“I do not pretend to any extraordinary meekness under criticism and it is possible enough that I might not be altogether obedient to yours.”

A candid acknowledgement that serious criticism need not require passive acceptance · Letter to Robert Browning, 11 January 1845

• Criticism
• Sincerity
• Writing

“Sympathy is dear—very dear to me: but the sympathy of a poet, and of such a poet, is the quintessence of sympathy to me.”

Expressing the special depth of understanding she felt between fellow poets · Letter to Robert Browning, 11 January 1845

• Communication
• Friendship
• Poetry

“It seems to me from my personal experience that there is kindness everywhere in different proportions, and more goodness and tenderheartedness than we read of in the moralists.”

Affirming a generous view of human nature founded on personal experience · Letter to Robert Browning, 5 March 1845

• Experience
• Humanity
• Kindness