Examine the nature of Browning’s optimism in “The Last Ride Together”. 

Answer

Examine the nature of Browning’s optimism in “The Last Ride Together”. 

Robert Browning’s (1812-1899) poem “The Last Ride Together” (1855) shows a very strong and special type of optimism. Optimism means to think positively even in sad or painful situations. In this poem, the speaker is rejected by the woman he loves. But still, he does not cry or become angry. Instead, he feels lucky and thankful because he gets to ride with her for one last time.

Positive Attitude after Rejection: At the beginning, the speaker accepts that his love has failed. But instead of feeling hopeless, he becomes grateful. He asks for only one thing—a final ride with his beloved. He says:

“Your leave for one last ride with me.”

This shows that even in failure, he finds something good.

Joy in the Present Moment: During the ride, he feels happy just to be close to her. He compares the ride to heaven. He feels like a god for just spending time with her. This is his way of making the best out of a bad situation.

Failure is Natural: The speaker also says that no one in the world is fully successful. He is not the only failure. Not all men succeed. As he says:

“Why, all men strive and who succeeds?”

So, he does not feel alone in his failure. Instead, he believes that even failure has beauty. At the end, he dreams that this beautiful moment may last forever. He says maybe heaven is just riding together forever.

In fine, Browning’s optimism teaches us to enjoy life, accept failure, and find joy in the small, beautiful moments—even when love is not returned.