Robert Browning had mastery of writing.
Robert Browning ( 7 May 1812 -- 12 December 1889 ) was an English poet and playwright whose mastery of the dramatic monologue made him one of the foremost Victorian poets . The collection Dramatis Personae and the book-length epic poem The Ring and the Book followed , and made him a leading British poet . He continued to write prolifically , but his reputation today rests largely on the poetry he wrote in this middle period .