-doubt, as she seems to be reverting to her old melancholy ways of thinking. 

Introduction and Text of Sonnet 31 “Thou comest! all is said without a word”

The speaker in Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s sonnet 31 “Thou comest! all is said without a word” from Sonnets from the Portuguese seems to be backsliding into her earlier cloud of self-doubt.  Again, she seems to be questioning her good fortune at attracting such a fine belovèd suitor.

This always musing speaker has grown so accustomed to indulging in sorrow and melancholy that she continues to find it difficult to accept that she can now breathe the fresh air of love, faith, hope, and happiness.  The speaker thus is continuing to examine her plight, and self-doubt seems to return to haunt her without relief.

Sonnet 31 “Thou comest! all is said without a word”

Thou comest! all is said without a word.
I sit beneath thy looks as children do
In the noon-sun, with souls that tremble through
Their happy eyelids from an unaverred
Yet prodigal inward joy. Behold, I erred
In that last doubt! and yet I cannot rue
The sin most, but the occasion—that we two
Should for a moment stand unministered
By a mutual presence. Ah, keep near and close,
Thou dovelike help! and, when my fears would rise,
With thy broad heart serenely interpose:
Brood down with thy divine sufficiencies
These thoughts which tremble when bereft of those,
Like callow birds left desert to the skies.

Commentary on Sonnet 31 “Thou comest! all is said without a word”

The speaker in sonnet 31 “Thou comest! all is said without a word” is again exploring her self-doubt and sorrowful life.  It does seem that melancholy must remain a part of her existence.

First Quatrain:  Returning to Melancholy

Thou comest! all is said without a word.
I sit beneath thy looks as children do
In the noon-sun, with souls that tremble through
Their happy eyelids from an unaverred

The speaker in sonnet 31 “Thou comest! all is said without a word” again finds herself rethinking one of her earlier episodes of doubt that return to her from time to time despite her growing confidence in the love of her belovèd suitor. 

The speaker excitedly exclaims, “Thou comest!”—as if she is utterly surprised that he should return. She reports that neither speaks, and she sits in his gaze somewhat as children would do “in the noon-sun.” 

Their souls are engaged and “tremble” at the “inward joy,” even though they hardly understand the meaning or eventual consequences of that joy. As is often the case with this speaker, she is somewhat taken aback by her own emotions.

Second Quatrain:  Feeling Like a Prodigal

Yet prodigal inward joy. Behold, I erred
In that last doubt! and yet I cannot rue
The sin most, but the occasion—that we two
Should for a moment stand unministered

The speaker feels as “prodigal” now as she has felt quite early in this budding relationship. As the reader has seen many times before, the speaker’s confidence waxes and wanes. First, she trusts the strength of this new love and then again a “doubt” will creep into her mind.

The speaker has begun to employ code words that hint of a marriage ceremony which she, no doubt, has difficulty believing will ever come to fruition.  The speaker, indeed, wonders if the two of them will ever stand and take the vows of husband and wife.

First Tercet:  A Pathetic Plea

By a mutual presence. Ah, keep near and close,
Thou dovelike help! and, when my fears would rise,
With thy broad heart serenely interpose:

The half-sorrowful speaker offers a pathetic plea, half to her belovèd and half to her own pride, begging that his love remain “near and close,” as she calls his assistance “dovelike.”  The speaker now understands, however, that she will continue to experience those doubts, and likely her “fears would rise” repeatedly.

The speaker continues to assert that her belovèd has a “broad heart,” and she believes in his ability to remain stable, an eventuality which seems to give her a feeling of steadiness.  The doubting speaker cannot trust her own ability to trust, but she can keep faith that her belovèd will remain strong enough to lift her out of her slough of constant doubt.

Second Tercet:  The Simple Knowledge of Being Loved

Brood down with thy divine sufficiencies
These thoughts which tremble when bereft of those,
Like callow birds left desert to the skies.

Taking comfort in her belovèd’s strength and endurance, the speaker asserts that she will be able to endure life in the simple knowledge of being loved by such a strong soul. Again, speaking half to her belovèd and half to her own soul, the speaker likens her own soul to baby birds that have been left “to the skies.”

But as those “callow birds” are nurtured by “divine sufficiencies,” the speaker determines to strive to attain and keep the faith that will eventually lead her to her own self-sufficiency. 

But the speaker will also continue to implore and glorify the relationship with her belovèd, in whose glow she will continue to bask as she proceeds on her journey toward love and fulfillment.