Browning's early career began promisingly, but was not a success. The long poem Pauline brought him to the attention of Dante Gabriel Rossetti, and was followed by Paracelsus, which was praised by Wordsworth and Dickens, but in 1840 the difficult Sordello, which was seen as wilfully obscure, brought his poetry into disrepute. His reputation took more than a decade to recover, during which time he moved away from the Shelleyan forms of his early period and developed a more personal style.
In 1846 Browning married the older poet Elizabeth Barrett, who at the time was considerably better known than himself. So started one of history's most famous literary marriages. They went to live in Italy, a country he called 'my university', and which features frequently in his work. By the time of her death in 1861, he had published the crucial collection Men and Women. The collection Dramatis Personae and the book-length epic poemThe Ring and the Book followed, and made him a leading British poet. He continued to write prolifically, but today it is largely the poetry he had written in this middle period on which his reputation rests.
Browning was born in Kettering and played his early football for his home-town club before joining Queens Park Rangers in the 1910 close season, although he did not sign a full-time contract until 8 October that year. At Q.P.R., he was a regular scorer during his first season and was the club's top-scorer in the 1910–11 season with 18 goals. His scoring dropped off during his second season with the club, where he only scored once in ten games played, in a draw against Watford on 22 January 1912. However, he would form part of the Q.P.R. team which won the Southern Football League during 1911–12. He did not play in Ranger's subsequent FA Charity Shield loss against Blackburn Rovers. The following season, he again scored only once for Rangers in twelve games.
In February 1913, his previous goalscoring form attracted him to fellow Southern League club, Southampton who were having difficulty filling the inside-left position, having used eight different players so far that season. Browning was immediately drafted into the first-team, making his Southampton debut at West Ham United on 15 February. Although match reports described him as "a clever forward with an accurate shot", Browning was unable to reproduce his previous goalscoring form and after six matches, with only one victory, he was dropped in favour of Bill Sanders, a soldier on loan from the Royal Artillery at Portsmouth.
Schermerhorn was born in Schenectady, New York, where he studied clarinet, violin, and trumpet in school. At age 14, he forged a baptismal certificate to appear older so he could play in a dance band that played in night clubs. He soon created his own five piece band called The Blue Moods. He sang the lead and played trumpet for the group.
At 17, he was accepted into the New England Conservatory of Music, from which he graduated in 1950 with honors. He went on to play trumpet with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Kansas City Philharmonic among several other orchestras.
Schermerhorn was drafted into the U.S. Army and in 1953, while serving in Germany, he was assigned to be the conductor of the U.S. Seventh Army Symphony Orchestra. This was his first conducting position and he proved to be quite successful, winning the Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge Medal and the Harriet Cohen International Music Award for young conductors.
Robert Browning (/ˈbraʊnɪŋ/; 15 January 1914 – 11 March 1997) was a ScottishByzantinist and university professor.
Early career
Browning was born in Glasgow in 1914. He attended Kelvinside Academy in that city. He entered the Humanities department of Glasgow University in 1931, graduating in 1935. As Snell Exhibitioner at Balliol College, Oxford, he acquired first class degrees in Mods and Greats as well as several prizes (Nowlands, Ireland, Craven, Ferguson, De Paravicini, and Jenkyns). During his time at Glasgow University, Browning became proficient in several Eastern European languages, beginning with Albanian.
Schermerhorn is a village in the Dutch province of North Holland. It is a part of the municipality of Alkmaar, and lies about 9km south of Heerhugowaard.
Schermerhorn was a separate municipality until 1970, when it was merged with Schermer.
In 2001, the village of Schermerhorn had 874 inhabitants. The built-up area of the village was 0.17km², and contained 360 residences.
The statistical area "Schermerhorn", which also can include the peripheral parts of the village, as well as the surrounding countryside, has a population of around 1120.
Schermerhorn is a Dutch place name and derivative surname.
Places
Schermerhorn, a small town in North Holland. The town's name reflects its former location on a "horn" (cape or headland) into the lake Schermer, which now is a polder.
Robert Browning Documentary - Biography of the life of Robert Browning
Robert Browning was a prolific Victorian-era poet and playwright. He is widely recognized as a master of dramatic monologue and psychological portraiture. Browning is perhaps best-known for a poem he didn’t value highly, The Pied Piper of Hamelin, a children's poem that is quite different from his other work. He is also known for his long form blank poem The Ring and the Book, the story of a Roman murder trial in 12 books. Browning was married to the poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning.
