Valentine's Day Literature

Read "A Blue Valentine," by Joyce Kilmer.

Read "A Valentine" by Edgar Allan Poe.

Abelard and Heloise are one of the most celebrated couples of all time, known for their love affair... and for the tragedy that separated them.

Is it love, sex, or adultery? Some of the greatest novels in literature involve forbidden love, but what consequences do the characters face? Does the marriage last after the infidelity is over? Read these novels about adultery, and find out what happens after the passion has ended.

Aphrodite was the Greek goddess of love, related to the Asian mother goddess Ishtar and Astarte. Homer wrote that Aprodite was the daughter of Zeus and Dione. Read more about Aphrodite with these books.

A person's first love is unforgettable... Read what classic writers have written about the first time characters fall in love.

Courtly love is an idealized loved celebrated in the literature of the Middle Ages and Renaissance. The noble knight devotes himself to a lady. Courtly love also involves a code of conduct for lovers. Read more about courtly love.

Cupid is the god of love in Roman mythology. He was the son of Venus and Mercury. In Greek mythology, he was Eros, son of Aphrodite and Hermes. He fell in love with a mortal woman, Psyche; but their romance ended in tragedy. In popular culture, Cupid has also been depicted as a winged being, with a bow and arrows. Read more about the legend of Cupid.

In England, the Comedy of Manners is represented by the plays of William Wycherley, George Etherege, William Congreve, and George Farquhar.

Read "Go, Valentine," by Robert Southey.

One of the greatest literary artists of all time — Gustave Flaubert — was prosecuted for "offenses against public morals" for "Madame Bovary"...

As we study literature, Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning appear as one of most romantic literary couple from the Victorian period. After reading her poems for the first time, Robert wrote to her: "I love your verses with all my heart, dear Miss Barrett--I do, as I say, love these verses with all my heart." Read more about the Brownings.

There's a great deal of poetry and other literature that has love as a theme or focus. Take a look at these works to learn more about the literature of love. Enjoy!

Do you really know what love is? Some of the greatest writers in history give their take...

Love letters express the unexpressible emotions between two individuals. These collections feature the letters of writers like Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Jack London, Ernest Hemingway, Dylan Thomas, Franz Kafka, George Sand, George Bernard Shaw, Oscar Wilde, Katherine Mansfield, and Lewis Carroll. Read more about love letters.

A romance is a love affair or emotional attachment. In literature, the story of a romance between the hero and heroine is often idealized. Read classic romances, including: "Gone with the Wind," "Jane Eyre," "Pride and Prejudice," "The Scarlet Pimpernel," and "Wuthering Heights." Discover classic romances!

Read "The Unknown Eros," by Coventry Patmore.

A classic Welsh writer, Dylan Thomas is one of the greatest poets of the 20th century. He once wrote of himself: "I hold a beast, an angel, and a madman in me, and my inquiry is as to their working, and my problem is their subjugation and victory, downthrow and upheaval, and my effort is their self expression."

These children's Valentine's Day books are good read-alouds, provide positive reinforcement for sharing and being kind to one another, and have engaging illustrations that complement the text. Here's a quick review of each of them.

Find a profile of St. Valentine -- illustrated, and with links.