Sonnet 43 (Edexcel GCSE English Literature)
Revision Note
How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)
Each GCSE poetry anthology contains 15 poems, and in your exam question you will be given one poem – printed in full – and asked to compare this printed poem to another. The exam is closed-book, which means you will not have access to the second poem. This does not mean you need to remember every line from memory, but you do need to understand and remember key aspects of the poem. Understanding four things will enable you to produce a top-grade response:
The meaning of the poem
The ideas and messages of the poet
How the poet conveys these ideas through their methods
How these ideas compare and contrast with the ideas of other poets in the anthology
Below is a guide to Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s poem 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)', from the Relationships anthology. It includes:
Overview: a breakdown of the poem, including its possible meanings and interpretations
Writer’s methods: an exploration of the poet’s techniques and methods
Context: an exploration of the context of the poem, relevant to its themes
What to compare it to: ideas about which poems to compare it to in the exam
Examiner Tips and Tricks
As part of the Relationships anthology 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' examines themes related to romantic love and desire. The exam question asks you to compare the way such ideas are presented in two anthology poems.
It is therefore as important that you learn how 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' compares and contrasts with other poems in the anthology rather than understanding the poem in isolation. See the section below on “What to compare it to” for detailed comparisons of 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' and other poems in the anthology.
Overview
In order to answer an essay question on any poem it is vital that you understand what it is about. This section includes:
The poem in a nutshell
A “translation” of the poem, section-by-section
A commentary of each of these sections, outlining Barrett Browning’s intention and message
'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' in a nutshell
'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)', written by the Victorian poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning, can be considered a tribute to love. The poem is a traditional sonnet expressing an intense and passionate relationship.
'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' breakdown
Lines 1–4
“How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of being and ideal grace.”
Translation
The poem begins with a rhetorical question that is answered immediately
The speaker begins a list of ways they love the listener:
They love the listener as deep and as wide and as high as their “soul can reach”
They add, for emphasis, that this continues in absence, out of “sight”, and will last forever (“the ends of being”)
Barrett Browning’s intention
The poet begins a persuasive argument to prove the extent of their love to a listener
An emphatic statement answers the question posed and the speaker begins an elevated address to their loved one
Lines 5–6
“I love thee to the level of every day’s
Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.”
Translation
The speaker says that their love permeates their everyday life and meets their most simple need
Whether it is the day or night, they love the listener
Barrett Browning’s intention
The poet contrasts the previously hyperbolic comments on boundless love with a shorter statement that describes their love as simple and, perhaps, vital to daily life
Lines 7–8
“I love thee freely, as men strive for right.
I love thee purely, as they turn from praise.”
Translation
The speaker adds two shorter emphatic statements to the list
They describe a love that is free and “right”, suggesting equality
The speaker loves humbly and “purely” without praise or need for reward or attention
Barrett Browning’s intention
Barrett Browning uses two similes, one after the other, to compare love to purity and freedom
The rhetoric (argument) is assertive and sophisticated, equating love to goodness and justice
Line 9–12
“I love thee with the passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood’s faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints. I love thee with the breath”
Translation
The speaker describes their love as restorative as it turns negative feelings (“old griefs”) to good ones with the same intensity (“passion”) as they once felt pain
The speaker begins to make religious references in the passionate account of their love:
The reference to “childhood’s faith” implies the speaker loves with the same innocence and trust they once had as a child
They imply that their love for “saints” (religion) is not as strong as this love
Barrett Browning’s intention
The poem’s spiritual nature is created with repeated references to a love that is pure and good
Here, Barrett Browning uses religious imagery to heighten the intensity of the poem and thus express the strength of their love
Lines 13–14
“Smiles, tears, of all my life; and, if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.”
