Tag: love sonnets

Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Sonnet 42 “‘My future will not copy fair my past’”

Musing and reflecting over some old pieces of her writing, the speaker in Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s sonnet 42 “‘My future will not copy fair my past’” compares her thoughts from the past to her present state of mind.

Introduction and Text of Sonnet 42 “‘My future will not copy fair my past‘”

In Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s sonnet 42 “‘My future will not copy fair my past’,” the speaker has been reading an earlier piece of writing that displays her state of mind back before she had the good fortune to meet her belovèd suitor.   She reveals how extremely hopeless she had been regarding her future. Her heavenly muse had warned her to always take care and seems to agree with her assessment.

The speaker’s life trajectory, however, has since taken an happy turn. The speaker now has passed much time musing about her good fortune.  In the earlier 41 sonnets, she has often shown her contemplation trying to determine if she, in face, is deserving of the love that has come to her from such a brilliant man of accomplishment.  

She has often been found musing and reflecting over her new situation. In sonnet 42, she has come up on some old pieces that she earlier had written.  Thus, she begins to compare and contrast her thoughts from yesteryear to her present state of mind.

Sonnet 42 “‘My future will not copy fair my past‘”

“My future will not copy fair my past“—
I wrote that once; and thinking at my side
My ministering life-angel justified
The word by his appealing look upcast
To the white throne of God, I turned at last,
And there, instead, saw thee, not unallied
To angels in thy soul! Then I, long tried
By natural ills, received the comfort fast,
While budding, at thy sight, my pilgrim’s staff
Gave out green leaves with morning dews impearled.
I seek no copy now of life’s first half:
Leave here the pages with long musing curled,
And write me new my future’s epigraph,
New angel mine, unhoped for in the world!

Commentary  on Sonnet 42 “‘My future will not copy fair my past‘”

The speaker is musing and reflecting over some old pieces of writing; she is comparing her thoughts of the past to her present state of mind.

First Quatrain:  Then and Now

“My future will not copy fair my past“—
I wrote that once; and thinking at my side
My ministering life-angel justified
The word by his appealing look upcast

The speaker is musing over a copy of some notes or pieces of memoir that she had written sometime in her past long before she met her belovèd.  At the time she wrote this line, “My future will not copy fair my past,” she believed it was true because her muse which she calls her “ministering life-angel” approved the words by glancing upward. This glance seemed to be a signal that the thought came directly from God.

Second Quatrain:  Looking to God

To the white throne of God, I turned at last,
And there, instead, saw thee, not unallied
To angels in thy soul! Then I, long tried
By natural ills, received the comfort fast,

Later, the speaker looked directly to God, instead of through her muse/angel. She then saw her belovèd who was clearly bound to “angels in [his] soul.”  The speaker’s long journey from suffering and pain had finally led her to a veritable fountain of healing.

The comforting balm of the speaker’s belovèd quickly revived her spirit, though it took her mind much contemplation and even agitation to understand and finally accept what she had been given by him.

First Tercet:  Beginning to Live

While budding, at thy sight, my pilgrim’s staff
Gave out green leaves with morning dews impearled.
I seek no copy now of life’s first half:

During the journey, the speaker’s “pilgrim’s staff / Gave out green leaves with morning dews impearled.”  A youthful freshness revived the speaker’s thinking and inspired her so fully that she finally felt she was beginning to live.

After at last realizing the beauty and majesty of this man’s feelings for her, the speaker now understands that the second half of her life will be very different from the first half, and she is very grateful for this fortunate change in her situation.  Because of her good fortune, the speaker “seek[s] no copy now of life’s first half.” The pain of the past has been erased, and the future portends brightness and happiness.

Second Tercet:  The Courage to Hope

Leave here the pages with long musing curled,
And write me new my future’s epigraph,
New angel mine, unhoped for in the world!

Regarding the “pages with long musing,” the speaker wishes to allow them to yellow and age and remain unremarkable. She can “write [herself] new [her] future’s epigraph.” The speaker credits her belovèd whom she calls, “New angel mine,” with her transformation, as she admits that she had not even had the courage to hope for such a love “in the world.”

Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Sonnet 41 “I thank all who have loved me in their hearts”

The speaker in Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s sonnet 41 “I thank all who have loved me in their hearts” is expressing her gratitude for all those who have loved her-including, of course, a special debt to her belovèd suitor.

