[5] The songs are written to an imaginary child, with Marling stating it allowed her to offer her "all the confidences and affirmations I found so difficult to provide myself".
[8] Compared to her previous album, Song for Our Daughter features more sparse and starkly minimal arrangements to create an intimate sound.
Laura Marling's vocals are accompanied mostly by acoustic guitar and light percussion, but are backed at times by piano and string arrangements.
"[23] "Only the Strong" borrows a line from Robert Icke's adaptation of the Schiller play Mary Stuart, which Marling wrote the music for.
[22] "Song for Our Daughter" was influenced by Marling's recent studies in psychoanalysis and concerns "innocence being taken away prematurely" and preparing "the next generation in a way that you weren't".
[37] Alexis Petridis of The Guardian described it as being "alternately intimate, sneering and sad, and lavished with gorgeous melodies"; it was ultimately named album of the week.
[6] Neil McCormick of The Daily Telegraph called the album Marling's "most measured and mature work" and praised her "skillful guitar playing" and "exquisite" harmonies.
[34] In a perfect score review for Record Collector, Oregano Rathbone called the album "so uncannily, unreasonably and astutely beautiful that it meticulously sets aside every last one of your emotional checks and balances to wrap your core in a firm embrace.
"[40] In her review for Mojo, Jude Rogers praised the album's production and Rob Moose's string arrangements, and wrote that Marling's "voice has never been better, each syllable a shining pool of water, clear, vivid and beautiful.
"[36] Steven Edelstone of Paste called it "simultaneously Marling's most straightforward, musically simplistic record to date and her most beautiful release yet.
"[42] In the review for AllMusic, Timothy Monger claimed that "At just 30 years old and with seven albums to her credit, Marling's songwriting has been honed to a level of literate maturity that few artists achieve in their careers.