35 Romantic Quotes That Spill from the Heart to the Page
Love Letters: Whispers of the Heart on Valentine’s Day
As Cupid’s arrow dips into the air this Valentine’s Day, let’s ditch the fleeting texts and delve into the timeless beauty of love letters.
Forget continents and battlefields – every love story, in its ink-stained folds, speaks a universal language. It’s the language of vulnerability, shared dreams, and a connection that transcends time.
So, join me on a literary journey through the most beautiful love letters ever written. Let’s lose ourselves in the whispers, the rawness, and the profound impact love has on us all.
Passionate Declarations
Love, in its purest form, is a firestorm, consuming us with a heat that defies logic and ignites the very core of our being.
This Valentine’s Day, let’s bask in the glow of some of history’s most passionate declarations, penned by hearts aflame.
1. Elizabeth Barrett Browning & Robert Browning:
“I love you not only for what you are, but for what I am when I am with you.”
Elizabeth Browning to Robert Browning
This quote transcends mere romanticism; it speaks of a profound awakening, a transformation sparked by the very essence of their love.
2. Napoleon Bonaparte & Josephine:
“I cannot go a day without loving you; I cannot go a night without holding you in my arms. I cannot have a cup of tea without cursing the glory and the ambition which keep me away from the love of my life.”
Napoleon Bonaparte to Josephine
Though best known for his military prowess, Napoleon’s heart belonged to Josephine. Even amid the chaos of battlefields, he found solace in her love.
3. Frida Kahlo & Diego Rivera:
“Diego. Truth is, so great, that I wouldn’t like to speak, or sleep, or listen, or love. To feel myself trapped, with no fear of blood, outside time and magic, within your own fear, and your great anguish, and within the very beating of your heart. All this madness, if I asked it of you, I know, in your silence, there would be only confusion.”
Frida Kahlo to Diego Rivera
Frida and Diego’s love was a tempestuous masterpiece, a passionate tango of creation and destruction. In her letters, Frida worshipped Diego, her words imbued with a religious fervor.
4. John Keats & Fanny Brawne:
“I almost wish we were butterflies and liv’d but three summer days – three such days with you I could fill with more delight than fifty common years could ever contain.”
John Keats to Fanny Brawne
John Keats and Fanny Brawne’s love story was tragically cut short by his illness. Yet, amidst the impending darkness, their passion burned bright.
5. Victor Hugo & Juliette Drouet
“I recognise you in all the beauty that surrounds me in form, in colour, in perfume, in harmonious sound: all of these mean you to me. You are superior to all. I see and admire – you are all!”
– Juliette Drouet to Victor Hugo
Drouet sees Hugo everywhere she looks, not just in his physical presence but in all forms of beauty: light, color, scent, and sound. This suggests that her love for him permeates her entire perception of the world, infusing everything with his essence.
These are just a few flames from the bonfire of passionate declarations. As we celebrate Valentine’s Day, let these words remind us of the transformative power of love, its ability to consume us, inspire us, and make us complete.
Love Beyond Norms
Not all love stories fit neatly into the boxes society presents. Some defy expectations, shatter norms, and burn with a fire all their own. These next letters unveil love in its most unorthodox forms, reminding us that the heart’s compass rarely points north.
6. Virginia Woolf & Vita Sackville-West:
“Throw over your man….and I’ll tell you all the things I have in my head, millions, myriads.”
Virginia Woolf to Vita Sackville-West
For Virginia, Vita was not just a lover, but the guiding light of her universe, the source of her artistic fire and emotional anchor.
7. Victor Hugo & Juliette Drouet:
“My dearly loved angel, here we are at year’s end, year of pain, year of conflict, year of hardship, the year that begins will be a year of hope of joy and of love. Do not doubt it, for all my heart tells me it is so.”
Victor Hugo to Juliette Drouet
While bound by marriage to another, Victor poured his heart into his letters to Juliette. This quote captures the multifaceted nature of their bond – a love both ardent and aching, fueled by the bittersweet reality of their forbidden connection.
8. John Steinbeck & Elaine Anderson:
“She knows about love too and maybe she can give you more help than I can. And don’t worry about losing. If it is right, it happens — The main thing is not to hurry. Nothing good gets away”
John Steinbeck to Elaine Anderson
Before literary fame, John Steinbeck and Elaine Anderson shared a relationship as raw and potent as the Salinas Valley dust devils.
