"The Brownings".

Hello, and welcome to today's lesson.

My name is Mr. Young, and I'm so glad to see you again on another lesson in this love and relationships poetry sequence.

So today's lesson is going to be a really interesting look at the husband and wife writing duo, the Brownings, who both have a poem in the collection.

So let's get started.

So today's lesson has a very clear learning outcome, which is by the end of today's lesson, everybody should be able to explain how the Brownings' poems subvert typical Victorian values, and just as in any English lesson, we have some very important words, our keywords, and those are subvert, to undermine or weaken the power of something, especially an established system, and I'm really excited to kind of go through with you today how the poems by the Brownings subvert Victorian values, elope, to secretly run away and get married, often, without the consent of parents or family, propriety, conformity to accepted standards of behaviour or morals, correctness in social conduct, and, in particular, we're gonna take a look at Victorian propriety today, submissive, willing to conform to the authority or will of others, behaving in a way that follows accepted standards, and then, finally, the Victorian era, which is the historical period in the United Kingdom during the reign of Queen of Victoria, which took place between 1837 and 1901.

So today's lesson has two very clear learning cycles.

In the first learning cycle, I'm really excited to kind of go through the history of the Brownings and, in particular, how they challenge certain things in Victorian society, some really, really interesting examples of things that they did, and then in our second learning cycle, we are gonna focus on writing about and analysing just how these two really are excellent and influential poets were able to subvert Victorian society in the way that they did.

So let's get started with learning cycle one.

So Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Robert Browning were prominent poets of the Victorian era, and, indeed, you've probably come across them before with the poems that they have written in the anthology.

So my question for you then is what do you recall about each of these poets from our earlier study, whether that is something contextual or something about the poems that they have written? So hit that pause button, complete the task, and then do push play when you'd like to continue.

Okay, fantastic start to this lesson.

Let's keep that going as we go throughout today's learning, and I'm really impressed by all those things I'm hearing flying across the classroom, you know, contextual information, information about the poems that they've written.

Some of the things that we could really say are Elizabeth Barrett Browning wrote "Sonnet 29", and Robert Browning wrote the poem, "Porphyria's Lover".

So that is probably how we most know them, with their two poems from the collection, but they were also a married couple, and their relationship was unconventional for the time and characterised by intellectual equality and mutual respect.

We're gonna unpick that as we move throughout learning cycle one today.

So Elizabeth was six years older than Robert, and she was a celebrated poet before their marriage.

They eloped in 1846, which means runaway to get married, against the wishes of Elizabeth's tyrannical father, if somebody's tyrannical, it means they're a bit strict, moving to Italy where they lived until her death.

So they actually fled the country.

So my discussion question for you, based on that bit of information that we've just spoken about, what do you think this contextual information tells us about their relationship? So what does this tell us? What information, what evidence do you have in that statement that tells you something about the quality or nature of their relationship? So hit that pause button, have a quick discussion, or drop down some ideas if you're working independently, and then do push play when you'd like to continue.

Okay, once again, some superb conversations taking place, some really, really insightful comments and linking directly to the information that is on the board in front of you.

So some things we could say, well, we've got this comment from Alex.

He says, "I think their elopement shows just how in love they were.

That they were willing to leave everything behind to start a new life," and I think that definitely comes across, doesn't it? We've also got this comment here from Sophia who says, "I think it shows just how unconventional their relationship was.

They went against Elizabeth Browning's father's wishes, something that would've been controversial for the time." So there's some really, really insightful comments there linking to the evidence that we've been given, and I heard lots of similar examples in the class.

They're really well done.

So let's move on then.

Let's start thinking about the unconventional nature of their relationship So again, discussion question.

The Brownings lived in the Victorian era.

So tell me how were women treated at this time? How were women treated at this time, and were there any differences to our own society? So hit that pause button, complete the task.

Do push play when you'd like to see a little bit of feedback.

Okay, yes, you are absolutely correct.

We could say that it was an entirely different time, wasn't it? There were lots and lots of differences to our own time.

So what I might have said is something along the lines of, "At this time, society was marked by strict hierarchies, rigid gender roles, and a strong emphasis on propriety and morality.

A view held by many was that women were expected to be submissive, domestic, and focused on family, while men were seen as breadwinners and public figures." It's crucial to remember that not everybody thought this, but this was a prevailing attitude of the time.

"However, it is important to note that although these views were commonplace at the time, not everybody held them." So crucially, the Brownings were a great example of a couple that subverted these commonplace ideas.

They were very, very different in how they approached their relationship.

So for example, let's look at some examples of how their relationship was so unconventional, how it subverted typical attitudes of the time.

