• About
  • Introducing…
  • Analysis
  • Misc.
  • For the Student of Literature

Christian Victorian Literature

Christian Victorian Literature

Tag Archives: Valentine’s Day

A Victorian Valentine

14 Saturday Feb 2015

Posted by ChristianVictorianLiterature in Introducing...

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Elizabeth Barrett Browning, marriage, Valentine's Day

Originally for Valentine’s Day I was going to review Victorian Short Stories: Stories of Successful Marriages, which I expected to be full of stories celebrating love and devotion in marriage, that consummate expression of Christian virtue in the Victorian era. However, this bizarre book ought to have sarcastic quotations marks around “Successful” because all the marriages were more or less miserable, being either founded on deceit, marred by unthinkable tragedy or fraught with misunderstanding (notably, almost none of the authors turned out to be Christians, except perhaps Elizabeth Gaskell and hers was the “happiest” story of them all). Humourously, there is also a book in this series entitled Victorian Short Stories: Stories of Troubled Marriages. I can only imagine how depressing the marriages in that book must be.

So I decided to fall back on a classic love poem for Valentine’s Day, “How Do I Love Thee?”  by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, a Christian, who also wrote Aurora Leigh, which I reviewed here. You might remember from high school English class that the sonnet is considered the ultimate love poem.


How Do I Love Thee? (Sonnet 43)

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of being and ideal grace.
I love thee to the level of every day’s
Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.
I love thee freely, as men strive for right;
I love thee purely, as they turn from praise.
I love thee with the passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood’s faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints. I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life; and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.
 1850

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Print
  • Email
  • Tumblr
  • More
  • LinkedIn
  • Pocket
  • Reddit

Like this:

Like Loading...

Recent Posts

  • Introducing “Home Education” by Charlotte Mason
  • My Story: A Victorian Healing
  • Gifts for the Literature Lover
  • Christian Victorian Readings for Advent
  • A Christian Jane Austen Biography
  • Introducing: “Aurora Leigh” by Elizabeth Barrett Browning
  • Introducing “Jane Eyre” by Charlotte Brontë
  • Introducing “The Bridge of History Over the Gulf of Time” by Thomas Cooper

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 53 other followers

Follow Christian Victorian Literature on WordPress.com

Tags

agnes grey Anne Bronte Aurora Leigh C.S. Lewis Charlotte Bronte class Elizabeth Barrett Browning Elizabeth Gaskell George MacDonald industrial England Jane Austen literature Lorna Doone marriage mary barton masculinity Nature novel R.D. Blackmore Wild At Heart

Blogroll

  • Far Cry
  • The Victorian Review
  • Christian Novel Studies
  • Christian Mom Thoughts
  • Faces of the Victorian Era
  • The Long Victorian
  • This Victorian Life
  • Kingdom Poets
  • Vintage Novels

Links

  • Earn free amazon.ca gift cards.
  • Excellent essay on Christianity in literature over the centuries
  • More amazon giftcards for free
  • My Curriculum for Sale at TeachersPayTeachers
  • Progeny Press

BlogCatalog

Books Blogs - BlogCatalog Blog Directory

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.
Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
%d bloggers like this: