"I Call That Piece A Wonder, Now"
I have this theory that Robert Browning killed his wife Elizabeth Barrett Browning. It's all there, preserved in the dramatic monologue "My Last Duchess." It's a lot more autobiographical than they let you think, really.
And so what if he wrote it before he'd even met or married the woman -- I know what I know, and I read those blackly accusing words today, a confession staring up from the page before me. Either that, or the low level of intelligent thought and literary critique in my British literature class is driving me to irrational interpretations.
There's something to be said for supposedly irrational points of view; for instance, I still believe that Courtney Love murdered Kurt Cobain. Pop culture completely glosses over that theory, and I'd like to know why for. On the surface, it seems highly unlikely, but just dig a little deeper, my friend...dig a little bit deeper.
My point is, what they tell you in school doesn't mean anything. It's just a bunch of "big stories" that have been perpetuated by culture and convenience. Robert Browning probably DIDN'T poison his wife, but at least I was thinking, and that thought didn't follow the traditional routes that people puff themselves up over.
And sometimes, it's just a pretty story.
And so what if he wrote it before he'd even met or married the woman -- I know what I know, and I read those blackly accusing words today, a confession staring up from the page before me. Either that, or the low level of intelligent thought and literary critique in my British literature class is driving me to irrational interpretations.
There's something to be said for supposedly irrational points of view; for instance, I still believe that Courtney Love murdered Kurt Cobain. Pop culture completely glosses over that theory, and I'd like to know why for. On the surface, it seems highly unlikely, but just dig a little deeper, my friend...dig a little bit deeper.
My point is, what they tell you in school doesn't mean anything. It's just a bunch of "big stories" that have been perpetuated by culture and convenience. Robert Browning probably DIDN'T poison his wife, but at least I was thinking, and that thought didn't follow the traditional routes that people puff themselves up over.
And sometimes, it's just a pretty story.
posted by juxtaposer at 11:22 PM
3 Comments:
I thought they met only by mail..sorta like IM
I like the name Elizabeth. Or perhaps that's the person... I forget which it is. *grin*
The name Elizabeth is a long and terrible name. Every time I have to introduce myself to somebody, I stumble over it. I guess I just don't get enough practice saying it, or something. Maybe I should have someone else introduce me from now on, or pick a name that's easier for me to say for me to go by.
FUN FACT: I mistyped "Elizabeth" as I was writing this comment. I am such a failure.
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