So firstly, Elizabeth's public voice, so Elizabeth's prolific writing and her status as a respected poet in a male dominated field challenged the traditional notion that women should be passive and private.

Equally, there was an intellectual partnership between them.

So unlike typical Victorian marriages where the man was dominant, the Browning's relationship was based on intellectual and artistic equality.

They exchanged ideas and critiqued each other's work, and, finally, their romantic elopement, again, is very unconventional for the time.

This defied the conventional expectation of parental approval, highlighting their commitment to personal choice and romantic love over societal expectations.

So Elizabeth's father expressly forbid them from marrying, but they decided to do it anyway.

So this is a really good example of one way they challenged typical Victorian attitudes.

So quick check for understanding for me then, please.

In the Victorian era, women were expected to be submissive, breadwinners, subversive, or focused on family.

Which answers could be put there to make that correct? And I'll give you a clue.

There are more than one correct answer here.

Okay, excellent work to everybody who identified A and D, submissive and focused on family.

These were things that women were typically expected to be in the Victorian era, but the Brownings certainly challenged these conventions.

Again, second, check for understanding for me.

The relationship between the Brownings subverted typical Victorian relationship conventions.

Is that true or false? Once again, hit that pause button, complete the task, and then do push play when you like to see which is correct.

Yeah, you got it.

It's absolutely true.

They absolutely subvert Victorian relationship conventions, but how can we justify that? Tell me how they justify it.

Is it, A, unlike typical Victorian marriages, where the man was dominant, in their marriage, Elizabeth was the driving force, or is it, B, unlike typical Victorian marriages, where the man was dominant, the Browning's relationship was based on equality.

Once again, hit that pause button, complete the task, and then do push play when you'd like to see which is correct.

Okay, fantastic work if you identified it as A.

It is that their relationship was based on equality.

Elizabeth was not the driving force, neither was Robert.

They both shared similar roles and had a similar equality in their relationship.

So superb work if you're able to pick up on that.

Okay, we've reached our first practise task of today's lesson.

So shall we take a look at what it is? So Andeep said the following thing about the Brownings, and Andeep said, "The relationship between the Brownings was one based on love that subverted many typical Victorian conventions of what a marriage should be," a really insightful comment there from Andeep.

So my task for you is to try and justify that statement.

How could we justify Andeep's statement? So your response should include examples that outline the nature of their loving relationship but, also, demonstrate how their relationship subverted Victorian conventions, so really excited to see how you got on this one.

So hit that pause button, complete the task, and then push play when you'd like to move on to see a little bit of feedback.

Okay, fantastic work on that.

It's lovely to see you taking that student comment, a really insightful comment and developing it as much as you have with some really first rate, excellent comments and pieces of evidence to support it.

So here's how we could have approached this task.

The marriage between the Brownings was characterised by intellectual equality and mutual respect, a stark contrast to the dominant male and submissive female roles typical of the era.

Elizabeth's prolific writing and public success challenged the notion that women should remain passive and private while their elopement against her father's wishes demonstrated their commitment to personal choice and romantic love over societal expectations.

So how can we make this response even stronger? And it is a strong response, but how can we make it even stronger? Hit that pause button, have a quick discussion of this review question, and then do push play when you'd like to see what you could have said.

Yup, I absolutely agree with you.

We could link our contextual points to their poetry.

We could bring in some of our knowledge of what they've written with some of our knowledge of the key context of their relationship.

So we could potentially add something like this about "Sonnet 29".

We could say, "In 'Sonnet 29', for example, Browning openly expresses her intense romantic desire and love for Roberts, something that would've significantly challenged Victorian expectations of a woman's role in a relationship," and great job if you picked up on anything similar in your own discussions or in your own independent work.

Okay, we have reached learning cycle two, where we are gonna focus much more on subverting Victorian society, and, in particular, looking at these two fantastic poems by these poets and how they really enhance our understanding of how they challenge conventions, how they challenge stereotypes in Victorian societies.

So let's get started.

So the Brownings also subverted typical Victorian attitudes towards love and relationships in their poems. So let's have a think about that then.

Thinking about the "Sonnet 29" by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, how does the poem subvert typical Victorian attitudes towards love? What could we say about that? So hit that pause button, have a quick discussion, and then push play when you'd like to proceed.

Okay, fantastic work on that fantastic start to learning cycle two, and I absolutely agree with you.

There are a couple of different ways, aren't there, that we could say, "This poem subverts typical Victorian attitudes towards love." So things that stuck out to me were as follows, We we may have said the poem challenges Victorian attitudes by openly expressing a woman's emotional and physical longing, demonstrating intellectual equality in a relationship and portraying love as a source of personal strength.

