The Voice for the Abolition of Slavery in Barrett Browning’s Poetry

This study explores several of Barrett Browning’s poems concerning American slavery in the Victorian era. This investigation aims to examine how the issues of American slavery affected the creation of Barrett Browning’s poetic works and the kind of poetic language and the tone of voice she employs to enhance her poems. Barrett Browning was an omnivorous social critic as well as a renowned Victorian poet, and one of her social interests was the American slavery system because it annihilates the humanity of the slaves in America. She was such an enthusiastic social critic and subversive poet that she could not help but write poems as an abolitionist. Barrett Browning directly expressed her abhorrence of American slavery in her poems such as “The Runaway Slave at Pilgrim’s Point” and “A Curse for a Nation.” The former primarily addresses the subjects of ‘racial discrimination,’ ‘violence,’ and ‘infanticide’ through dramatic monologue. The latter criticizes not only the American slavery system but also the self-contradiction of the entire American society through the speaker’s stern curse. Because her poetic language is varied and diverse, her poems achieve a higher quality and a splendid reputation among her readers.