How Do I Love Thee? (Sonnet 43) by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Much has already been said about Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1801) in general, and this poem in particular.  It's interesting to consider this poem in the context of Barrett Browning's life experience, first as an invalid under the care of an oppressive father,  and eventually as a woman claiming her agency and braving her family's scorn in order to go out into the world and marry the person she was in love with.  Her language is, at many points, vast, dramatic, and celebratory.

For more on Elizabeth Barrett Browning, please visit her biography at the Poetry Foundation Website.