Translation
The poem draws to a close with a last list:
The speaker says they love with the “breath/Smiles, tears” of their life, implying they love with every part of their being
The last line proposes that “if God” chooses for them to die, their love would not change:
In fact, it would improve it
Barrett Browning’s intention
In a final, almost desperate, bid to prove their love, the speaker says that their love is entire
Barrett Browning concludes the traditionally elevated sonnet with a final declaration of love:
The love will continue after death
Examiner Tips and Tricks
The exam question asks you to compare the ways poets present ideas about relationships in the poem given to you on the exam paper and one other from the Relationships anthology. For the best answer, you might want to focus on the way themes are presented across the two poems. This is better than providing a list of as many techniques as you can find, or remember. Perhaps you could begin your answer with a clear argument that clarifies how the poems explore relationships. This demonstrates that you have understood the poem and the poet’s intention. For example, “Elizabeth Barrett Browning uses a traditional sonnet to present ideas about romanticised love. Similar themes can be found in…”
Form
Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s poem 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' is a traditional sonnet to convey ideas of romantic love. The poem is predominantly a direct address that offers a list of ways the listener is loved. The speaker is said to be the poet herself speaking to her husband, Robert Browning.
Theme | Evidence | Poet’s intention |
Intimate relationships | The poem centres around a first-person speaker’s expressions of intense love | As the speaker describes their love, the repetition of “I love thee” implies a close listener |
The speaker implies a listener with whom they are intimate, “thee” (you):
| Barrett Browning presents a passionate address to a loved one | |
The poem is a sonnet and follows a traditional and sustained abba cdcdcd rhyme scheme and fourteen lines | Barrett Browning uses a sonnet to allude to romantic traditions | |
Barrett Browning uses a traditional sonnet to to present an intimate expression of love | ||
Structure
The poem’s regular and sophisticated structure contributes to the idea of constancy and harmony. However, it also creates a desperate and persuasive argument.
Theme | Evidence | Poet’s intention |
Romantic love | The traditional pattern of a Petrarchan sonnet, an octave and sestet with iambic pentameter adds to the poem’s romantic nature:
| A theme of unity and equality is created by the regular rhythm:
|
The rhyme scheme breaks slightly with “faith” and “breath”:
| Barrett Browning gives the speaker a breathless voice to emphasise the passion in their declaration of love | |
Despite the poem’s urgent tone, Barrett Browning does not use exclamations:
| The poem uses features typical of persuasive speech and this produces a sophisticated rhetoric to heighten the idea of romance | |
Barrett Browning creates an emotional and persuasive argument to portray the strength of a romantic relationship | ||
Language
The poem elevates the idea of romantic relationships with imagery that alludes to spirituality and religion, as well as life and death.
Theme | Evidence | Poet’s intention |
Idealised love | Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s poem elevates the idea of love with hyperbolic lists:
| The poem uses language that connotes to a boundless love that fills their life |
Barrett Browning uses natural imagery related to the light:
| Typical of traditional Romantic poetry, the poem presents the intensity of emotions with reference to nature and the universe | |
Barrett Browning connects love with religious ideas and virtue:
| By the end of the poem, Barrett Browning has presented a convincing description of the speaker’s love:
| |
Barrett Browning’s poem uses religious and natural imagery that compares love with things that are universal and infinite | ||
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Try not to separate “language”, “form” and “structure” into three separate elements in your answer. The best answers deliver an integrated comparison of the themes and ideas in this and the other poem you choose for comparison and focus on the relevance of the methods used by the poet(s).
This means it is better to structure your answer around an exploration of the ideas in the poems, commenting on elements of language, form or structure that contribute to the presentation of these themes. Stay focused on the task, and then choose your comments based on the theme named in the question.
Writer’s methods
Although this section is organised into three separate sections – form, structure and language – it is always best to move from what the poet is presenting (the techniques they use; the overall form of the poem; what comes at the beginning, middle and end of a poem) to how and why they have made the choices they have.
Focusing on the poet’s overarching ideas, rather than individual poetic techniques, will gain you far more marks. Crucially, in the below sections, all analysis is arranged by theme, and includes Barrett Browning’s intentions behind her choices in terms of:
Form
Structure
Language
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Examiners specifically state that they are not looking for as many techniques as you can find in the poem(s). In fact, it is better to understand the themes in the poem and then use language and structural techniques to support your ideas.
Identifying sophisticated techniques will not gain you any more marks, especially if these techniques are only “spotted” and the poet’s intentions for this language are not explained. Instead, focus your analysis on the reasons why the poet is presenting their ideas in the way that they are: what is their message? What ideas are they presenting, or challenging?