#People #History #Documentary #Biography
published: 24 Feb 2021
Love Story: Robert Browning & Elizabeth Barrett
You will probably want to hear about this very famous Love Story as well: Jane Eyre & Rochester
https://youtu.be/MuAMzc84W-4
published: 23 Feb 2021
Robert Browning: Biography and Works; Features of his Poetry, his Philosophy & Dramatic Monologue
This video lecture presents the life and works of Robert Browning.
It also discusses the features of his works, his philosophy and his use of Dramatic Monologues.
published: 14 Apr 2019
Robert Browning - My Last Duchess - Analysis. Poetry Lecture by Dr. Andrew Barker
MY LAST DUCHESS. A widowed Duke about to meet his new bride stops a messenger on the stairs to reveal a portrait --thus begins Browning's tale of jealousy and homicide. What type of woman was the last Duchess? What type of man is the Duke who speaks the poem to the messenger, and us? This is a piece that cries out to be acted, provided the actor understands the character of the Duke. The lecture takes us through the Duke's complaints against his previous wife to show us the psychology of the man giving us the information, a man from who the statement, "I gave commands, then all smiles stopped together," is chillingly psychotic.
If you enjoy the lecture please LIKE and SUBSCRIBE.
COMMENTS also are gratefully received.
Click http://andrewbarker.info should you wish for extra notes and a tr...
published: 06 Jun 2014
Robert Browning Recites His Poem (1889 Edison Cylinder)
This is one of the most important historic recording from 19th century. This recording contains the voice of great English poet, Robert Browning (1812 - 1889).
It was recorded in a dinner party given by Browning's friend the artist Rudolf Lehmann, on May 6th, 1889.
Colonel Gouraud, the sales manager of Edison Talking machine, had brought with him a phonograph and each of the guests was invited to speak into it. Initially reluctant, Browning eventually relents and can be heard reciting from his poem 'How They Brought the Good News from Ghent to Aix'. Unfortunately, he forgets the words after a few lines, tries again and then gives up, but can be heard expressing his astonishment at this "wonderful invention".
Although the recording is very inaudible, it is still worth to hear on...
published: 21 Sep 2008
Robert Browning
Subject:English
Paper: Nineteenth Century English Literature
published: 12 Mar 2016
"My Last Duchess" by Robert Browning (read by Tom O'Bedlam)
"Self-aggrandizing Duke murders or exiles insufficiently appreciative wife" That's the plot. The quotation comes from this analysis which is as good as any I can find on the web.
http://poemshape.wordpress.com/2011/04/04/the-annotated-my-last-duchess/
When Robert Browning was asked what the Duke meant by "I gave commands then all smiles stopped together" he replied, ""I meant that the commands were that she should be put to death . . . or he might have had her shut up in a convent.".
It is important to realise how times have changed. The Duke could do whatever he chose to do. There's a scene-closing couplet from "'Tis pity She's a Whore" by John Ford: "Great men may do their wills and we must obey. But God will judge them for it another day". (I may not have that exactly right - I'...
Robert Browning was a prolific Victorian-era poet and playwright. He is widely recognized as a master of dramatic monologue and psychological portraiture. Brown...
Robert Browning was a prolific Victorian-era poet and playwright. He is widely recognized as a master of dramatic monologue and psychological portraiture. Browning is perhaps best-known for a poem he didn’t value highly, The Pied Piper of Hamelin, a children's poem that is quite different from his other work. He is also known for his long form blank poem The Ring and the Book, the story of a Roman murder trial in 12 books. Browning was married to the poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning.
#People #History #Documentary #Biography
Robert Browning was a prolific Victorian-era poet and playwright. He is widely recognized as a master of dramatic monologue and psychological portraiture. Browning is perhaps best-known for a poem he didn’t value highly, The Pied Piper of Hamelin, a children's poem that is quite different from his other work. He is also known for his long form blank poem The Ring and the Book, the story of a Roman murder trial in 12 books. Browning was married to the poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning.
#People #History #Documentary #Biography
This video lecture presents the life and works of Robert Browning.
It also discusses the features of his works, his philosophy and his use of Dramatic Monologue...
This video lecture presents the life and works of Robert Browning.
It also discusses the features of his works, his philosophy and his use of Dramatic Monologues.
This video lecture presents the life and works of Robert Browning.
It also discusses the features of his works, his philosophy and his use of Dramatic Monologues.
MY LAST DUCHESS. A widowed Duke about to meet his new bride stops a messenger on the stairs to reveal a portrait --thus begins Browning's tale of jealousy and h...
MY LAST DUCHESS. A widowed Duke about to meet his new bride stops a messenger on the stairs to reveal a portrait --thus begins Browning's tale of jealousy and homicide. What type of woman was the last Duchess? What type of man is the Duke who speaks the poem to the messenger, and us? This is a piece that cries out to be acted, provided the actor understands the character of the Duke. The lecture takes us through the Duke's complaints against his previous wife to show us the psychology of the man giving us the information, a man from who the statement, "I gave commands, then all smiles stopped together," is chillingly psychotic.
If you enjoy the lecture please LIKE and SUBSCRIBE.
COMMENTS also are gratefully received.
Click http://andrewbarker.info should you wish for extra notes and a transcript of the lecture and analysis above.
Andrew Barker
Andrew Barker's poetry can be found on Instagram at andrewbarkerwriter.
MY LAST DUCHESS. A widowed Duke about to meet his new bride stops a messenger on the stairs to reveal a portrait --thus begins Browning's tale of jealousy and homicide. What type of woman was the last Duchess? What type of man is the Duke who speaks the poem to the messenger, and us? This is a piece that cries out to be acted, provided the actor understands the character of the Duke. The lecture takes us through the Duke's complaints against his previous wife to show us the psychology of the man giving us the information, a man from who the statement, "I gave commands, then all smiles stopped together," is chillingly psychotic.
If you enjoy the lecture please LIKE and SUBSCRIBE.
COMMENTS also are gratefully received.
Click http://andrewbarker.info should you wish for extra notes and a transcript of the lecture and analysis above.
Andrew Barker
Andrew Barker's poetry can be found on Instagram at andrewbarkerwriter.
This is one of the most important historic recording from 19th century. This recording contains the voice of great English poet, Robert Browning (1812 - 1889)....
This is one of the most important historic recording from 19th century. This recording contains the voice of great English poet, Robert Browning (1812 - 1889).
It was recorded in a dinner party given by Browning's friend the artist Rudolf Lehmann, on May 6th, 1889.
Colonel Gouraud, the sales manager of Edison Talking machine, had brought with him a phonograph and each of the guests was invited to speak into it. Initially reluctant, Browning eventually relents and can be heard reciting from his poem 'How They Brought the Good News from Ghent to Aix'. Unfortunately, he forgets the words after a few lines, tries again and then gives up, but can be heard expressing his astonishment at this "wonderful invention".
Although the recording is very inaudible, it is still worth to hear one of the greatest poet of Victorian era.
I put the subtitle in this video to understand the words more clearly.
This is one of the most important historic recording from 19th century. This recording contains the voice of great English poet, Robert Browning (1812 - 1889).
It was recorded in a dinner party given by Browning's friend the artist Rudolf Lehmann, on May 6th, 1889.
Colonel Gouraud, the sales manager of Edison Talking machine, had brought with him a phonograph and each of the guests was invited to speak into it. Initially reluctant, Browning eventually relents and can be heard reciting from his poem 'How They Brought the Good News from Ghent to Aix'. Unfortunately, he forgets the words after a few lines, tries again and then gives up, but can be heard expressing his astonishment at this "wonderful invention".
Although the recording is very inaudible, it is still worth to hear one of the greatest poet of Victorian era.
I put the subtitle in this video to understand the words more clearly.
"Self-aggrandizing Duke murders or exiles insufficiently appreciative wife" That's the plot. The quotation comes from this analysis which is as good as any I ...
"Self-aggrandizing Duke murders or exiles insufficiently appreciative wife" That's the plot. The quotation comes from this analysis which is as good as any I can find on the web.
http://poemshape.wordpress.com/2011/04/04/the-annotated-my-last-duchess/
When Robert Browning was asked what the Duke meant by "I gave commands then all smiles stopped together" he replied, ""I meant that the commands were that she should be put to death . . . or he might have had her shut up in a convent.".
It is important to realise how times have changed. The Duke could do whatever he chose to do. There's a scene-closing couplet from "'Tis pity She's a Whore" by John Ford: "Great men may do their wills and we must obey. But God will judge them for it another day". (I may not have that exactly right - I'm quoting from memory)
Fra Pandolf was the portrait painter but all persons, including Claus of Innsbruck, are fictitious.
