Sonnets from the Portuguese



Forty-four love sonnets by Victorian era British poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning.

Written in 1845–46 after she met fellow poet Robert Browning and before they married, the sonnets remain among the most popular love poetry of all time. The collection was published in 1850 as being translated "from the Portugese" in order to provide some measure of privacy for the Brownings.

The most famous sonnet is undoubtedly number 43 (especially its first line):

"How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. I love thee to the depth and breadth and height My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight For the ends of Being and ideal Grace. I love thee to the level of everyday's Most quiet need, by sun and candlelight. I love thee freely, as men strive for Right; I love thee purely, as they turn from Praise. I love thee with the passion put to use In my old griefs, and with my childhood's faith. I love thee with a love I seemed to lose With my lost saints,—I love thee with the breath, Smiles, tears, of all my life!—and, if God choose, I shall but love thee better after death."

The complete work is now in the public domain and available online, including at Wikisource.