Record Number: 19486

---

Reading Experience:

Evidence:

Robert Browning to Elizabeth Barrett, ?18 July 1845: 'I confess to you that [...] as soon as I read your "Essay on Mind" (which of course I managed to do about 12 hours after Mr [John] K[enyon]'s positive refusal to keep his promise, and give me the book) from preface to Vision of Fame at the end, and reflected upon my own doings in that time, 1826, I did indeed see, and wonder at, your advance over me in years'.

Century:

1800-1849

Date:

Between 1 Jul 1845 and 19 Jul 1845

Country:

England

Time

n/a

Place:

n/a

Type of Experience
(Reader):
 

silent aloud unknown
solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown

Type of Experience
(Listener):
 

solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown

---

Reader / Listener / Reading Group:

Reader:

Robert Browning

Age:

Adult (18-100+)

Gender:

Male

Date of Birth:

1812

Socio-Economic Group:

Professional / academic / merchant / farmer

Occupation:

Writer

Religion:

unknown

Country of Origin:

England

Country of Experience:

England

Listeners present if any:
e.g family, servants, friends

n/a

Additional Comments:

n/a

---

Text Being Read:

Author:

Elizabeth Barrett

Title:

An Essay on Mind

Genre:

Poetry, Philosophy

Form of Text:

Print: Book

Publication Details

1826

Provenance

borrowed (other)

---

Source Information:

Record ID:

19486

Source:

Print

Author:

n/a

Editor:

Philip Kelley and Scott Lewis

Title:

The Brownings' Correspondence

Place of Publication:

Winfield

Date of Publication:

1992

Vol:

10

Page:

312

Additional Comments:

n/a

Citation:

Philip Kelley and Scott Lewis (ed.), The Brownings' Correspondence, (Winfield, 1992), 10, p. 312, http://www.open.ac.uk/Arts/reading/UK/record_details.php?id=19486, accessed: 26 April 2024

---

Additional Comments:

Barrett born in 1806; in letter to Browning of 15-17 July 1845, she had remarked: 'Probably or certainly rather, I have one advantage over you .. one, of which women are not fond of boasting -- that of being [italics]older by years[end italics] -- for the Essay on Mind which was the first poem published by me, -- (& rather more printed than published after all) the work of my earliest youth, half childhood half womanhood, was published in 1826 I see -- & if I told Mr Kenyon [lender of book] not to let you see that book, it was not for the date, but because it is [...] no expression whatever of my nature as it ever was .. pedantic, & in some things, pert [...] those underage books are generally bad' (pp.309-310 in source).