Lyric Narrative Hybrids in Victorian Poetry

Abstract

This article surveys the last decade of work on lyric narrative hybrids in Victorian poetry. The first section addresses prominent Victorian genres which are themselves lyric narrative hybrids: the dramatic monologue, the verse-novel, and the sonnet sequence. The second section presents studies of individual Victorian poets or poems that emphasize lyric narrative hybridity. The third section broadens the discussion to include general theories of lyric narrative hybrids that are not specific to the Victorian period but that can be fruitfully applied to it. The article concludes by suggesting that the renewed interest in Victorian lyric narrative is part of the broader resurgence of formalist approaches to literature.