Starter quiz
- When Barrett Browning wrote 'Sonnet 43', who was it for at the time of writing?
- her current husband
- her future husband ✓
- her father
-
- Barrett Browning was defiant against her father's wishes when she married Robert Browning. What does 'defiant' mean?
- to refuse to obey somebody or something ✓
- to fully obey someone or something
- to partially obey someone or something
-
- What connotations do we often have of the sun?
- warmth ✓
- life ✓
- fate
- sustenance ✓
-
- ______ is the use of words to create pictures in the minds of readers.
- 'imagery' ✓
- How does Sonnet 43 open?
- "I love thee freely"
- "I love thee purely"
- "How do I love thee?" ✓
-
- Match the components of a Petrarchan sonnet up to their explanations.
- octet⇔introduces an idea, problem, question or an argument ✓
- sestet⇔responds to the questions or ideas introduced in the beginning ✓
- volta⇔marks a shift in tone in the poem ✓
Exit quiz
- If something is 'bountiful' it is...
- energetic and lively
- abundant and endless ✓
- happy and joyful
-
- What images in 'Sonnet 43' could represent the idea that Barrett Browning's lover is the centre of her world and brings her life?
- "sun" ✓
- "candle-light"
- "childhood's faith"
-
- In 'Sonnet 43', Barrett Browning feels her love is 'unquantifiable'. What does this mean?
- It's impossible to measure. ✓
- It's easy to explain.
- It's all that she feels.
-
- A Petrarchan sonnet begins with an 8 line section called an octet. It often poses a problem or introduces an idea. Which quotation suggests a problem at the start of 'Sonnet 43'?
- "How do I love thee?" ✓
- "Let me count the ways."
- "My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight"
-
- A ______ is a shift in tone in a sonnet.
- 'volta' ✓
- The ______ of a sonnet responds to the problem posed at the start of the sonnet in the octet.
- 'sestet' ✓
Worksheet
Loading worksheet ...
Presentation
Loading presentation ...
Video
Lesson Details
Key learning points
- Barrett Browning wrote this poem to her future husband to express her deep love for him.
- Barrett Browning begins the poem by expressing her love in a more abstract and unquantifiable way.
- In the sestet, Barrett Browning finds more personal and specific ways to express (and measure) her love.
- The image of a sun arguably represents the idea that her lover brings warmth, light, sustenance and purpose to her life.
- Barrett Browning’s use of imagery conveys her admiration for, and adoration of her future husband.
Common misconception
Pupils often fail to notice or appreciate how defiant this poem is at the end.
In saying that she will love her future husband "better" after death, Barrett Browning defies her father and any cosmic force which may try to prevent the couple from being together. Barrett Browning's passion and commitment to Browning is evident.
Keywords
To liberate - to set something free
Unquantifiable - impossible to measure
Bountiful - abundant and endless
To evoke - to make someone imagine or feel something
Defiant - a refusal to obey somebody or something
+