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Sonnets From The Portuguese XXII

By Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Topics: classic

When our two souls stand up erect and strong,     Face to face, silent, drawing nigh and nigher,     Until the lengthening wings break into fire     At either curvd point, what bitter wrong     Can the earth do to us, that we should not long     Be here contented? Think! In mounting higher,     The angels would press on us and aspire     To drop some golden orb of perfect song     Into our deep, dear silence. Let us stay     Rather on earth, Belovd, where the unfit     Contrarious moods of men recoil away     And isolate pure spirits, and permit     A place to stand and love in for a day,     With darkness and the death-hour rounding it.

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"When our two souls stand up erect and strong,..."

"Sonnets From The Portuguese XXII" is a quintessential example of Elizabeth Barrett Browning's signature style... ### Why We Love This Line At Linespedia, we believe that poetry is the ultimate sanctuary for the soul...

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Author:Elizabeth Barrett Browning

"When our two souls stand up erect and strong,..." by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

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"The Text is taken from Percy's Reliques (1765), vol. i. p. 71, 'given from two MS. copies, transmitted from Scotland.' Herd had a very similar bal"

Elizabeth Barrett Browning

About Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806–1861) was one of the most prominent English poets of the Victorian era. Her "Sonnets from the Portuguese" are among the most famous love poems in English, and her verse novel "Aurora Leigh" addressed women's roles in society and art.

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