RobertBrowning.doc

Robert Browning(1812-1889)1. An Introduction about Robert Browning1.1 Born in a well-off family, Browning received his education mainly from his private tutor and his father.1.2 1819-1826 Browning attended Peckham School.1.3 1828-1829 Browning attended London University.1.4 In 1846,Browning married Elizabeth Barrett,a famous poetess in Italy.1.5 In 1849,their son Robert Wiedemann Barrett Browning(Pen) was born.1.6 After Elizabeths death in 1861,Browning brought their son back to England and went on writing.1.7 Browning died in 1889 and was buried in the Poets Corner,Westminster Abbey,beside Tennyson.2. Brownings Work2.1 Pauline modeling on Shelleys personal style,showed his enthusiasm for Shelley.2.2 Sordello(1834-1840) a long poem about the 13th century troubadour(游吟诗人) of that name.2.3 Paracelsus(1835) first work published under Brownings own name. Because of it,Thomas Noon Talfourd praised him as“the youngest poet of Englang”.2.4 Porphyrias Lover(1836) his first really distinctive monologue.2.5 Pippa Passes(1841) is the first of a series of poems published between 1841 and 1846 under the generl of “ Bells and Pomegranates”.2.6 My Last Duchess Brownings best known dramatic monologue. It is a speech addressed by the Duke of Ferrara(a city in Italy) to an envoy who comes to negotiate the Dukes contemplated marriage after he has put his “last duchess”to silence.2.7 Dramatic Lyrics(1842)2.8 Dramatic Romances and Lyrics(1845)2.9 Bells and Pomegranates2.10 Men and Women(1855)2.11 Dramatic Personae(1864)2.12 The Ring and the Book(1868-1869)2.12.1 Brownings longest and greatest of his works,is a poetic drama of 20000 lines.2.12.2 The poem is inspired by an old book of legal documents that records a trial in Rome in 1698 of count Guido Franceschini,who brutally murdered his wife Pompilia.2.12.3 In the poem,there were some“novel-poem”elements.2.12.4 The title The Ring and the Book has its symbolic meaning. It can be explained by the goldsmiths technique of alloying gold in making rings. The “book”is the pure gold of objective facts,the hard truth. Yet pure gold is not workable in making rings unless it is alloyed with other materials. A poets fancy and imagimation are just the alloying ingredients. They brought the dead truth to life.2.12.5 The publication of The Ring and the Book finally established Brownings position as one of the greatest English poet.3. “Dramatic momologue ” it is in his hands that this poetic form reaches its maturity and perfection. 4. Brownings poetry style4.1 Brownings poetry is not easy to read. His rhythms are often too fast,too rough and unmusical.4.2 The syntax is usually clipped and highly compressed.4.3 The similes and illustrations appear too profusely. The allusions and implications are sometimes odd and far-fetched. All these make up his obscurity. 4.4 In general,Brownings poem are not meant to entertain the readers with the usual acoustic and visual pleasures. They are supposed to keep them alert,thoughtful and enlightened.5. Brownings Robust Optimism5.1 Browning has been praised as a“gallant,courageous and high-hearted figure”,well-known for buoyant optimism.5.2 Browning is preeminently the poet of happy,healthy energetic youth.5.3 For Browning,death is like taking an enemy fortress.5.4 Browning is unorthodox in almost everyway.6. Elizabeth Barrett(Mrs. Browning )6.1 An Introduction about Elizabeth Barrett6.1.1 Elizabeth Barrett was born in 1806 in a rich family at Coxhoe Hall and enjoyed a happy childhood.6.1.2 By the age of 12,she was writing short novels and plays,translating,and experimenting with different sorts of poetry.6.1.3 In 1809，the growning family moved to Hope End.6.1.4 The family moved to Sidmouth on the Devon coast in August 1832 and then to London in 1835.6.1.5 From the autumn of 1837,her health began to decline.6.1.6 She was buried at the Protestant Cemetery in Florence on 1 July 1861.6.2 Barretts Works6.2.1 “The Battls of Marathon” her long poem on the ancient war of Greece with Persias haughty King,was privately printed at her fathers expense,for her 14th birthday in 1820.6.2.2 An Essay on Mind(1825)6.2.3 The Seraphim,and Other Poems her first work under the name Elizabeth B