Pippa Passes

Pippa Passes is a verse drama by Robert Browning. It was published in 1841 as the first volume of his Bells and Pomegranates series, in a very inexpensive two-column edition for sixpence and next republished in Poems in 1848, which received much more critical attention. It was dedicated to Thomas Noon Talfourd, who had recently attained fame as the author of the tragedy Ion.

Origins

The author described the work as "the first of a series of dramatic pieces." A young, blameless silk-winding girl is wandering innocently through the environs of Asolo, in her mind attributing kindness and virtue to the people she passes. She sings as she goes, her song influencing others to act for the good – or, at the least, reminding them of the existence of a moral order. Alexandra Leighton (Mrs Sutherland Orr) described the moment of inspiration:

This theme followed with great naturalness from Sordello (1840), in which the role in life of poets was analysed.

The work caused some controversy when it was first published, due to the matter-of-fact portrayals of many of the area's more disreputable characters – notably the adulterous Ottima – and for its frankness on sexual matters. In 1849, a writer in The English Review complained:

Pippa Passes (1909 film)

Pippa Passes; or, The Song of Conscience is a 1909 silent short directed D. W. Griffith. It was produced and distributed by the Biograph Company. It is based on a play Pippa Passes by Robert Browning.

It is preserved from a paper print.

Cast

continuing cast

References

External links