Comparing these two poems, it can be defined that they are quite different in many ways:
- Form: “How Do I Love Thee?” includes 14 lines. It is a classical sonnet size, while the card has only 13. Also, according to the video lecture, the shortest lines in the poem should be important and consist of poetry. On the postcard, the shortest line is the following: “as well as my”, which doesn’t make sense, because the shortest line will definitely catch our attention.
- Rhyme: Elizabeth Barrett Browning uses the abba (ways, height, sight, grace) abba (day’s, candle-light, right, praise) cdcdcd (use, faith, to lose, breath, choose, death) rhyme form. It’s impossible to define the rhyme scheme on this postcard as there are no rhymes there at all.
- Imagery: there are many examples of imagery in “How Do I Love Thee”, such as “I love thee to the depth and breadth and height”, “With my lost saints. I love thee with the breath”, “I love thee to the level of every day’s”. Also, the author uses other literary devices. Alliteration: “I love thee with the breath”,simile: “I love thee freely, as men strive for right”, hyperbole “I shall but love thee better after death” (here I’m not sure, because maybe she is just very religious kind of person and has a strong believe the life after death), repetition: “I love thee, I hove thee…”. All these devices create the imagery and make the reader feel more active. Speaking about the card: the author just declares the fact why he loves the person he/she addresses these lines, so they don’t create an imagery effect. There is only one case of repetition here: “Why do I love you so much?”.
- The subject of these two works is the same. This subject is love. However, the aspects of it are different. In the postcard the author just declares why he/she loves this person. In contrast, Elizabeth Barrett Browning shares her deep feelings. She reflects on her feelings, and considers that they are something dipper than just romantic ones.
One thought on “Amalia Lima discussion 11”
Amalia, thanks for this first post of the very short week. This is a very comprehensive comparison of the two works. I think your comments about imagery are excellent. This element, so highly developed in the Browning poem, is absent from the love poem on the Hallmark card. Sometimes it’s hard to define poetry, but imagery is certainly a major element in that specialized form. The measurements used by Browning are rich with imagery and meaning.