I think that really subverts some of the Victorian stereotypes we spoke about.

So let's take a look at the poem itself.

So we've got this very short quote from the poem, and it goes as follows, "I think of thee! My thoughts do twine and bud about thee, as wild vines, about a tree." It's a really nice quote, really nice passage from "Sonnet 29".

So quick discussion for me then, please.

How does the opening of "Sonnet 29" subvert typical Victorian attitudes towards love? So what is specifically going on in this part of the poem that subverts Victorian attitudes towards love? Hit that pause button, have a quick discussion, and then do push play when you'd like to continue.

Okay, fantastic work to everybody who identified this idea of the speaker beginning with a direct and personal address to her lover, subverting the Victorian ideal that women should be reserved and demure in expressing their feelings.

I think that's one thing we could say.

We could also say a couple more things, couldn't we? We could also look at this idea of wild vines.

So the metaphor of wild vines around a tree conveys an image of love that is unrestrained and natural.

In the Victorian era, love and relationships were often depicted within the confines of societal expectations and propriety, and, finally, we could focus on this idea of her thoughts twining and budding.

So the use of this organic imagery, the twine and bud, suggests a love that is natural, dynamic, and evolving, and this contrasts greatly, doesn't it, with the Victorian emphasis on stability and formality in relationships.

So just from this very short snapshot from Elizabeth Barret Browning's poem, we can start to see how she subverts some of these typical Victorian notions of love and relationships.

Okay, check for understanding for me then, please.

The use of the blank of wild vines around a tree conveys an image of love that is unrestrained and natural.

What could we put there? Is it a metaphor, is it imagery, or is it direct address? Hit that pause button, complete the task, and then do push play when you'd like to see which is correct.

Okay, great work if you identified it as a metaphor.

It's a metaphor.

She is comparing her love to these wild wines, and it is really effective in subverting those typical notions of love, isn't it, by showing it as much more unrestrained and much more natural.

Superb, if you're able to pick up on that.

Okay, we have reached our final practise task of today's lesson.

So let's really make this one count.

So we've had a quick look at "Sonnet 29" by Elizabeth Barret Browning, but, now, let's look at the other person in the relationship.

Let's look at Robert Browning's "Porphyria's Lover".

So I would like you to reread the poem, which is in your anthology, and then I would like you to identify key quotes in the poem and annotate them to show how they subvert typical Victorian attitudes towards love and relationships.

So in particular, here are some moments, I think, that really stick out, that are really ripe for analysis in this way, and the moments are as follows.

When the narrator says, "That moment she was mine, mine, fair," when he says, "No pain felt she.

I'm quite sure she felt no pain," and, finally, "And spread, o'er all, her yellow hair." So really excited to see how you annotate this poem, how you pick key details in this poem to really show how Robert Browning subverted typical Victorian attitudes towards love and relationships.

So hit that pause button, complete the task, and then do push play when you'd like to move on to a little bit of feedback.

Okay, fantastic work on that.

It is fantastic, once again, as a teacher to see you really enhancing, really developing, really improving your analysis of these poems. This time, we've some really interesting contextual links about how these poems subvert typical Victorian attitudes.

So here's how you could have approached this task.

We could have said for the quote, "And spread, o'er all, her yellow hair," we could have said, "Well, Porphyria's yellow hair is a potent symbol of her sexuality and allure." In Victorian society, women's hair was often a symbol of purity and modesty.

By focusing on her yellow hair and its association with her passionate love, the poem challenges the notion that women should suppress their sexuality, so a really, really interesting piece of analysis there based on the contextual points we've spoken about in this lesson.

So what I would like you to do then is to identify examples in your own work where the poems subvert typical Victorian attitudes towards love, a quick bit of self-assessment to finish this lesson.

So pause the video, complete that task, and then do push play when you'd like to bring today's lesson to a close.

Okay, then we have reached the end of today's lesson.

Thank you all for such a fantastic lesson today.

It's been an absolute joy to teach you, and I really look forward to teaching you on another lesson in this sequence, but before we finish for today, let's just recap our key learning points.

So in this lesson today, we have covered Victorian society viewed women as passive and confined them to domestic roles.

Victorian society had a stigma surrounding sexual freedom and liberation.

The Brownings were a couple whose marriage challenged Victorian attitudes towards love and relationships, and, finally, both "Sonnet 29" and "Porphyria's Lover" challenged typical attitudes of the Victorian era towards love and marriage.

Thank you very much, and I really look forward to teaching you on another lesson in this sequence.

So thank you very much and goodbye.