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Robert Browning’s poem, “Porphyria’s Lover”, was initially included in a poem book entitled Mad House Cells. The poems in this collection take the reader cell by cell through a mental institution, telling the stories of several patients, one patient at a time. The speaker of “Porphyria’s Lover” is a patient who tells of a night with his lover, the namesake of this poem. His story begins as she visits him and professes her love. Shortly after learning of her feelings for him, he strangles Porphyria with her own hair, with the intention of keeping her by his side and capturing their romantic moment forever. This drastic measure to accomplish a standstill in time emphasizes the obsession the speaker has with living in an eternal moment. Although his attempt to become stagnant in time may not be literally successful, there is a definite psychological stagnancy in him that is seen when speaker frankly states that he believes himself to be still sitting with Porphyria’s lifeless head on his shoulder as he is telling this story. As readers, we know that this is false and he is isolated in a mental institution. In his isolation, the speaker has become trapped in time, living psychologically in his final moments with Porphyria rather than being aware of his reality in his cell.
The narration of the poem has third person elements to it, which contrast the first person perspective. Using the first person in combination with third person establishes conflict because it makes the speaker both an actor and narrator of his story. Playing both of these roles establishes a disparity within him. The role of narrator adds a dimension of detachment within the speaker, by making him somewhat of an observer of himself. This detachment makes the speaker’s isolation so deeply rooted that he essentially isolated even when he is not physically alone, because as he interacts with someone, else he is still playing both the roles of actor and narrator. This isolation traps him in a mental state that keeps him from progressing forward, because the speaker obsessing over living in an eternal moment in both of these roles
The narration of the poem has third person elements to it, which contrast the first person perspective. Using the first person in combination with third person establishes conflict because it makes the speaker both an actor and narrator of his story. Playing both of these roles establishes a disparity within him. The role of narrator adds a dimension of detachment within the speaker, by making him somewhat of an observer of himself. This detachment makes the speaker’s isolation so deeply rooted that he essentially isolated even when he is not physically alone, because as he interacts with someone, else he is still playing both the roles of actor and narrator. This isolation traps him in a mental state that keeps him from progressing forward, because the speaker obsessing over living in an eternal moment in both of these roles
