A Biography of Robert Browning

Biography:

            Robert Browning was born in Camberwell (a suburb of London) on May 7, 1812. He too was the oldest child. Robert was a very intelligent little boy. He began reading and writing by the age of five, and by the age of fourteen Robert knew how to speak Latin, Greek, French, and Spanish. He was educated at home by his father who worked as a bank clerk, was also an artist, scholar, antiquarian, and collector of books and pictures. Robert was also tutored in music, drawing, dancing and horsemanship. By age twelve, he wrote a volume of Byronic verse that was called Incondita. This book was never published because his parents, but in 1825 his cousin gave Robert a collection of Shelley’s poetry. He enjoyed reading her book and he even asked for all of Shelley’s work for his thirteenth birthday. Robert didn’t start writing until after he turned twenty. He ended up attending the University of London, but he left so that he could read and learn at his own pace. In 1833, Browning published his first major work, Pauline and in 1840 he published Sordelo, which was widely viewed as a failure. Robert also tried drama, but they were unsuccessful. His play Strafford was ran for five nights in 1837 and again that was unsuccessful. Then, his dramatic monologues came in and this was his use of diction, rhythm, and symbol. Dramatic monologues were considered Robert’s most important contribution to poetry, and he even influenced major poets of the twentieth century. Soon after that, he had read Elizabeth Barrett’s work and was very interested in her. They met in person in 1845 after sending letters back and forth to each other for 12 months. The two got married in 1846 by Robert’s father and then they both moved to Florence, Italy. They had a son a little later and his name was also Robert, but they liked to call him “Pen”. Elizabeth inspired Robert’s collection of poems Men and Women (1855), which Robert dedicated to her. This was known as one of Robert’s best works, and after it was published Robert was known as Elizabeth Barrett’s husband. A few years later, Elizabeth passed away and Robert and Pen then moved to London. At this time Robert was publishing Dramatis Personae and The Ring and the book. After he published these two, the Browning Society was founded in 1881 and Robert was awarded honorary degrees by Oxford University in 1882. Robert then died in 1889, the same day that his final volume of verse, Asolando was published.  

 

Sources Cited:

Everett, Glenn. "Robert Browning - Biography." Robert Browning - Biography. N.p., 7 May 2007. Web. 25 Aug. 2013.