Browning goes on throughout the poem describing how much her love for this person means to her, comparing it to other loves of hers. She writes, "I love thee to the level of every day's" as if to says she loves this person as much as life itself. She continues, "I love thee with the passion put to use," saying she is in love with this person as much as she is with her passions in life. We've all been there at one extent or another and can relate to how love can make us feel all these things. In the last lines she says, "and, if God choose, I shall but love thee better after death." It puts in perspective that love can even be greater than life itself.
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Let me count the ways...
I enjoyed reading the poem How do I love thee by Elizabeth Barrett Browning. To me it really encompassed the number of ways love can make you feel, and all the feelings you get about the person you love. When I read the first line of the poem, "How do I love thee? Let me count the ways," I felt like I had heard that phrase before. I can't remember if it was lyrics to a song, or perhaps it was just this poem I might have heard about before, but some reason Love Me Tender by Elvis Presley popped into my mind, and I heard the song as background music in my head as I read the poem. There's no lyrics in the song that match the poem, but the subject matter is very similar and the connection just stands out.
Browning goes on throughout the poem describing how much her love for this person means to her, comparing it to other loves of hers. She writes, "I love thee to the level of every day's" as if to says she loves this person as much as life itself. She continues, "I love thee with the passion put to use," saying she is in love with this person as much as she is with her passions in life. We've all been there at one extent or another and can relate to how love can make us feel all these things. In the last lines she says, "and, if God choose, I shall but love thee better after death." It puts in perspective that love can even be greater than life itself.
Browning goes on throughout the poem describing how much her love for this person means to her, comparing it to other loves of hers. She writes, "I love thee to the level of every day's" as if to says she loves this person as much as life itself. She continues, "I love thee with the passion put to use," saying she is in love with this person as much as she is with her passions in life. We've all been there at one extent or another and can relate to how love can make us feel all these things. In the last lines she says, "and, if God choose, I shall but love thee better after death." It puts in perspective that love can even be greater than life itself.
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The line "I shall but love thee better after death" is a really powerful one, since the speaker is saying that she will continue to love this person even after death, and even more strongly after death. While some people move on after the death of a spouse and even begin to love another person, this woman's love must quite strong indeed for her to declare something like this.
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