3.1.4

Key Quotes & Comparisons

Test yourself

Key Quotations: Porphyria's Lover

Here's some key quotes to remember for your exam:

Illustrative background for <b>'...God has not said a word!'Illustrative background for <b>'...God has not said a word!' ?? "content

'...God has not said a word!'

  • 'And all night long we have not stirred, / And yet God has not said a word!'
    • This final claim suggests that the narrator believes that God has condoned what he has done, or that he has gotten away with his crime.
Illustrative background for <b>'Murmuring how she loved [him]'Illustrative background for <b>'Murmuring how she loved [him]' ?? "content

'Murmuring how she loved [him]'

  • All of Porphyria's speech is reported by the narrator.
  • Here, even while she is alive, our narrator is presenting her in a muffled and silent way – just the way he prefers her to be.
Illustrative background for <b>'Sullen wind'Illustrative background for <b>'Sullen wind' ?? "content

'Sullen wind'

  • Pathetic fallacy in the opening lines helps to create a stormy atmosphere.

Key Comparisons: Porphyria's Lover

Here are some suggestions for poems you could compare Porphyria's Lover to. Remember, there are endless options!

Illustrative background for _The Farmer’s Bride_Illustrative background for _The Farmer’s Bride_ ?? "content

The Farmer’s Bride

  • Similarities:
    • Obsessive love.
    • An unstable narrator.
Illustrative background for _Love's Philosophy_Illustrative background for _Love's Philosophy_ ?? "content

Love's Philosophy

  • You could contrast the ways in which they present manipulative lovers and how the two get what they want.

Jump to other topics

1When We Two Parted - Lord Byron (1788-1824)

2Love’s Philosophy - Percy Bysshe Shelley

3Porphyria’s Lover - Robert Browning (1812-1889)

4Sonnet 29 - Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861)

4.1Sonnet 29 – ‘I think of thee!’ Analysis

5Neutral Tones - Thomas Hardy (1840-1928)

6Letters from Yorkshire - Maura Dooley (Born 1957)

7The Farmer’s Bride - Charlotte Mew (1869-1928)

8Walking Away - Cecil Day Lewis (1904-1972)

9Eden Rock - Charles Causley (1917-2003)

10Follower - Seamus Heaney (1939-2013)

11‘Mother, Any Distance’ - Simon Armitage (Born1963

12Before You Were Mine - Carol Ann Duffy (Born 1955)

13Winter Swans - Owen Sheers (Born 1974)

14Singh Song! - Daljit Nagra (Born 1966)

15Climbing My Grandfather - Andrew Waterhouse

16Grade 9 - Comparisons

16.1Grade 9 - Comparisons

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