My Last Duchess Robert Browning, a British poet, who was fascinated with poems at a young age. Most of Browning teaches came from his father, he was already proficient in reading and writing by the age of five. Browning was fluent in Spanish, Greek and French. He began writing poems after he dropped out of college, most of his work had dramatic monologue- especially the use of diction, rhymes, and symbols. In 1842 he published “ My Last Duchess” The speaker in the poem is believed to be Alfonso Il d’Este (1533-1598) who married fourteen year old Lucrezia di Cosimo de Medici at the age twenty five. When Lucrezia died at the age seventeen, it was suspected that her husband poison her. In the opening of the poem the speaker states “That’s my last duchess painted on the wall” the speaker is referring to his dead wife as he’s showing someone a portrait of her. The setting of the poem takes place in the duke’s palace. “will’t please sit and look at her ?” the speaker talks to his guest and ask them would like to look at the painting of her. It seem as if the painting is normally hidden and the speaker only unveil it when it feels the need to. He brags about the frames of the painting who was created by Fra’ Pandolf. “ sir ,’ twas not her husband’s presence only, called that spot of joy into the duchess’ cheek”. The speaker suggest that his wife …show more content…
(The last duchess 262)
. “A heart – how shall I say? – Too soon made glad. Too easily impressed: she liked whate’er she looked on, and her looks went everywhere. “(The last duchess 262)
” Browning’s inspiration for "My Last Duchess" was the history of a Renaissance duke, Alfonso II of Ferrara, whose young wife Lucrezia died in suspicious circumstances in 1561.” Shmoop.com Web. 14. June
My Last Duchess takes place in Italy, late Renaissance Italy which is over 300 hundred years before My Ex-Husband. You also see a reference to Italy within the poem My Ex-Husband. “You yet these lovely champagne flutes, hand blown, Imported from Murano, Italy” (Lines 52-53) Italy is yet another connection between these two paired poems. May it be the glorious and beautiful history or may it just be symbol of wealth between My Last Duchess and My Ex-Husband. The symbol of wealth is almost ironic because in the end who is really wealthy? They both have faced a sense of
Robert Browning’s “My Last Duchess” is a haunting poem that tells the story of a seemingly perfect wife who dies, and then is immortalized in a picture by her kind and loving husband. This seems to be the perfect family that a tragic accident has destroyed. Upon further investigation and dissection of the poem, we discover the imperfections and this perfect “dream family” is shown for what it really was, a relationship without trust.
over his wife as he refers to her as a belonging; it also shows that
The overarching irony in Browning's "My Last Duchess" is that it really is not about the duchess, but instead about the controlling, jealous, and arrogant nature of the duke. In his monologue describing a painting of his former wife, the duke introduces us to his dark and sinister qualities. By giving us the Duke of Ferrara as an example, Robert Browning subtly condemns the nobility for their poor character.
In conclusion, Mr. Robert Browning depicts in ‘My Last Duchess” that the Duke is not an ideal husband by referencing how controlling he is over women and other people in his vicinity. Mr. Browning also references the Duke’s jealous and petty actions that make him seem desperate for a way to seek attention. That is why the Duke disposes of her since she was not giving him the proper care he wanted he decided that she was not worthy. The Duke is also not an ideal husband based on his views of how disposal women are to him. His jealousy and insecurity lead him to be an unhappy self-centered
A dramatic monologue is defined as a poem in which a single character is speaking to a person or persons- usually about an important topic. The purpose of most dramatic monologues is to provide the reader with an overall or intimate view of the character’s personality. A great poet can use punctuation and rhythm to make the poem appear as if it were an actual conversation. Robert Browning, known as the father of the dramatic monologue, does this in his poem, “My Last Duchess.'; The Duke of Ferrara, the speaker in “My Last Duchess,'; is portrayed as a jealous, arrogant man who is very controlling over his wife.