Context
Examiners repeatedly state that context should not be considered as additional factual information: in this case, it is not random biographical information about Elizabeth Barrett Browning or facts unrelated to the ideas in 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)'. The best way to understand context is as the ideas and perspectives explored by Barrett Browning that relate to romantic love and themes of desire.
This section has therefore been divided into two relevant themes that Barrett Browning explores:
Romantic love
Idealised love and desire
Romantic love
Elizabeth Barrett Browning, born in 1806, is a well-known Victorian poet whose work focuses on romantic love
Her poetry was admired by fellow poet, Robert Browning, and this may have led to their subsequent love affair:
Their relationship was considered inappropriate as Robert Browning was six years her junior
Their affair was conducted via secret letters between the pair due to its scandalous nature:
Many of Barrett Browning’s poems hint at a distance between the speaker and a listener
The poem 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' is ambiguous in this way as it is a direct address to a loved one, “thee”
Barrett Browning is said to have been influenced by philosopher and writer Mary Wollstonecraft and her 1792 feminist essay ‘A Vindication of the Rights of Woman’:
At the time, Victorian women’s lives were limited and lacked autonomy as they were regarded as the property of their husbands and fathers
This may have led to her rebellion from conventional London society and her decision to marry the younger Robert Browning:
Ultimately, they eloped and moved to Italy
At the time, it was common for female writers to use pen names to avoid the criticism that came with female independence:
Elizabeth Barrett Browning, instead, published much of her poetry anonymously
The poem, 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)', appears in a volume called Sonnets from the Portuguese, which was published secretly
This may have influenced the poet’s choice to use Petrarchan sonnets, noted for their Italian origins
Elizabeth Barrett Browning and her husband are considered influential in altering the gender narrative in classic poetry:
Elizabeth Barrett Browning has been criticised for allusions to submissive females in intense and traditional relationships
Yet some suggest she offers alternative perspectives in classic poetry
By presenting a female perspective, and one that is passionate and intense, she shows females as active participants in romantic relationships
Idealised love and desire
Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s life was troubled with sickness:
This may influence the use of spiritual language and the focus on life and death in poems such as 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)'
Indeed, the speaker suggests it is God’s choice if they live or die
In the poem the speaker expresses a love that transcends life
The poem 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' implies immortality through a perfect and pure love that goes on infinitely:
This poem can be considered a conventional Romantic poem in that it explores intense emotions
Its elevated idealisation of a love that is the “breath,/Smiles, tears”, and that makes up “all” of the speaker’s life, presents a significantly obsessive love
The poem’s use of religious imagery alludes to classical presentations of intense love
Its allusions to the “soul” and the idea of freedom is typical of Romantic poetry that presents love as all-powerful
Nevertheless, the poem can also be considered an example of Neo-classical poetry due to its themes of logic and reason:
The persuasive argument in 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' is predominantly a list of ways the speaker loves the implied listener
Its sophisticated rhetoric is typical of elevated poetry that is rooted in established tradition
Archaic language in the poem, such as “thee”, is a convention of Victorian poetry that idealised and heightened the theme conveyed
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Remember, AO3 is only worth up to 5 marks in this question. You will be expected to demonstrate your understanding of the relationship between the poem and the context in which it was written in an integrated way, throughout your answer.
Context should be connected to the theme named in the task, and can cover aspects of genre (related to poetry), social, literary and historical context, as well as the author’s influences. However, writing a whole paragraph about Elizabeth Barrett Browning is not an integrated approach, and will not achieve high marks. Instead, use contextual comments to support your ideas.
