47 pages • 1 hour read
Elizabeth Barrett BrowningAurora Leigh
Fiction | Novel/Book in Verse | Adult | Published in 1856A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Essay Topics
“The poet, speaker, he expands with joy;
The palpitating angel in his flesh
Thrills only with consenting fellowship
To those innumerous spirits who sun themselves
Outside of time. O life, O poetry,
—Which means life in life! cognizant [sic] of life
Beyond this blood-beat, passionate for truth
Beyond these senses!” (Book 1, Lines 910-18)
Conduct a close reading of the passage above and discuss to what extent the poem represents real life. This question can be considered both from the perspective of larger social issues, or from the perspective of Barrett Browning’s own biography.
How is the notion of truth problematic throughout the poem? Select at least two characters and discuss the ways in which they seek to hide certain truths.
Discuss the ways in which Barrett Browning utilizes picturesque and pastoral imagery throughout Aurora Leigh. Are idyllic images of the peaceful countryside always portrayed in a positive manner, or does the poet create instances in which the purpose of such imagery is reversed? (Consider the disastrous wedding scene in Book 4, for example.)
In what ways is Barrett Browning’s Aurora Leigh atypical of the usual conventions of Romantic literature?
Why do you think the famous literary critic John Ruskin dubbed Aurora Leigh the “greatest poem in the English language”? Do you agree?
How might modern readers of Aurora Leigh differ in their interpretations from 19th-century readers? Consider key social issues such as the disparity between social classes and the burgeoning influence of feminism.
Is Aurora Leigh a love story? Why or why not?
Select one of the major themes discussed in Aurora Leigh and outlined further in this guide. Given that the text is poetry rather than prose, examine its success (or lack thereof) as an effective delivery method for radical ideas.
Analyze the social and political opinions of the protagonists of Aurora Leigh in the context of feminine, or feminist, literature.
Focus on Aurora Leigh as the character of the novel. As a dynamic character, she undergoes many changes throughout the story. Identify at least three significant changes that her outlook undergoes and trace their origins in the text itself.
Related Titles
By Elizabeth Barrett Browning
