Victorian Literature

1. Paper 6 : The Victorian Literature.
Comparative Study of
Tennyson and Browning
Prepared By : Vishva Gajjar
Roll No : 33
Email : vishvagajjar27@gmail.com
Smt. S. B. Gardi Department of English
Bhavnagar University

2. Introduction of Victorian ERA
• 1820 – 1900 is known as Victorian Age and it especially remarkable
because of rapid progress in arts and science.
• It’s the age where many great writers like Browning, Dickens, Meredith
gave their contributions to English as a gift.
• Four types of writing were popular during the Victorian Era:
1.Realist
2.Naturalist
3.The Novel
4.Poetry
• Robert Browning and Alfred Lord Tennyson belong to the Victorian era
occupying a prominent place as pre-eminent poets of their time.

3. Poetry
• Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809-1892): Most popular
Victorian poet. He wrote narrative poems
• Robert Browning (1812-1889): raised the dramatic
monologue to new heights—making it a vehicle for deep
psychological probing and character study
• Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861): with Robert, one
of literature’s greatest love affairs. Wrote love sonnets
valued for their lyric beauty

4. Robert Browning (1812-1889)
• Born: 7 May 1812 (Camberwell, London)
• Death:12 December 1889 (Venice, Kingdom of Italy)
• His First work is “Pauline” written in 1833.
• Browning tries to understand human nature, religion and society properly. He studies the innermost
psychology of his frantic characters.
• Browning represented complexity of life from the very beginning, and when the society came to know
about this complexity, it was surprised to find that there was a poet who had been expressing it for the
last forty years.
• Robert Browning was a cosmopolitan who was more interested in the universal, rather than in the
national.
• Browning writes of ideas and ideals which should govern men in their relations with each other rather
than of particular social problems of the day. On the whole, he avoids the topical and concentrates on the
universal and general.

5. ALFRED LORD TENNYSON(1809 – 1892)
• Born:6 August 1809(Somersby, Lincolnshire)
• Death: 6 October 1892(Lurgashall, Sussex)
• Tennyson wrote with his Brothers and first efforts appeared in a little volume
called “ Poems by two Brothers” in 1827
• Tennyson was naturally shy, retiring, indifferent to men , hating noise and
publicity, loving to be alone with nature.
• Tennyson was not only a man and a poet , he was a voice, the voice of a whole
people , expressing in exquisite melody their doubts and their faith, their grief's
and their triumphs.
• The majesty of Milton, Wordsworth, the fantasy of Black and Coleridge ,the
Melody of Keats, and Shelly, the narrative vigor of Scott and Byron. All these
striking qualities are evident on successive pages of Tennyson's poetry.

6. Comparative study of Robert and Alfred
• Writing Manner :
1.Draws Material from external specific
realities, ideas and objects.
2. Express through ornate language.
3.Simplicity in writing.
• Writing Manner :
1.Understand human nature, religion and
society probably.
2.Studies innermost psychology of character.
3.Obscurity in writing and Careless about
form.
Alfred Lord Tennyson Robert Browning
Continued….
Nature Of Expression :
1.Tone of Expression : Melancholic
2.Important in inducing and Endorsing particular
Method
3.Poetry : Essentially lyrical
4.Variety of Verse : Blank verse and Narrative poems,
Soliloque, Monologues
Nature Of Expression :
1.Energetic writing
2.Systematically depicts the essence of poetry
3.Dramatic Monologue : Half Hearted
4.Psychological state of Character

7. Comparative study of Robert and Alfred
• Choice of Subject :
1.Under the influence of Romantic revival
2.Chooses subjects daintily
3.Poems reverts to the lyric or Narrative
themes
4.Having Faith and Keeping Faith
5.Science and Religion
6.Science and Religion in Idylls of the King
suggest Tennysonian ideas of evolution
7. Ex: The old order changeth, yielding
place to new, And God fulfills Himself in
many ways, Lest one good custom should
corrupt the world,
• Choice of Subject :
1.Comely and ugly subjects
2.Equal pleasure aim to show truth lies
hidden in both Evil and Good
3.Themes : Philosophical or religious, love ,
lighter human soul
4.Interested in abnormal people
5.Projects himself into their mind to labour
their feelings and motives
6.Ex. God old along with Me ! The best is yet
to be , The last of life , for which the first
was made ; Our times are in his hands Who
saith : “ A whole I planned youth shows but
half trust God ; See all nor be afraid! “
Alfred Lord Tennyson Robert Browning
Continued….

8. Comparative study of Robert and Alfred
• Style :
1.Perfection of poetry
2. Simplicity writing
3.Deft application of sound to sense
and in subtle and pervading
employment of alliteration and
Vowel music
4.Craftsmanship : handling of English
meters and tireless experiments
• Style :
1.Obscurity to understand
2.Obscure passages and Series of
bewildering mental acrobatics
3.Expressed in willfully, harsh
rhythm and vocabulary
4.Achieve Nobel dignity and verbal
Music – like master of melody
Tennyson
Alfred Lord Tennyson Robert Browning

9. CONCLUSION:
• At the end it is to be concluded that both Robert Browning and
Alfred Tennyson were two main Victorian poets famous in dramatic
monologue. Browning logically reveals the essence of a person
whereas, Tennyson induce and plays a particular mood. Browning in
his poetry attempts to realize human nature, society and religion,
whereas Tennyson recalls the conscious mind and environment
through ornate language. As a source of his poetry, Tennyson applied
many subjects from domestic conditions to observation of
atmosphere. Browning, on the contrary, takes immoral characters and
challenges us to find out the moral excellence