“Porphyria’s Lover” Analysis

3 Pages 769 Words

Robert Browning’s first dramatic monologue entitled, “Porphyria’s Lover” explores both psychological and mental states of its main character. It is told by a madman in the process of murdering his lover by strangling her with her own hair, which he does so that she can be his forever and will be in an eternal state of love. The title shows that the poem is about the main character’s lover Porphyria. Browning uses personification, actions of the characters, and the setting to define the speaker’s attitude. This brings us to the question: What is the meaning of this poem?
In lines 2-4, it shows how the wind was soon awake, tore the elm-tops down for spite, and vexed the lake. The speaker is giving human like qualities to things of nature. How is this strange? A sane person can tell the difference between what is authentic or counterfeit, dead or alive; however, this character’s mental and psychological state is abnormal. You will see this further in the poem.
The setting of the poem is also strange. A few details provide the setting: a stormy night, a cottage with a fireplace. It is also very gloomy, dark, and cold. What the speaker describes is nothing but negative thoughts from lines 1-8 where it says:
The rain set early in to-night,
The sullen wind was soon awake,
It tore the elm-tops down for spite,
And did its worst to vex the lake:
I listen’d with heart fit to break.
When glided in Porphyria; straight
She shut the cold out and the storm,
And kneeled and made the cheerless grate.





Pelzer 2

This shows a sense of peculiarity because this type of weather is not suitable for anyone, but the speaker seems to be used to this life of dreariness and darkness.
The actions of the characters also make the poem strange. When Porphyria is brought into the poem, she seemed to be calm and quiet. She takes off her wet clothing and gets comfortable. She whispers his name and says how much she loves ...