Introduction and Text of Sonnet 41 “I thank all who have loved me in their hearts”

The speaker in Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s sonnet 41 “I thank all who have loved me in their hearts” from Sonnets from the Portuguese focuses on gratitude for all who have loved her, while hoping that she will be able to express the extent of her gratitude to her belovèd.  Again, however, this speaker imparts her own short-comings.  She will never be able to act with total confidence in her ability, or so it seems at his point.

While expressing a special debt to her belovèd suitor, the speaker explores her ability to experience gratitude for all the loves she has known in the past.  Yet, the speaker again places her trust in her belovèd’s ability to teach her true gratitude.  She continues to rely on her suitor to offer her direction in how to feel as well as how to behave.

Sonnet 41 “I thank all who have loved me in their hearts”

I thank all who have loved me in their hearts,
With thanks and love from mine. Deep thanks to all
Who paused a little near the prison-wall
To hear my music in its louder parts
Ere they went onward, each one to the mart’s
Or temple’s occupation, beyond call.
But thou, who, in my voice’s sink and fall
When the sob took it, thy divinest Art’s
Own instrument didst drop down at thy foot
To hearken what I said between my tears, …
Instruct me how to thank thee! Oh, to shoot
My soul’s full meaning into future years,
That they should lend it utterance, and salute
Love that endures, from Life that disappears!

Commentary on Sonnet 41 “I thank all who have loved me in their hearts”

In sonnet 41 “I thank all who have loved me in their hearts,” Barrett Browning’s speaker reveals how deep is her gratitude for all those in her life who have loved her.  She has a special expression for her belovèd suitor.

First Quatrain:  An Expression of Gratitude

I thank all who have loved me in their hearts,
With thanks and love from mine. Deep thanks to all
Who paused a little near the prison-wall
To hear my music in its louder parts

The speaker begins with a simple statement to thank all the people she has had surrounding her who have actually loved her deeply. She then offers her own heart’s love in return. Continuing, she reveals her gratitude as “deep thanks” to all those who have paid some attention to her, especially when they listened to her complaints.

Then, the speaker metaphorically characterizes her tantrumesque outbursts as “music” with “louder parts.”  The speaker nearly always demands decorum for herself that will not allow her to demonize herself even as she freely admits error and sorrowful dissatisfaction.  The pain and sorrow in the speaker’s life has moved her to expressions, as heretofore love never had done.

Second Quatrain:   A Different Expression of Love

Ere they went onward, each one to the mart’s
Or temple’s occupation, beyond call.
But thou, who, in my voice’s sink and fall
When the sob took it, thy divinest Art’s

All the others who had paid the speaker attention, however, were otherwise engaged; some had to scurry off to shopping, others to church, and they all remained far from her. She could not reach them, if she even had needed them.

Of course, her belovèd fiancé not only is near and able to listening to her pleasant thoughts, but he also lovingly remains to listen to her sorrowful outbursts.   The speaker’s belovèd suitor would cease his own musing to listen to her, and she now feels ready to voice her complete attention to his love, patience and devotion.

First Tercet:  His Art Divine 

Own instrument didst drop down at thy foot
To hearken what I said between my tears, …
Instruct me how to thank thee! Oh, to shoot

The speaker is grateful that her belovèd suitor would even interrupt his own work of “divinest Art’s” to attend to her needs and “hearken what I said between my tears.” But in offering such gratitude, the speaker implies that she actually does not know how to thank him for such devotion.

Thus the speaker demands of him to teach her all he knows about the profound state of gratitude.  She feels she lacks the words to convey such gratitude; her need is so great, and her gratitude seems so paltry to fulfill the debt that she owes this man.

Second Tercet:   Evidence of Thankfulness

My soul’s full meaning into future years,
That they should lend it utterance, and salute
Love that endures, from Life that disappears!

The speaker then projects a deep desire that her soul can reveal sometime in future just how grateful she is to her belovèd. She hopes that she can fill her “future years” with evidence of her thankfulness.

The humble speaker prays that her very being will be able to “salute / Love that endures, from Life that disappears!”  Even though the living are in a state of gradual dying, the speaker prays that the love which she has received will somehow be returned along with the sincere gratitude she now feels.

Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Sonnet 40 “Oh, yes! they love through all this world of ours!”

In sonnet 40 “Oh, yes! they love through all this world of ours!,” the speaker is  musing on love as a universal phenomenon and stressing her appreciation for the patient love of her belovèd suitor.