What to compare it to
The essay you are required to write in your exam is a comparison of the ideas and themes explored in two of your anthology poems. It is therefore essential that you revise the poems together, in pairs, to understand how each poet presents ideas about relationships, in comparison to other poets in the anthology. Given that 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' explores the ideas of romantic desire and idealised love, the following comparisons are the most appropriate:
'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' and 'She Walks in Beauty'
'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' and 'La Belle Dame sans Merci'
'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' and 'i wanna be yours'
For each pair of poems, you will find:
The comparison in a nutshell
Similarities between the ideas presented in each poem
Differences between the ideas presented in each poem
Evidence and analysis of these similarities and differences
Examiner Tips and Tricks
You will be expected to explore the poem(s) in depth and make perceptive comments about the way themes are presented and conveyed by the language, form and structural techniques, such as endings of poems. It is therefore important that you have a thorough knowledge of such key ideas, rather than just memorising a series of quotations.
It is also essential that you not only write about the named poem, but compare it to one other in the anthology. Only writing about the poem given on the paper will severely limit your marks.
'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' and 'She Walks in Beauty'
Comparison in a nutshell:
Both Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Lord Byron elevate and idealise romantic relationships. However, while Barrett Browning’s poem is a direct address to a specific listener, Byron’s poem about a mysterious woman suggests a silent or unrequited love.
Similarities:
Topic sentence | Both speakers describe idealised romantic relationships | |
Evidence and analysis | 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' | 'She Walks in Beauty' |
Barrett Browning’s poem centres around a first-person speaker’s expressions of intense love:
| Byron’s poem focuses solely on describing a woman, suggestive of fascination or intense attraction | |
Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s poem elevates the idea of love with hyperbolic language:
| Byron similarly elevates the idea of romance:
| |
The poem’s religious references imply the speaker’s love is pure:
| Byron’s celestial imagery is used in a similar way to describe the woman:
| |
The poets elevate the idea of romance to present intense feelings of love and desire | ||
Topic sentence | Both poems describe romance with reference to constancy and enlightenment | |
Evidence and analysis | 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' | 'She Walks in Beauty' |
Barrett Browning uses a sonnet to allude to romantic traditions:
| Byron’s poem employs sophisticated alternating rhyme in regular stanzas to present a constant rhythm and a controlled speaker | |
Barrett Browning uses natural imagery related to the light:
| Byron’s natural imagery describes both dark and light:
| |
Barrett Browning, too, hints at the way love is connected with virtue:
| Byron’s woman is described as serene and calm, and he implies the speaker’s admiration of her purity:
| |
Both poems explore ideas about the connection between goodness and true love | ||
Differences:
Topic sentence | While Barrett Browning’s poem is an expressive direct address to a lover, Byron’s poem hints at silent or unrequited love | |
Evidence and analysis | 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' | 'She Walks in Beauty' |
Barrett Browning’s speaker implies a listener with whom they are intimate:
| However, Byron’s third-person description of an unnamed woman, “she”, suggests the love is not realised | |
‘Sonnet 43’ intimately addresses a listener “thee” (you) and the poem alludes to time spent together | Byron’s speaker, though, does not refer to themselves or their emotions, implying detachment:
| |
Barrett Browning offers a lover a list of all the ways they are in love, indicative of a close relationship, whereas Byron depicts a silent, distant admiration for a woman | ||
Examiner Tips and Tricks
It is a good idea to outline your choice of second poem in your introduction to your response, with a clear overview of the overarching themes within both poems. You can then use the theme to move between both poems to provide the substance to illustrate your arguments. However, this does not mean that you cannot focus on one poem first, and then the other, linking ideas back to the main poem. You should choose whichever structure suits you best, as long as comparison is embedded and ideas for both texts are well-developed.
'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' and 'La Belle Dame sans Merci'
Comparison in a nutshell:
This is an effective comparative choice to explore the presentation of relationships and romantic love across traditional Romantic poems. However, while Barrett Browning’s poem is a tribute praising an ideal love, Keats’s poem tells a melancholic tale about a strange and tragic relationship.