"Written in 1841, My Last Duchess is the dramatic monologue of the duke of Ferrara who is negotiating his second marriage through an agent of the count of Tyrol on the grand staircase of the ducal palace at Ferrara in northern Italy. Executing the elements of a dramatic monologue, the duke reveals his situation and much more than he intends to the both the agent and the reader. "
Read the rest here:
http://barney.gonzaga.edu/~jdavis6/poem.html
I found an excellent reading by Alfred Molina (Doc Ock in Spiderman) here:
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/journal/audioitem.html?id=47
That's my last duchess painted on the wall,
Looking as if she were alive. I call
That piece a wonder, now: Frà Pandolf's hands
Worked busily a day, and there she stands.
Will't please you sit and look at her? I said
"Frà Pandolf" by design, for never read
Strangers like you that pictured countenance,
The depth and passion of its earnest glance,
But to myself they turned (since none puts by
The curtain I have drawn for you, but I)
And seemed as they would ask me, if they durst,
How such a glance came there; so, not the first
Are you to turn and ask thus. Sir, 'twas not
Her husband's presence only, called that spot
Of joy into the Duchess' cheek: perhaps
Frà Pandolf chanced to say "Her mantle laps
"Over my lady's wrist too much," or "Paint
"Must never hope to reproduce the faint
"Half-flush that dies along her throat": such stuff
Was courtesy, she thought, and cause enough
For calling up that spot of joy. She had
A heart how shall I say? too soon made glad,
Too easily impressed; she liked whate'er
She looked on, and her looks went everywhere.
Sir, 'twas all one! My favor at her breast,
The dropping of the daylight in the West,
The bough of cherries some officious fool
Broke in the orchard for her, the white mule
She rode with round the terrace all and each
Would draw from her alike the approving speech,
Or blush, at least. She thanked men good! but thanked
Somehow I know not how as if she ranked
My gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name
With anybody's gift. Who'd stoop to blame
This sort of trifling? Even had you skill
In speech which I have not to make your will
Quite clear to such an one, and say, "Just this
"Or that in you disgusts me; here you miss,
"Or there exceed the mark" and if she let
Herself be lessoned so, nor plainly set
Her wits to yours, forsooth, and make excuse,
E'en then would be some stooping; and I choose
Never to stoop. Oh sir, she smiled, no doubt,
Whene'er I passed her; but who passed without
Much the same smile? This grew; I gave commands;
Then all smiles stopped together. There she stands
As if alive. Will't please you rise? We'll meet
The company below, then. I repeat,
The Count your master's known munificence
Is ample warrant that no just pretense
Of mine for dowry will be disallowed;
Though his fair daughter's self, as I avowed
At starting, is my object. Nay we'll go
Together down, sir. Notice Neptune, though,
Taming a sea-horse, thought a rarity,
Which Claus of Innsbruck cast in bronze for me!
"Self-aggrandizing Duke murders or exiles insufficiently appreciative wife" That's the plot. The quotation comes from this analysis which is as good as any I can find on the web.
http://poemshape.wordpress.com/2011/04/04/the-annotated-my-last-duchess/
When Robert Browning was asked what the Duke meant by "I gave commands then all smiles stopped together" he replied, ""I meant that the commands were that she should be put to death . . . or he might have had her shut up in a convent.".
It is important to realise how times have changed. The Duke could do whatever he chose to do. There's a scene-closing couplet from "'Tis pity She's a Whore" by John Ford: "Great men may do their wills and we must obey. But God will judge them for it another day". (I may not have that exactly right - I'm quoting from memory)
Fra Pandolf was the portrait painter but all persons, including Claus of Innsbruck, are fictitious.
"Written in 1841, My Last Duchess is the dramatic monologue of the duke of Ferrara who is negotiating his second marriage through an agent of the count of Tyrol on the grand staircase of the ducal palace at Ferrara in northern Italy. Executing the elements of a dramatic monologue, the duke reveals his situation and much more than he intends to the both the agent and the reader. "
Read the rest here:
http://barney.gonzaga.edu/~jdavis6/poem.html
I found an excellent reading by Alfred Molina (Doc Ock in Spiderman) here:
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/journal/audioitem.html?id=47
That's my last duchess painted on the wall,
Looking as if she were alive. I call
That piece a wonder, now: Frà Pandolf's hands
Worked busily a day, and there she stands.
