Mary Wollstonecraft and Fuseli
Addressing a beloved, the speaker says love would enable feats of courage and accomplishments in languages, painting, and music despite fear and unsuccessful practice. Yet that fierce love has neither quickened his pulse nor held his interest.
By Robert Browning · Genre: Love Poetry, Dramatic Monologue · 360 words
First lines
Oh, but is it not hard, Dear? / Mine are the nerves to quake at a mouse: / If a spider drops I shrink with fear: / I should die outright in a haunted house; / While for you -- did the danger dared bring help -- / From a lion's den I could steal his whelp, / With a serpent round me, stand stock-still, / Go sleep in a churchyard, -- so would will / Give me the power to dare and do / Valiantly -- just for you!
Genres
- Love Poetry — The speaker offers imagined acts of courage and artistic achievement for a beloved, then acknowledges that the love remains unanswered.
- Dramatic Monologue — One speaker addresses a silent beloved as Dear, revealing fears, frustrated efforts, and an inability to win his affection.
Tags
unrequited love · devotion · courage · artistic ambition
What this Textopian page supports
Mary Wollstonecraft and Fuseli 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: Love Poetry, Dramatic Monologue
- Length: 360 words
- Structure: 1 section, 3 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for Mary Wollstonecraft and Fuseli by Robert Browning
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
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