Robert Browning, the poet, uses iambic pentameter throughout the poem. He breaks up the pattern so that every two lines rhyme. Aside from being a dramatic monologue, the poem is also considered lyric poetry because it is a poem that evokes emotion but does not tell a story. The poem is being told in the speaker's point-of-view about his first duchess, also as revealed in the title, The Last Duchess. The setting is important because the duke's attitude correlates to how men treated women at that time. The theme of the poem appears to be the duke's possessive love and his reflections on his life with the duchess, which ultimately brings about murder and his lack of conscience or remorse.
The Duchess is a young girl at the age of 12 and is the current ruler of Brittany. She is an innocent little girl but has to hold herself and her demeanor at high regard. Since her father’s death she became the ruler of Brittany. She is constantly being forced into an arranged marriage by the Breton Court. Her “Guardian” at cort isn't the best at her job but Anne puts all trust and faith into her older brother Duval. She is the height of a child her age with pale white skin. She also has dark black hair and brown eyes.
Browning’s works were the primary model for the basic form of the standard Victorian dramatic monologue which was based around a speaker, listener, and a reader. Browning’s poem “My Last Duchess” became a model for the dramatic monologue form primarily because of the strict approach he took while developing the poem. One of the aspects characteristic of this work is the authors level of consciousness. Each element in “My Last Duchess” is thoughtfully constructed with form and structure in mind. This poem is filled with dramatic principle that satisfied the Victorian period’s demand for an action and drama that were not overtly apparent in the work. In the case of “My Last Duchess” the drama of the poem is how his character, the Duke, is introduced. In dramatic monologues the character’s self is revealed through thoug...
‘Porphyria’s Lover’ and ‘My Last Duchess’ are both poems by the Victorian poet Robert Browning. In this essay I will compare these two poems to find similarities and differences.
In "My Last Duchess", by Robert Browning, the character of Duke is portrayed as having controlling, jealous, and arrogant traits. These traits are not all mentioned verbally, but mainly through his actions. In the beginning of the poem the painting of the Dukes wife is introduced to us: "That's my last Duchess painted on the wall,/ looking as of she were still alive" (1-2). These lines leave us with the suspicion that the Duchess is no longer alive, but at this point were are not totally sure. In this essay I will discuss the Dukes controlling, jealous and arrogant traits he possesses through out the poem.
There she stands as if alive.” The use of the forceful word ‘commands’ shows that the Duke has power over the Duchess. Together with the view of the Duchess as a possession, suggests the patriarchal society of the past. Furthermore, ‘then all smiles stopped together’ underlines a subtle but sinister tone change within the poem. The use of a. Possessive pronoun, a patriarchy.
No more than thirty years old, the Duchess had the shadow of the experience over her visage, but was still young enough to be an absolutely stunning woman. The honey colored hair cascaded down one of her shoulders, in a loose braid that reached the height of her hips. A crimson silk dress made sure to hide only what was needed of her curvaceous, athletic body, and the stone cold gray eyes pierced through me and Kevin before she said: “To what do I owe the displeasure of this visit, officers?” she uttered, the melodic voice in a rather annoyed tone. “Duchess Samantha of Hemmerich, I presume?”
Throughout "My Last Duchess," Browning uses diction to further increase the haunting effect of his dramatic monologue. His precise and scattered word choice is meant to make the reader recognize the underlying haughtiness in his speech to the Count's emissary. The Duke refers to his former wife's portraits "depth" and "passion" in order to place a cloudiness over the realism of the painting. This, along with the "faint" and "half-flush" appearance that "dies along her throat," brings about an overcast appearance to the poem. The Duke's "trifling" lack of "countenance" is evident in his jealousy of
Confucius once said that silence is a friend who will never betray. For the Duke in Robert Browning's poem "The Last Duchess" silence is the only friend he has left, but just barely. While giving a tour of his estate, the Duke talks about his late Duchess in terms that could lead the audience to believe she was murdered. However the Duke never mentions whether the audience's assumptions are true, just that "I gave commands; / then all smiles stopped together" (Lines 45-46). Ominous and vague, and given that way for a reason.