9. Pablo Neruda & Matilde Urrutia:
“It was beautiful to live/when you lived!”
– Pablo Neruda, from Finale
Found tucked away on Pablo Neruda’s desk after he left us, “Finale” is his final poem, a whispered love letter to his wife, Matilde. In those final moments, he clung to the memory of Matilde’s love, a wave of gratitude washing over him for the bond they shared.
10. Ludwig Van Beethoven’s Immortal Beloved:
“I can only live, either altogether with you or not at all.”
Ludwig Van Beethoven to his Immortal Beloved
This quote offers a glimpse into the profound and consuming love that Beethoven experienced. It’s a testament to the power of love and its ability to shape our very existence.
Artistic Souls: Love as Inspiration
Love has always been a muse, whispering poetic verses and igniting creative fires in the hearts of artists. In these letters, we witness its transformative power, not just on passionate declarations, but on the very essence of their art.
11. Elizabeth Barrett Browning & Robert Browning:
“I love thee to the depth and breadth and height my soul can reach”
– Elizabeth Barrett Browning to Robert Browning
Robert wasn’t just a lover; he was her creative catalyst, dispelling negativity and nurturing the fertile ground of her poetry.
12. Virginia Woolf & Vita Sackville-West:
“I composed a beautiful letter to you in the sleepless nightmare hours of the night, and it has all gone: I just miss you, in a quite simple desperate human way”
– Virginia Woolf to Vita Sackville-West
While Virginia’s earlier declarations for Vita burned with passion, this quote reveals a different facet of their love. Their love wasn’t just a fiery dance; it was a safe haven, a gentle cradle where creativity could flourish.
13. Rumi & Shams of Tabriz:
“You were made perfectly to be loved – and surely I have loved you, in the idea of you, my whole life long”.
– Rumi to Shams of Tabriz
Rumi’s love for Shams wasn’t confined to the earthly realm. Their love transcended the physical, becoming a mystical fusion where souls resonated and their art soared to cosmic heights.
14. Kahlil Gibran & Mary Haskell:
“I think of you today, beloved friend, as I think of no other living person. And as I think of you Life becomes better and higher and much more beautiful. “
– Kahlil Gibran to Mary Haskell
Gibran’s love for Mary wasn’t just a romantic whisper; his words a testament to how her love nourished his creativity and provided solace in the harsh realities of life.
15. Franz Kafka & Felice Bauer:
“I mustn’t look at you too much, or I won’t be able to take my eyes off you at all.”
― Franz Kafka, Letters to Felice
Even in separation, Kafka’s love for Felice blossomed into a sweet anticipation. Her mere presence weaving dreams on the tapestry of his imagination.
Love Beyond Time and Circumstance
Some loves defy the limitations of time and circumstance, their echoes reverberating through the ages, whispering in the corridors of history. These letters unveil passions that transcend fleeting moments, offering poignant testaments to a love that endures.
16. Mary Shelley & Percy Bysshe Shelley
“Although I may not be yours, I can never be another’s”
– Mary Shelley to Percy Bysshe Shelley
17. John Keats & Fanny Brawne
“My love is selfish. I cannot breathe without you”
– John Keats to Fanny Brawne
Faced with illness and uncertainty, Keats speaks of a desperate need for refuge and solace within her love.
18. Napoleon Bonaparte to Josephine
“As for me, to love you alone, to make you happy, to do nothing which would contradict your wishes, this is my destiny and the meaning of my life.”
― Napoleon Bonaparte to Josephine
Napoleon’s conception of love transcends the realm of passionate declaration. He positions it as the fulcrum of his existence, the very cornerstone of his being.
19. Abelard & Heloise
“You know, beloved, as the whole world knows, how much I have lost in you, how at one wretched stroke of fortune that supreme act of flagrant treachery robbed me of my very self in robbing me of you; and how my sorrow for my loss is nothing compared with what I feel for the manner in which I lost you.”
– Abelard to Heloise, 12th century
Their love story may be known for its tragic separation, but Abelard and Heloise’s letters unveil a timeless bond.
20. F. Scott Fitzgerald and Zelda Fitzgerald
“Once we were one person, and always it will be a little that way.”
– F. Scott Fitzgerald to Zelda Fitzgerald
Despite the challenges and separations they faced, Fitzgerald believes a “little” of that original oneness will always remain. This hints at an unbreakable thread, a lingering echo of their profound connection that persists through time and personal growth.
