Aurora Leigh - Hardcover

Browning, Elizabeth Barrett

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0821409565 ISBN 13: 9780821409565

Publisher: Ohio University Press, 1992

Synopsis

Widely regarded as Barrett Browning’s major work, Aurora Leigh is important both for its address to contemporary social issues, the “woman question” in particular, and for its bold experimentation with poetic form. Since 1979 it has held its place in the canon as “the feminist poem” (Ellen Moers), yet, until now, no reliable edition of the work has been available.

The text of this edition is based upon meticulous examination of the extant manuscripts, corrected proofs and revision to the poem. It is accompanied by a full textual history of the poem’s composition and publication, a comprehensive annotation of literary allusions and contemporary reference, and a new and closely argued essay on the significance of the verse-novel as an early example of politically self-conscious women’s writing.

This authoritative edition of Aurora Leigh provides a text and apparatus designed to combat conventional notions of women’s poetry as “instinctive” improvisation. It argues for the verse-novel as a poem which offers both the excitement of intellectual experimentation and the powerful engagement of a judicious political passion. The arrival of this edition should be of great interest and use to students of nineteenth-century studies and feminist scholars alike.

About this title

About the Author

Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861) was one of the most prominent poets of the Victorian era. Her poetry was widely popular in both England and the United States during her lifetime.

Review

Novel in blank verse by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, published in 1857. The first-person narrative, which comprises some 11,000 lines, tells of the heroine's childhood and youth in Italy and England, her self-education in her father's hidden library, and her successful pursuit of a literary career. Initially resisting a marriage proposal by the philanthropist Romney Leigh, Aurora later surrenders her independence and weds her faithful suitor, whose own idealism has also since been tempered by experience. Aurora's career, Romney's social theories, and a melodramatic subplot concerning forced prostitution elicit the author's vivid observations on the importance of poetry, the individual's responsibility to society, and the victimization of women. Although it was a great popular success, Aurora Leigh was not admired by critics. -- The Merriam-Webster Encylopedia of Literature

About this edition

• Publisher: Ohio University Press
• Publication date: 1992
• ISBN 10: 0821409565
• ISBN 13: 9780821409565
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 706
• Editor: Reynolds Margaret