Will't please you sit and look at her? I said
"Frà Pandolf" by design, for never read
Strangers like you that pictured countenance,
The depth and passion of its earnest glance,
But to myself they turned (since none puts by
The curtain I have drawn for you, but I)
And seemed as they would ask me, if they durst,
How such a glance came there; so, not the first
Are you to turn and ask thus. Sir, 'twas not
Her husband's presence only, called that spot
Of joy into the Duchess' cheek: perhaps
Frà Pandolf chanced to say "Her mantle laps
"Over my lady's wrist too much," or "Paint
"Must never hope to reproduce the faint
"Half-flush that dies along her throat": such stuff
Was courtesy, she thought, and cause enough
For calling up that spot of joy. She had
A heart how shall I say? too soon made glad,
Too easily impressed; she liked whate'er
She looked on, and her looks went everywhere.
Sir, 'twas all one! My favor at her breast,
The dropping of the daylight in the West,
The bough of cherries some officious fool
Broke in the orchard for her, the white mule
She rode with round the terrace all and each
Would draw from her alike the approving speech,
Or blush, at least. She thanked men good! but thanked
Somehow I know not how as if she ranked
My gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name
With anybody's gift. Who'd stoop to blame
This sort of trifling? Even had you skill
In speech which I have not to make your will
Quite clear to such an one, and say, "Just this
"Or that in you disgusts me; here you miss,
"Or there exceed the mark" and if she let
Herself be lessoned so, nor plainly set
Her wits to yours, forsooth, and make excuse,
E'en then would be some stooping; and I choose
Never to stoop. Oh sir, she smiled, no doubt,
Whene'er I passed her; but who passed without
Much the same smile? This grew; I gave commands;
Then all smiles stopped together. There she stands
As if alive. Will't please you rise? We'll meet
The company below, then. I repeat,
The Count your master's known munificence
Is ample warrant that no just pretense
Of mine for dowry will be disallowed;
Though his fair daughter's self, as I avowed
At starting, is my object. Nay we'll go
Together down, sir. Notice Neptune, though,
Taming a sea-horse, thought a rarity,
Which Claus of Innsbruck cast in bronze for me!
Robert Browning was a prolific Victorian-era poet and playwright. He is widely recognized as a master of dramatic monologue and psychological portraiture. Browning is perhaps best-known for a poem he didn’t value highly, The Pied Piper of Hamelin, a children's poem that is quite different from his other work. He is also known for his long form blank poem The Ring and the Book, the story of a Roman murder trial in 12 books. Browning was married to the poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning.
#People #History #Documentary #Biography
This video lecture presents the life and works of Robert Browning.
It also discusses the features of his works, his philosophy and his use of Dramatic Monologues.
MY LAST DUCHESS. A widowed Duke about to meet his new bride stops a messenger on the stairs to reveal a portrait --thus begins Browning's tale of jealousy and homicide. What type of woman was the last Duchess? What type of man is the Duke who speaks the poem to the messenger, and us? This is a piece that cries out to be acted, provided the actor understands the character of the Duke. The lecture takes us through the Duke's complaints against his previous wife to show us the psychology of the man giving us the information, a man from who the statement, "I gave commands, then all smiles stopped together," is chillingly psychotic.
If you enjoy the lecture please LIKE and SUBSCRIBE.
COMMENTS also are gratefully received.
Click http://andrewbarker.info should you wish for extra notes and a transcript of the lecture and analysis above.
Andrew Barker
Andrew Barker's poetry can be found on Instagram at andrewbarkerwriter.
This is one of the most important historic recording from 19th century. This recording contains the voice of great English poet, Robert Browning (1812 - 1889).
It was recorded in a dinner party given by Browning's friend the artist Rudolf Lehmann, on May 6th, 1889.
Colonel Gouraud, the sales manager of Edison Talking machine, had brought with him a phonograph and each of the guests was invited to speak into it. Initially reluctant, Browning eventually relents and can be heard reciting from his poem 'How They Brought the Good News from Ghent to Aix'. Unfortunately, he forgets the words after a few lines, tries again and then gives up, but can be heard expressing his astonishment at this "wonderful invention".
Although the recording is very inaudible, it is still worth to hear one of the greatest poet of Victorian era.
I put the subtitle in this video to understand the words more clearly.
