Sonnet 43 by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Sonnet 43 by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

To describe her love for her husband, Elizabeth Barrett Browning proposes the question, “How do I love thee?” She then provides eight answers. Browning’s famous sonnet has become a universal tribute to love.

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.

I love thee to the level of everyday’s

Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light.

I love thee freely, as men strive for Right;

I love thee purely, as they turn from Praise.

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,

Smiles, tears, of all my life!—and, if God choose,

I shall but love thee better after death.

Your task is on Schoology...

Search the internet and find your special love song/ballad. Look at the lyrics of the song and compare them to the words that make up Browning’s sonnet. Compare and contrast the love expressed in Browning’s Sonnet 43 to your chosen song. Be sure to name the artist(s) who wrote the song in your response.