Sonnet 29 - Elizabeth Browning

• "I think of thee!"my thoughts do twine and bud About thee, as wild vines, about a tree "

  The narrator addresses her lover directly, which makes poem seem personal. The extended metaphor (conciet) natural imagery shows how her thoughts focus on him like a vine wraps around a tree - her thoughts are constantly growing and developing. "Twine" means to wind around something. Conceit/extended metaphor- the narrator is the "wild vines" and her lover is the "tree".This is emphasized by the internal rhyme of "thee" and "tree". "thee" expresses intimacy.Her thoughts of him is consuming her. Could be about spiritual or sexual love.

  Sexual:"twine"- twist together, intertwine.

  Flower symbolism as female sexual metaphor.

  Spiritual: Wealth of biblical and religious imagery. Jesus is the tree, and Christians need him. The poet can not survive without Robert Browning, illustrates Robert Browning as godly.
• "Put out broad leaves, ...Except the straggling green..."

  Suggests her love for him is extensive. Her love is so overwhelming, that she is losing the poetic form. Suggests the vines are inferior to the tree - her thoughts about her lover are inferior to the man himself. Thoughts about how speakers view themselves related to the ones they love is an interesting point of comparison and contrast. "Straggling" indicates a lack of order.Her thoughts threaten to stop her from seeing him as he really is.
• "Yet, O my palm tree, be it understood

  Excited language: metaphor of comparing him continue the language about nature but also the sound reflects excitement.

  "palm tree"
• "I will not have my thoughts instead of thee

  Who art dearer, better! Rather, instantly

  Structure: The Caesura created by the exclamation mark creates a turning point in the poem. The use of exclamation marks shows how the narrator takes joy in thinking about her lover and feels excitement at the thought of being with him. Plosive sounds and dynamic verbs emphasize how much she wants to be with him.
• "Rather,instantly.Renew thy presence; as a strong tree should"

  Volta (change from octet to sestat) is straggled between line 7 and 8. Her thoughts are overwhelming her because she thinks about her lover all the time when they are apart., therefore she employs imperatives to almost order him to be with him. Alliteration emphasizes how much she wants him to act.

  She breaks some of the conventions of a sonnet to reflect her unfulfilled because of distance. Alternatively, she might be so overwhelmed that she can break some of the conventions of the poem.
• "... set thy trunk all bare,"

  Flower symbolism as female sexual metaphor,possibly an erotic reference. Get naked and take your clothes out.
• "Drop heavily down, - burst shattered, everywhere!

  Excited language: Use of three different word to describe the way his presence replaces her thoughts emphasizes her excitement. Caesura contributes to the dramatic effect.

  "burst, shattered, everywhere"- evocative of sexual climax.
• "I do not think of thee - I am too near thee."

  Structure: The transition form the problem to the solution reflects the difference between the narrator thinking about her lover and being with him. This is emphasised by the reversal of the first and last lines - in the first line, the narrator says "I think of thee!", but by the end of the poem, she imagines that when she is with her lover, she'l no longer think of him because she will be "too near" him.She does not have to think about him when she is with him - he is better than anything she is capable of imagining.
• Poet

  Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861) was in County Durham.

  She wrote this poem in 1845-46 as part of a series of sonnets about her future husband, Robert Browning, called 'Sonnets from the Portuguese'.

  Victorian context: Victorian women, confirms the stereotypes of women in Victorian society. However, it can be interpreted as female empowerment, as she uses imperative verbs and forceful language to demand him to come back home.
• Content regarding thoughts

  She reassures him that her thoughts do not compare to the reality of him. She wants him to be a strong presene in her life and to be with him rather than just thinking about him.
• Form and Structure

  Sonnet form is traditionally for love poetry. This sonnet is written in the Petrarchan form, with eight lines (an octave) followed by six lines (sestet) - the octave usually presents a problem and the sestet provides a solution. However, in this poem, the solution arrives in the middle of line 7 - having it come early and in the middle of the a line reflects the narrator's impatience to see her lover.
• Key themes

  Fulfilment, nature, distance, longing

  Consider how relationships are presented as fulfilling in 'Singh Song!" and "Climbing my Grandfather". Natural imagery is also used to show distance in a relationship in 'Letters from Yorkshire' and 'Winter Swans'.
• Tone

  Passionate,romantic