Elizabeth Barrett Browning's Poetry

Not only from woman to woman, but from poet to poet, Elizabeth Barrett Browning felt a connection of reverence and utmost admiration with self-titled George Sand. Barrett Browning went to the lengths of seemingly serenading Sand in her two poems “To George Sand: A Desire” and “To George Sand: A Recognition.” In “To George Sand: A Desire,” Barret Browning addresses Sand as “Thou large-brained woman and large hearted man,” (line 1). Sand, whose identity as a woman was kept a secret in order to avoid judgment, was able to produce poetry and fool her audience into believing she was a man. A widely-read poet in England, Sand produced several writings and received different reactions from the citizens of Victorian England. Barrett Browning’s
Victorian England consisted of a society dominated by men; women were to fulfill their husbands’ needs and, essentially, be submissive. Even an educated woman who possessed unique aptitudes “had almost no opportunity to make use of her skills in a world that was dominated by men” (Poetry Foundation 8). Even if a woman was to somehow reach success by employing her set of skills and education, marriage was the ultimate goal for women to be content and successful, as assumed by the Victorians (Poetry Foundation 8). Therefore a woman like Sand, a revolutionarily political and literary heroine with an unusual past and education, lived an unorthodox life and was controversial. Barrett Browning’s veneration of a woman who did not abide to expected submissive qualities and instead redefined the ability of a female to succeed in literature was uncommon in Victorian society. Sand’s influence on Barrett Browning led her to achieve unconventional success, surpassing her husband – Robert Browning – in the literary world (Poetry Foundation
The determination to attain the respect which Sand believed women lacked caught the attention of many people, including the successful female poet Barrett Browning. Sand, having endured many hardships in the form of emotional and inferiority struggles, was able to transcribe her desire to succeed as a woman and a poet into her poetry, attributing to her reputation in not only her native country but also in England. Her influence in England, where she was either thought of as famous or infamous, largely distorted the Victorian role of women in society. Sand’s ability to defy the means of being “successful” as defined by the Victorians was what captured Barrett Browning’s heart and