Introduction and Text of Sonnet 40 “Oh, yes! they love through all this world of ours!”

In Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s sonnet 40 “Oh, yes! they love through all this world of ours!” from Sonnets from the Portuguese, the speaker has discovered that her belovèd offers her the love that she finds most satisfying.

This special love demonstrates that it is unlike so many love behaviors and attitudes that have prevailed over the centuries all over the world.  Thus the speaker is musing on love as a general, universal phenomenon.  She then emphasizes her appreciation for the patient love of her belovèd suitor.

Sonnet 40 “Oh, yes! they love through all this world of ours!”

Oh, yes! they love through all this world of ours!
I will not gainsay love, called love forsooth.
I have heard love talked in my early youth,
And since, not so long back but that the flowers
Then gathered, smell still. Mussulmans and Giaours Throw kerchiefs at a smile, and have no ruth
For any weeping. Polypheme’s white tooth
Slips on the nut if, after frequent showers,
The shell is over-smooth,—and not so much
Will turn the thing called love, aside to hate,
Or else to oblivion. But thou art not such
A lover, my Belovèd! thou canst wait
Through sorrow and sickness, to bring souls to touch,
And think it soon when others cry “Too late.”

Commentary on Sonnet 40 “Oh, yes! they love through all this world of ours!”

The speaker is musing on love as a universal phenomenon and then places a special emphasis on her appreciation for the patient love she is experiencing from her belovèd suitor.

First Quatrain:  An Excited Outburst

Oh, yes! they love through all this world of ours!
I will not gainsay love, called love forsooth.
I have heard love talked in my early youth,
And since, not so long back but that the flowers

The speaker begins with an outburst, “Oh, yes!” She then reports that people love all over the world.   The musing speaker then claims that she will not speak ill of the concept of love, especially when the term is used correctly to mean love and not merely lust or sex.

The speaker then states that she remembers hearing people talk about love when she still a young girl, and even recently, she has also heard the word bandied about along with the gifts of flowers.   Yet, this speaker is painfully aware that at times that professed love has lasted only as long as the scent of the flowers.

Second Quatrain:  Different Ideologies on Love

Then gathered, smell still. Mussulmans and Giaours Throw kerchiefs at a smile, and have no ruth
For any weeping. Polypheme’s white tooth
Slips on the nut if, after frequent showers

Differing ideologies perceive love through varying lenses from the devout exemplified by the “Mussulmans” to the “Giaours” or other faiths considered infidels to the “Mussulmans.”   Each group has its own way of professing and conducting its behavior based on their respective beliefs.

Fanatics will continue in their fanaticism regardless of the evidence. Once smitten by love some folks will not let go of the object it deems worth its attention.   From classical mythology, the character Polypheme, who was obsessed with Galatea, offers an additional example of the varieties of behaviors motivated by love.

First Tercet:  Drawing a Contrast

The shell is over-smooth,—and not so much
Will turn the thing called love, aside to hate,
Or else to oblivion. But thou art not such

Nothing can turn these various lovers from their own folly. The speaker is especially interested in drawing a complete contrast between her lover and those others, whose obsessive and compulsive behaviors are never welcome in the name of love.  By comparing and contrasting the varied love stories through history, the speaker can demonstrate the quiet, gentle nature of her own belovèd inamorato.

Second Tercet:  Dramatizing a Favored Quality

A lover, my Belovèd! thou canst wait
Through sorrow and sickness, to bring souls to touch,
And think it soon when others cry “Too late.”

In the final analysis, the speaker dramatizes the best quality of her own belovèd fiancé.   This confident speaker can now assert that, ” . . . thou art not such // A lover, my Belovèd!” He is not one of those who dwell on superficial qualities.  

This speaker’s suitor practices patience; thus he can “wait / Through sorrow and sickness.”  More importantly, this speaker’s belovèd suitor is capable of looking to the soul to forge his adventure in love, “to bring souls to touch.” 

The speaker always reveals that she is more interested in the spiritual level of love than in the physical and mental.  This deep-thinking and creative speaker has realized that her belovèd suitor’s thinking is so different from those who seek the petty over the profound.   

This speaker is pleased to stress that he “think[s] it soon when others cry, ‘Too late’.”   Finding the right soul mate seems soon when one is focusing on the genuine instead of the counterfeit. The speaker is happy to celebrate her belovèd fiancé’s genuine and proper focus.

Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Sonnet 32 “The first time that the sun rose on thine oath”

The speaker in Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s sonnet 32 finds her confidence first expanding and then shrinking again on her journey through her adventure to love.

Introduction and Text of Sonnet 32 “The first time that the sun rose on thine oath”

In Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s sonnet 32, the speaker once more struggles with her persistent lack of self-worth.  However, the speaker finally decides that by choosing to devalue her own self-worth, at the same time, she is also assigning less value to her belovèd, an intolerable idea that she then attempts mightily to immediately correct.

Sonnet 32 “The first time that the sun rose on thine oath”

The first time that the sun rose on thine oath
To love me, I looked forward to the moon
To slacken all those bonds which seemed too soon
And quickly tied to make a lasting troth.
Quick-loving hearts, I thought, may quickly loathe;
And, looking on myself, I seemed not one
For such man’s love;—more like an out-of-tune
Worn viol, a good singer would be wroth
To spoil his song with, and which, snatched in haste,
Is laid down at the first ill-sounding note.
I did not wrong myself so, but I placed
A wrong on thee. For perfect strains may float
’Neath master-hands, from instruments defaced,—
And great souls, at one stroke, may do and doat.

Commentary on Sonnet 32 “The first time that the sun rose on thine oath”

The speaker in sonnet 32 finds her confidence first increasing and then shrinking again on her journey to her adventures in love.

First Quatrain: To Soon to Endure

The first time that the sun rose on thine oath
To love me, I looked forward to the moon
To slacken all those bonds which seemed too soon
And quickly tied to make a lasting troth.

The first quatrain finds the speaker announcing that after her belovèd first pronounced his love for her, she became lodged in the sorrowful thought that this love might have come “too soon / And quickly tied” to endure for long. 

The ensuing vow of love which was completed with the rising sun caused her to “look forward” to night time and the moon. She assumed that time of day would abstract her weakened possession of her new love situation.

This speaker is, of course, again doubting her ability to bring out such a love from this high-stationed man.  The powerful feelings of negative self-worth seem to be permeating and leading her heart’s feelings and her head’s thought processes.

Second Quatrain: Come Quickly, Leave Quickly

Quick-loving hearts, I thought, may quickly loathe;
And, looking on myself, I seemed not one
For such man’s love;—more like an out-of-tune
Worn viol, a good singer would be wroth

The speaker believes that if love comes too quickly, it will then be apt to leave just as quickly.  She thus also emphasizes her sad thought that she does not believe she is entirely worthy of “such man’s love.”    The speaker then likens herself to some “out-of-tune / Worn viol,” which implies that she possesses not enough gifts to play along side such “a good singer.”

The speaker deems that the good singer, represented in her accomplished poet/suitor, “would be wroth,” to let her accompany him. She suspects that her own lack of talent would besmirch that of her lover’s brilliant talents.

First Tercet:  An Out-of-Tune Instrument

To spoil his song with, and which, snatched in haste,
Is laid down at the first ill-sounding note.
I did not wrong myself so, but I placed

The speaker therefore suggests that her belovèd might have made a rash decision in picking her as his partner; thus, she thinks that she will be sent away, “at the first ill-sounding note.”   However, the speaker then immediately shifts her gaze.

As the speaker still clings to her assessment of herself as an “out-of-tuned viol,” she goes on to maintain that she has not incorrectly evaluated herself, but she does believe that she has been mistaken about her belovèd’s possessions of knowledge, strength, and capability.

Second Tercet: Clinging to Inferiority

A wrong on thee. For perfect strains may float
’Neath master-hands, from instruments defaced,—
And great souls, at one stroke, may do and doat.

Despite the fact that the speaker may be an out-of-tune musical instrument, her belovèd, who is a skillful master may possess the delicious ability of heralding forth from her damaged instrument, “perfect strains.”   

The speaker’s belovèd after all possesses “master-hands.” She determines her acceptance, with a sufficient and thoroughly axiomatic bit of wit, as she states that, “great souls, at one stroke, may do and dote.”

The speaker’s timid thought and evaluation of her own inferiority remains so entrenched that she always seems to manage to cling to it.   She implies that the great souls, who are capable of achieving great things, also possess the talent for “doat[ing]” on the things they love, despite any lack of worthiness those things may possess.

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.