What are the characteristics of Victorian poetry?

The term
Victorian poetry refers to poetry written primarily during 1832€“1901, most of which was
during Queen Victorias reign. Victorian poems utilize , relying on the senses to get the poets
message across. The poets naturally depict a great deal of emotion and passion about their
subjects. Poets were interested in Medieval legends, which frequently became their topics of
discussion. The Victorian poets also show the struggle between religion and science, often
revealing their own skeptical feelings about the Church in opposition to the theory of
evolution. This type of poetry is known as being realistic, rather than showing an idealistic,
perfect world which cannot truly exist.

Realistic themes were important to
Victorian poets. For instance, Elizabeth Barrett Browning frequently wrote of womens role in
society. Her epic Aurora Leigh tells the story of a woman fighting to be accepted as a female
poet. She says My soul/ Let go conventions and sprang up...