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"I love thee to the depth and breadth and height/My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight/For the ends of being and ideal grace."

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Final answer:

The lines quoted are about the boundless nature of love, which delves into the soul's desire to extend beyond the physical to the ideal. This theme resonates with other literary works that also explore the depth of the human spirit and the connection to a larger existence.

Step-by-step explanation:

The quoted lines embody the theme of profound love and the soul's capacity to reach beyond the tangible world, which is a common exploration in poetry. It reflects the speaker's deep affection that surpasses the physical realm, extending to the depths and heights of one's soul, aspiring to ideals like beauty and grace.

This poetic expression connects well with other excerpts mentioned, where each passage explores the expansive nature of personal experience, deep emotions, and the intrinsic connection between beings.

The commonality lies in the theme of reaching out beyond oneself, whether for love, understanding, or existential fulfillment.

One particular excerpt, "My soul has grown deep like the rivers," from Langston Hughes' 'The Negro Speaks of Rivers,' metaphorically aligns the soul's depth with the perpetual flow and depth of a river, signifying the vast and evolving nature of the human spirit.

Similarly, Walt Whitman's verses from 'Song of Myself' celebrate the individual experience and the unity of the self with the universe, emphasizing an intimate connection with the world at large.

In summary, whether it is the soulful declaration of love in the quoted lines or the musings about personal identity and connection to the cosmos, the core theme revolves around how we comprehend and communicate our existence and essence, the immensity of feelings, and the quest for understanding beyond our physical reach.

User Vladimir Liubimov
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