Life In A Love By: Robert Browning BY: DORA ASHBY 1

ENTIRE POEM 2 Escape me? Never— Beloved! While I am I, and you are you, So long as the world contains us both, Me the loving and you the loth, While the one eludes, must the other pursue. My life is a fault at last, I fear: It seems too much like a fate, indeed! Though I do my best I shall scarce succeed. But what if I fail of my purpose here? It is but to keep the nerves at strain, To dry one's eyes and laugh at a fall, And, baffled, get up and begin again,— So the chase takes up one's life, that's all. While, look but once from your farthest bound At me so deep in the dust and dark, No sooner the old hope goes to ground Than a new one, straight to the self-same mark, I shape me— Ever Removed!

Biographical Information Robert Browning was educated predominately by his father. And he read poetry. He was able to speak many languages by the time he was 14. He married Elizabeth Barrett in 1846 and they had 1 son Robert “Pen” Browning. Robert Browning is considered to be one of the foremost Victorian poets. Robert Browning died on December 12 th 1889 the day the first volume of his poems was published. 3

Structure of the Poem Browning uses a single stanza and 22 lines for this poem. There is a definite rhyme scheme with 6 rhyming pairs. The rhyme scheme creates a ballad like quality to the poem. The poem might be telling the story of how he met his wife and decided to marry her. Escape me? Never— Beloved! While I am I, and you are you, So long as the world contains us both, Me the loving and you the loth, While the one eludes, must the other pursue. My life is a fault at last, I fear: It seems too much like a fate, indeed! Though I do my best I shall scarce succeed. But what if I fail of my purpose here? It is but to keep the nerves at strain, To dry one's eyes and laugh at a fall, And, baffled, get up and begin again,— So the chase takes up one's life, that's all. While, look but once from your farthest bound At me so deep in the dust and dark, No sooner the old hope goes to ground Than a new one, straight to the self-same mark, I shape me— Ever Removed! 4

Escape me? Never— Beloved! While I am I, and you are you, So long as the world contains us both, Me the loving and you the loth, While the one eludes, must the other pursue. My life is a fault at last, I fear: It seems too much like a fate, indeed! Though I do my best I shall scarce succeed. But what if I fail of my purpose here? It is but to keep the nerves at strain, To dry one's eyes and laugh at a fall, And, baffled, get up and begin again,— So the chase takes up one's life, that's all. While, look but once from your farthest bound At me so deep in the dust and dark, No sooner the old hope goes to ground Than a new one, straight to the self-same mark, I shape me— Ever Removed! Speaker of the Poem The speaker of the poem seems to an adult talking to someone He realizes that he’s fallen in love with a woman and he has strong feelings for her. It seems that the speaker is telling his wife how much he loves her. The speaker really wants to marry the woman he is love with but he doesn’t know how to ask her for her hand in marriage. 5

6 Literary elements: End rhyme- Is at the end of every line, and it adds a ballad-like quality to the poem. Vivid language- gives a dramatic quality to the poem. Personification- gives an unhuman object human qualities. Biographical connection- he is deeply in love with his wife, but she died.

IMAGERY 7 “At me so deep in the dust and dark”. This quote means that before he met his wife his life was a series of dusty roads. “No sooner did the old hope goes to ground”. He is hoping that they will get married and they do and he is very happy.

Imagery 8 “At me so deep in the dust and dark”. This quote means that before he met the woman he’s in love with his life was a dark place. “But what if I fail of my purpose here?” This quote means that before he met this woman he was still trying to figure out what his purpose was in life.

Vivid Language  “But what if I fail at my purpose here.” 9

Imagery 10 Escape me? Never- Beloved! I shape me- Ever Removed! This creates the image that the woman might want to leave the relationship.

Escape me? Never— Beloved! While I am I, and you are you, So long as the world contains us both, Me the loving and you the loth, While the one eludes, must the other pursue. My life is a fault at last, I fear: It seems too much like a fate, indeed! Though I do my best I shall scarce succeed. But what if I fail of my purpose here? It is but to keep the nerves at strain, To dry one's eyes and laugh at a fall, And, baffled, get up and begin again,— So the chase takes up one's life, that's all. While, look but once from your farthest bound At me so deep in the dust and dark, No sooner the old hope goes to ground Than a new one, straight to the self-same mark, I shape me— Ever Removed! Literary Elements End rhyme: 9 pairs The rhyme scheme creates a distinct rhythm within the poem. 11