Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Aurora Leigh

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In February 1845, Elizabeth Barrett wrote to Robert Browning that she was contemplating “a sort of novel poem” on modern themes which would challenge the conventions of her day. But, she continued, she was “waiting for a story”. That story, which would become her great work

Aurora Leigh

, came to her five years later, after her marriage to Browning and after she had completed her political meditations on the Italian Risorgimento, published in 1851 as

Casa Guidi Windows

. The fictional autobiography of a woman poet (not herself, Barrett Browning insisted),

Aurora Leigh

is a bold synthesis of lyric and narrative elements, literary and social theory. It is Barrett Browning's strongest claim to fame and a foundational text for women poets, feminist activists, and feminist literary…

1563 words

Citation: Pollock, Mary. "Aurora Leigh". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 04 July 2003 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=6473, accessed 19 March 2024.]

6473 Aurora Leigh 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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