Similarities:
Topic sentence | Both poems portray love as both natural and pure, as well as ethereal | |
Evidence and analysis | 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' | 'La Belle Dame sans Merci' |
Barrett Browning describes love with natural imagery connoting to a pure love, perhaps one that enlightens:
| Keats uses contrasting natural imagery to describe the sensual nature of the relationship:
| |
Barrett Browning connects love with spirituality and religion:
| Keats makes religious references to elevate romantic love:
| |
The poem connects love to death, suggesting immortal or infinite love:
| Keats’s poem also alludes to the idea of death and immortality:
| |
In 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' and 'La Belle Dame sans Merci' the speakers both allude to the otherworldly yet sensuous nature of romantic relationships | ||
Topic sentence | Both poems can be considered classical and traditional in their presentation of romance | |
Evidence and analysis | 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' | 'La Belle Dame sans Merci' |
Barrett Browning uses a Petrarchan sonnet to allude to romantic traditions:
| Keats uses a traditionally romantic lyrical ballad to present a story about a romantic relationship:
| |
The speaker in the poem expresses intense love using archaic language to create a heightened tone:
| Keats similarly employs archaic language to create a classically romantic tone:
| |
Both poets elevate the idea of romantic love with classical and dramatic presentations | ||
Differences:
Topic sentence | 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' is a persuasive argument that pays tribute to love, while the tragic conclusion of 'La Belle Dame sans Merci' presents love as dangerous | |
Evidence and analysis | 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' | 'La Belle Dame sans Merci' |
Barrett Browning builds an assertive argument to prove the speaker’s love, using rhetorical devices:
| Keats’s poem creates a sense of confusion:
| |
The poem is a repetitive list that aims to convince the listener of their absolute love | In contrast, the regular rhythm of Keats’s ballad is disturbed to create an ominous warning:
| |
Barrett Browning concludes with a declaration that love that improves after death:
| The poem begins and ends with a dark conclusion, the knight is alone as he dies: “And no birds sing.” | |
While Barrett Browning’s poem is a confident account of everlasting love, Keats’s romantic poem dwells on the brief love of a dying knight | ||
'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' and 'i wanna be yours'
Comparison in a nutshell:
Both poems examine consuming and devoted love as they address loved ones. However, Elizabeth Barrett Browning presents her tribute to romantic relationships in a traditional sonnet, whereas John Cooper Clarke offers a post-modern interpretation of romance.
Similarities:
Topic sentence | Both poems depict a speaker’s intense declarations of love | |
Evidence and analysis | 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' | 'i wanna be yours' |
Barrett Browning’s poem is a direct address to an implied loved one:
| Cooper Clarke’s poem, too, is a direct address that conveys intense love:
| |
The poem begins offering an account of their love, “Let me count the ways.”:
| The poem, similarly, begins with a claim, “i wanna be yours”:
| |
The speaker in Barrett Browning’s poem conveys reassuring assertions with enjambment: “I love thee to the level of every day’s/Most quiet need” | Cooper Clarke’s speaker is similarly soothing: “let me be your raincoat/for those frequent rainy days” | |
Barrett Browning presents love as all-consuming, to the “depth and breadth and height” their “soul can reach”:
| Cooper Clarke offers a presentation of a love that similarly takes over the speaker:
| |
The poems both show persuasive and confident speakers who assertively claim their passionate love | ||
Differences:
Topic sentence | While Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s sonnet alludes to classical romantic traditions, John Cooper Clarke’s unconventional poem is considered post-modern in its presentation of relationships | |
Evidence and analysis | 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' | 'i wanna be yours' |
Barrett Browning uses a sonnet to allude to romantic traditions:
| Cooper Clarke’s poem uses an unconventional form that uses half-rhyme irregularly:
| |
The poem uses iambic pentameter, the traditional rhythm of Petrarchan sonnets | The rhythm of Cooper Clarke’s poem is lyrical | |
Traditionally, ‘Sonnet 43’ uses religious and spiritual imagery to imply the speaker’s love is pure:
| Imagery in the poem 'i wanna be yours' is considered banal or mundane:
| |
Barrett Browning’s poem elevates the idea of love, whereas Cooper Clarke shows love related to simple, everyday life | ||
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Choose whichever poem you are able to make the most in-depth comparisons with in the exam. For example, you could choose to compare the presentation of romance in 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' and 'She Walks in Beauty'. Or you might wish to explore the idea of consuming love in 'How do I love thee? (Sonnet 43)' and 'i wanna be yours'. What is important is that you view the poems thematically, with a clear emphasis on relationships. This will give you a better framework in which to write your response in the exam.
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