‘The Worthies Begin A Revolution’: Browning, Mill, Arnold and The Poetics of Self- Acquaintance

Abstract

Examines the work of three major Victorian writers, focusing on the extent to which the Victorians consciously repudiated classical definitions of art and the implications of a redefinition of the form and function of poetry. Contrasts classical and Romantic ideas of art, and demonstrates how the works of Browning, Arnold, and Mill attempt to reconcile these dichotomous perspectives; focuses on ways these writers dealt with the concept of teleology.