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Year 11 - English

The poetry of Robert and Elizabeth Browning and Victorian values

Love and relationships poetry continued

Unit Summary

In this unit, pupis read and analyse three poems from the 'Love and Relationships' anthology. Pupils complete two lessons about each poem: one on understanding and one on analysis. At the end of the unit, pupils analyse themes from the anthology and analyse the modern and Victorian poems as groups.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to explain how the Brownings' poems subvert typical Victorian values.

Key Notes

  • Victorian society viewed women as passive and confined them to domestic roles.
  • Victorian society had a stigma surrounding sexual freedom and liberation.
  • The Brownings were a couple whose marriage challenged Victorian attitudes towards love and relationships.
  • Both 'Sonnet 29' and 'Porphyria's Lover' challenge typical attitudes of the Victorian era towards love and marriage.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • subvert: to undermine or weaken the power of something, especially an established system
  • elope: to secretly run away and get married, often without the consent of parents or family
  • propriety: conformity to accepted standards of behaviour or morals; correctness in social conduct
  • submissive: willing to conform to the authority or will of others; behaving in a way that follows accepted standards
  • Victorian era: the historical period in the United Kingdom during Queen Victoria's reign (1837–1901

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • Knowing that the Brownings were married to each other is an important piece of contextual information.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

1. Explain this English learning goal in two key points.

Victorian society viewed women as passive and confined them to domestic roles. Victorian society had a stigma surrounding sexual freedom and liberation.

2. Define this language term and use it in a sentence. 'subvert'

to undermine or weaken the power of something, especially an established system.

3. Correct this common English misunderstanding.

Mistake: Knowing that the Brownings were married to each other is an important piece of contextual information. Correction: Although it is relevant to know they were married, it is in linking their own unconventional marriage to the subversive presentation of love and relationships in their poems that the best contextual points can be found.

More Lessons In This Unit

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