A Likeness by Robert Browning
The speaker contrasts portraits exposed to household or visitors’ criticism with an etching he keeps in a portfolio, resembling a particular face. When a friend admires it, he blushes and offers another print instead; he imagines giving away the cherished etching if the friend expressed an overwhelming attachment to its face.
By Robert Browning · Genre: Dramatic Monologue, Poetry · 826 words
First lines
Some people hang portraits up / In a room where they dine or sup: / And the wife clinks tea-things under, / And her cousin, he stirs his cup, / Asks, "Who was the lady, I wonder? " / "T is a daub John bought at a sale," / Quoth the wife, -- looks black as thunder. / "What a shade beneath her nose! / Snuff-taking, I suppose," -- / Adds the cousin, while John's corns ail.
Genres
- Dramatic Monologue — A collector describes his treasured etching, quotes a visitor’s response, and reveals his own embarrassment and imagined reaction to further admiration.
- Poetry — Five rhymed verse sections move from imagined conversations about portraits to the speaker’s account of showing his prints.
Tags
portraiture · print collecting · private attachment · embarrassment · dramatic monologue
What this Textopian page supports
A Likeness is listed on Textopian as a poem by Robert Browning, dated Date unknown.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Poem
- Author: Robert Browning
- Date: Date unknown
- Language: English
- Genres: Dramatic Monologue, Poetry
- Length: 826 words
- Structure: 1 section, 5 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)
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