Felicia+Hemans'+Songs+and+Lyrics,+Scenes+and+Hymns+of+Life

 //Songs and Lyrics; Scenes and Hymns of Life with Other Poems// is the third volume of lyrical poetry by the English poet Felicia Hemans (//née// Browne) (1793-1835). This particular volume was first published on June 8th, 1834, in Edinburgh, Scotland, by the well-known Scottish publishing house Blackwood & Sons. This particular volume is a compilation of Hemans' poetry, most notably her lyrical poetry which was intended for musical accompaniment (the poems in the volume are, as such, noted as //Lyrics, and Songs for Music//). Hemans began to write poetry during her early childhood, and would often collaborate musically with her sister, [|Harriet]. For instance “The Sisters,” a lyric in the first section of the book, is noted as having been “composed for kind of a dramatic recitative, relieved by music. It was thus performed by two graceful and highly accomplished sisters” (Hemans 10).

The poems, by no specific order or date, are organized under the respective works of Hemans’ that they pertain to: S//ongs of a Guardian Spirit; Songs of Spain; Songs for Summer Hours; Songs of Captivity; The League of the Alps; Scenes and Hymns of Life; Female Characters of Scripture, a Series of Sonnets; Sonnets, Devotional and Memorial; Records of the Spring of 1834; Records of the Autumn of 1834; Despondency and Aspiration; and Thoughts During Sickness//. Though the volume itself is primarily devoted to lyric, which Hemans was arguably most known for, the volume also includes ballads, sonnets, and pieces of drama. The volume of poetry concludes with critical annotations “on the genius of Mrs. Hemans,” composed by the late Letitia Elizabeth Landon and H.F. Chorley - two well-known friends of Hemans. Selections of Hemans’ ‘Juvenile Poems’ are also at the books end. 

 According to the standards of book sizing and formatting, Hemans’ //Songs and Lyrics// is sized at //octodecimo// (otherwise referred to as //eighteenmo//), meaning that its cover size is approximately four inches by six and a half inches; as a point of reference, it could fit in the pocket of a man's coat. For this particular copy, which was retrieved from the McPherson Library at the University of Victoria, the cover appears to have initially been a shade of navy-blue but has now faded to a solemn black. The cover is trimmed with delicate, straight lines of gold that frames thin, curving designs of the same color on the covers middle. The spine is detailed much the same, with delicate gold printing and lining. The inside cover is trimmed with a gold pattern as well. The paper is of a thinner quality, with gold-trimmed edges. Like the cover of the book, the paper also shows many years of use, as there are many grease and oil marks from fingerprints along its edges. The first few pages of the book contains an engraved image (“engraved by E. Scriven,” as the publishers noted) of Felicia Hemans’ mother, who is referred to here as Mrs. Hemans; the engraved image is from a miniature taken of Mrs. Hemans earlier in her lifetime, probably around her mid-adolescence. The death of Hemans' mother in the winter of 1827 came as a huge blow to not only Hemans' work but also to her health and many of her works reflect this difficulty. To the right of this image there is a beautifully laid-out title page to the book, which features a delicately printed title of Hemans’ work at the top and the publishing company’s title at the bottom. In the center there is an idyllic scene of a mother and daughter pair sitting down by the rural setting of a large lake, drawn by an artist of the name T.C. Dibdin. It is noted at the bottom of the drawing that the sketch is originally from the hand of a Mrs. Hughes. The inscription “Doves Nest Windermere,” referring to a communal hall in the English countryside, accompanies it. Following these two pages, there is a much more simple title page, which includes the book’s full title and its publication information. The book is dedicated to a “Mrs. Lawrence of Wavertree Hall, her friend, and the sister of her friend Colonel D’Auguilar” with a following note that states that the work is “affectionately inscribed, in remembrance of many brightly associated hours.”

 Though Hemans is considered to be one of the most significant poets of the Romantic period (the period in which she gained most prominence as a poet) her work was republished frequently in Britain and America up until the outbreak of WWI in [|1914], thus affiliating her with Victorian poetry. Most of the ‘Victorian’ editions of her works, //Songs and Lyrics// being one such example, have painted her as a “[|parlour poet.]” This is in large part because of the appeal of Hemans’ as the “[|sentimental poetess].” Due to her ability to write emotional verses that were expressive of the sentiments of her time, Hemans’ portrayal of prominent cultural ideas offered comfort and support to those who found them meaningful, primarily the maternal Victorian mother. In fact, much of Hemans’ works is perpetuated with the idea of femicide – not as a result of depressive behavior, but rather as an alternative to the inherent suffering resulting from the social, political, and personal situations endured by many Victorian women.

“The Last Song of Sappho,” presented on page 10 of Songs and Lyrics, is an example. Sappho, the poems speaker, represents Hemans’ typical poetic heroine: faced with the painful decision of accepting her sad reality or taking control over her despaired situation, Sappho chooses to take her own life. Female death in Hemans’ poetry is reflective of the same social issue that Hemans’ herself experienced: the choice of caged domestication or freedom of thought and expression vis-a-vis poetry.



In 1812 a nineteen-year old Felicia Browne entered into domestic life, marrying Captain Alfred Hemans, a wounded [|veteran]. The couple had five sons together throughout the course of their six-year marriage, before separating in 1818. It has been debated that the cause of their separation was due to the increasing demands of Felicia’s work. Her higher income also proved to be a point of contention in the marriage, especially in comparison to the post-service unemployment of her [|husband]. Following their separation, increasing social and financial pressure was thus placed on Hemans and her work, as she was forced to use her position as a notable female poet to duly support her five children. After the death of her mother in 1827, Hemans sent her two eldest sons to live with their father in Rome and took the others to suburban Liverpool, visiting first with Henry Park and his daughter, Eliza at Wavertree Lodge, as well as Rose Lawrence, the wife of Liverpool’s Whig [|mayor]. Both Eliza and Rose are mentioned in the dedication of Songs and Lyrics. Among other travellers and linguists, Hemans also made connections with members of politics (such as [|John Bowring], the free-trade advocate) and other notable poets. The Romantic poet William Wordsworth was arguably the most significant of Hemans’ connections, having spent the summer of 1830 with him at the Lake [|District] . Her connection and interest with Wordsworth is evident in her //Songs and Lyrics, Scenes and Hymns of Life //. The //Scenes and Hymns of Life // section of the book, which primarily consists of Hemans’ religious poems, is in fact individually dedicated to Wordsworth: “To William Wordsworth esq.: in token of deep respect for his character and fervent gratitude, for morale and intellectual benefit derived from reverential communion with the spirit of his poetry, this volume is affectionately inscribed by Felicia Hemans.” His tendrils of influence are apparent, as in her preface to the section she claims to have associated “themes more of the emotions, the affections, and even the purer imaginative enjoyments of daily life” (Hemans 121) with religion – an arguably ‘Wordsworthian’ view. In this particular volume, one can in fact find a poem dedicated to Wordsworth ("To Wordsworth").

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Works Cited

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;"> “Felicia Dorothea Browne Hemans (1793-1835).” Felicia Hemans. Ed. Mary M. Ockerbloom. University of Pennsylvania. Web. 26 Jan. 2016.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;"> Hemans, Felicia. Songs and Lyrics, Scenes and Hymns. Vol. 3. Edinburgh: Blackwood and Sons, 1839. Print. The Works of Mrs. Hemans. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">(UVic Call Number: PR4780 A1 1843)

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Sweet, Nanora. “Hemans, Felicia Dorothea.” Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Press. Web. 26 Jan. 2016.