Questions on 'Any Wife to Any Husband'

Last updated: 15/11/2023
Contributor: Teachit Author
Questions on 'Any Wife to Any Husband'
Main Subject
Key stage
Category
English
Resource type
Worksheet
Author
Robert Browning

A comprehensive set of stanza-based questions for A-level English Literature students to develop their understanding of key themes, tone and structure in Robert Browning's dramatic lyric poem, 'Any Wife to Any Husband'.

There are 16 questions for students to answer to guide their understanding of the poem. Use as a pre-reading homework task or give a question or set of questions to students to answer individually or in pairs/groups in class before asking for feedback.  

Example questions from the worksheet: 

  1. Even in the first two lines, the speaker implies that her husband’s love may not be eternal. Which word in particular implies that his love is temporal?
  2. Rewrite the second stanza in your own words. What is the tone of this stanza? Give reasons for your answer.
  3. What does she say is the difference between her beauty and her love for her husband in stanza 3?
  4. Where does she say the ‘spark’ of their love originates from in stanza 4?
  5. In stanza 5, she seems to argue that their love makes him ‘perfect, white and clean’ in all ‘three parts’: mind, body and soul. However, in stanza six what does she say will happen to him when they ‘disengage’ their hands?
  6. In stanza 7, she argues that he is capable of sentimentality and of treasuring her memory. Which lines in particular seem to show this?
  7. What is the effect of the frequent question and exclamation marks in the last two stanzas? How does this punctuation use explore her faith in her husband and their relationship more generally?

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