When Love Knows No Limit
These letters unveil a kaleidoscope of emotions, swirling around a central theme: devotion that transcends boundaries. From yearning declarations to selfless pledges, these passionate voices sing of a love that consumes, illuminates, and endures.
21. Gustave Flaubert to Louise Colet:
“I want you to be amazed by me, and to confess to
Gustave Flaubert to Louise Colet, 1846
yourself that you had never even dreamed of such transports… When you are old, I want you to recall those few hours, I want your dry bones to quiver with joy when you think of them.”
In his profound declaration, Flaubert crowns Louise the “last dream of his soul,” signifying her as the culmination of his deepest desires and his unwavering devotion. This isn’t just affection; it’s a complete emotional surrender, with Louise occupying the very core of his being.
22. John Keats to Fanny Brawne:
“My love has made me selfish. I cannot exist without you – I am forgetful of everything but seeing you again – my Life seems to stop there – I see no further. You have absorb’d me. I have a sensation at the present moment as though I was dissolving – I should be exquisitely miserable without the hope of soon seeing you … I have been astonished that Men could die Martyrs for religion – I have shudder’d at it – I shudder no more – I could be martyr’d for my Religion – Love is my religion – I could die for that – I could die for you.”
John Keats to Fanny Brawne, 1819
Similarly, Keats confesses how Fanny has “absorbed” him. She isn’t simply a source of happiness; she becomes the focal point of his existence, blurring everything else into insignificance. Their love surpasses fleeting passion, evolving into a state of complete interdependence and shared purpose.
23. Katherine Mansfield to John Middleton Murry:
“Kissing is a queer thing. I was standing under a tree just now – a tree that is shedding exquisite golden yellow leaves all over my garden path. And suddenly one leaf made the most ethereal advances to me and in another moment we were kissing each other.”
Katherine Mansfield to John Middleton Murry
24. Lord Byron to Teresa Guiccioli:
“You sometimes tell me I have been your first real love-and I assure that you shall be my last Passion.”
Lord Byron to Teresa Guiccioli
25. Oscar Wilde to Lord Alfred Douglas:
“You came to me to learn the Pleasure of Life and the Pleasure of Art. Perhaps I am chosen to teach you something much more wonderful, the meaning of Sorrow, and its beauty.”
Oscar Wilde to “Bosie” (Lord Alfred Douglas) from De Profundis
Amidst the passionate declarations and quiet devotions enshrined in these letters, Oscar Wilde’s voice reminds us that love exists in the shadows as well as the sunlight. In the hidden paradises of love, woven with whispers and laughter, there is also a deep well of shared sorrow, of tears that strengthen bonds and forge a deeper understanding. Perhaps, then, our happily ever after lies not in escaping sorrow, but in embracing it as part of the rich tapestry of love.
26. Franz Kafka to Felice:
“There are times when my longing for you overwhelms me […] so often I can think of you only with teeth clenched.”
Franz Kafka, Letters To Felice
Decades into their relationship, Marquez’s commitment remains unflinching. His vow of “eternal fidelity and everlasting love” echoes across time, a timeless melody of devotion that transcends the years.
27. A. A. Milne to his wife, Daphne Milne:
“If ever there is tomorrow when we’re not together… there is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. But the most important thing is, even if we’re apart… I’ll always be with you.”
A. A. Milne
28 Frido Kahlo to Diego:
“-sometimes at night I am very afraid and I would like you to be with me so that I should be less frightened and so that you can tell me you love me as much as before; as much as last December”
Frida Kahlo to Diego
This quote from Frida Kahlo to Diego Rivera is full of vulnerability and yearning, offering a glimpse into the complexities of their passionate and turbulent relationship.
29. Franz Kafka to Milena:
“You are the knife I turn inside myself; that is love. That, my dear, is love.”
― Franz Kafka Letters to Milena
The theme of love runs through much of Kafka’s writing, and his relationships with both Felice and Milena offer different perspectives on this complex emotion. One recurring motif is the idea of love as a source of both joy and pain.
Aging Gracefully: Love Through the Years
Time may paint silver streaks on hair and etch lines on faces, but the enduring flame of love knows no wrinkles. In these letters, we witness a poignant tapestry of devotion, where love deepens and matures, acquiring a quiet grace along the path of passing years.
30. Audrey Hepburn
“The best thing to hold onto in life is each other.”
– Audrey Hepburn
