Poems Written Before The 1900

Many poems, written before the 1900’s, express the emotion of love. Each poem explores the meaning in a different way and in different forms. In this essay I will be investigating three different poems/sonnets; La Belle Dame Sans Merci written by John Keats, Porphyria’s Lover by Robert Browning and last but not least Sonnet 18 by William Shakespeare. All of these have very different aspects and views, this is what makes them so interesting to compare because of the wide contrast involving the three poems.
La Belle Dame Sans Merci is a ballad written by an English poet, John Keats. John Keats lived between the years 1795 – 1821, his life cut short by tuberculosis. By this time, he had been writing serious poetry for barely six years but, even
Its first name was simply ‘Porphyria’. I think Browning decided against this title because it was purely based on the victim, Porphyria. It did not give us any clues as to who the narrator is. The second title, Dramatic Lyrics, is actually not just the title of one poem but a collection of poems. All of these were written by Browning. Later in 1863 Browning changed the title for the final time to ‘Porphyria’s Lover’. This title was perfect because it tells us who the speaker and victim both are. It also gives a mysterious atmosphere, as we never really find out the name of the speaker. Porphyria’s Lover is a poem written by Robert Browning. Robert Browning was born in 1812 and died at the age of 77 in 1889. He is known for writing dramatic verses in dramatic monologues. This poem consists of one stanza 60 lines long. The rhyme scheme is a-b-a-b-b and this is Robert Browning’s first ever, short dramatic monologue of many to come. The monologue is told in first person by Porphyria’s Lover and the speaker does not change throughout the whole
I imagine that it is an actual summer’s day and the narrator is questioning how perfect this day really is compared to his beloved. He is taking notes while contemplating his surroundings. Porphyria’s Lover is different because the poet uses pathetic fallacy to describe the weather. On this particular night, it is raining and windy. So windy that it is tearing down the trees, ‘It tore the elm-tops down for spite’ and trying to upset the lake. In these first four lines, Browning uses personification to describe both the wind and the lake. His use of imagery creates a very sinister atmosphere and when Porphyria enters the house the atmosphere changes. She lights the fire, this creates a very cosy and secure atmosphere. This is probably a build up to what happens next making the reader very surprised and confused. The setting of La Belle Dame Sans Merci is slightly different because it is a very medieval atmosphere. The setting is a bit like a medieval fairytale, it takes place on a late autumn day. You can just imagine brown leaves slowly falling and settling on the dark murky lake. This mood is somewhat different to the other poems. It is very lonely and mysterious; the poet drops subtle hints about the setting rather than giving it away. It is up to the reader to find