"Self-aggrandizing Duke murders or exiles insufficiently appreciative wife" That's the plot. The quotation comes from this analysis which is as good as any I can find on the web.
http://poemshape.wordpress.com/2011/04/04/the-annotated-my-last-duchess/
When Robert Browning was asked what the Duke meant by "I gave commands then all smiles stopped together" he replied, ""I meant that the commands were that she should be put to death . . . or he might have had her shut up in a convent.".
It is important to realise how times have changed. The Duke could do whatever he chose to do. There's a scene-closing couplet from "'Tis pity She's a Whore" by John Ford: "Great men may do their wills and we must obey. But God will judge them for it another day". (I may not have that exactly right - I'm quoting from memory)
Fra Pandolf was the portrait painter but all persons, including Claus of Innsbruck, are fictitious.
"Written in 1841, My Last Duchess is the dramatic monologue of the duke of Ferrara who is negotiating his second marriage through an agent of the count of Tyrol on the grand staircase of the ducal palace at Ferrara in northern Italy. Executing the elements of a dramatic monologue, the duke reveals his situation and much more than he intends to the both the agent and the reader. "
Read the rest here:
http://barney.gonzaga.edu/~jdavis6/poem.html
I found an excellent reading by Alfred Molina (Doc Ock in Spiderman) here:
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/journal/audioitem.html?id=47
That's my last duchess painted on the wall,
Looking as if she were alive. I call
That piece a wonder, now: Frà Pandolf's hands
Worked busily a day, and there she stands.
Will't please you sit and look at her? I said
"Frà Pandolf" by design, for never read
Strangers like you that pictured countenance,
The depth and passion of its earnest glance,
But to myself they turned (since none puts by
The curtain I have drawn for you, but I)
And seemed as they would ask me, if they durst,
How such a glance came there; so, not the first
Are you to turn and ask thus. Sir, 'twas not
Her husband's presence only, called that spot
Of joy into the Duchess' cheek: perhaps
Frà Pandolf chanced to say "Her mantle laps
"Over my lady's wrist too much," or "Paint
"Must never hope to reproduce the faint
"Half-flush that dies along her throat": such stuff
Was courtesy, she thought, and cause enough
For calling up that spot of joy. She had
A heart how shall I say? too soon made glad,
Too easily impressed; she liked whate'er
She looked on, and her looks went everywhere.
Sir, 'twas all one! My favor at her breast,
The dropping of the daylight in the West,
The bough of cherries some officious fool
Broke in the orchard for her, the white mule
She rode with round the terrace all and each
Would draw from her alike the approving speech,
Or blush, at least. She thanked men good! but thanked
Somehow I know not how as if she ranked
My gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name
With anybody's gift. Who'd stoop to blame
This sort of trifling? Even had you skill
In speech which I have not to make your will
Quite clear to such an one, and say, "Just this
"Or that in you disgusts me; here you miss,
"Or there exceed the mark" and if she let
Herself be lessoned so, nor plainly set
Her wits to yours, forsooth, and make excuse,
E'en then would be some stooping; and I choose
Never to stoop. Oh sir, she smiled, no doubt,
Whene'er I passed her; but who passed without
Much the same smile? This grew; I gave commands;
Then all smiles stopped together. There she stands
As if alive. Will't please you rise? We'll meet
The company below, then. I repeat,
The Count your master's known munificence
Is ample warrant that no just pretense
Of mine for dowry will be disallowed;
Though his fair daughter's self, as I avowed
At starting, is my object. Nay we'll go
Together down, sir. Notice Neptune, though,
Taming a sea-horse, thought a rarity,
Which Claus of Innsbruck cast in bronze for me!
Browning's early career began promisingly, but was not a success. The long poem Pauline brought him to the attention of Dante Gabriel Rossetti, and was followed by Paracelsus, which was praised by Wordsworth and Dickens, but in 1840 the difficult Sordello, which was seen as wilfully obscure, brought his poetry into disrepute. His reputation took more than a decade to recover, during which time he moved away from the Shelleyan forms of his early period and developed a more personal style.
In 1846 Browning married the older poet Elizabeth Barrett, who at the time was considerably better known than himself. So started one of history's most famous literary marriages. They went to live in Italy, a country he called 'my university', and which features frequently in his work. By the time of her death in 1861, he had published the crucial collection Men and Women. The collection Dramatis Personae and the book-length epic poemThe Ring and the Book followed, and made him a leading British poet. He continued to write prolifically, but today it is largely the poetry he had written in this middle period on which his reputation rests.