Comparing Poems 'My Last Duchess' And Porphyria's

Both poems have similar themes and both speakers describe a particular character found in both stories. Both poems have a beautiful woman as its main character and their themes describe the relationship between two lovers. In "My Last Duchess" and "Porphyria's Lover," Robert Browning conveys two distinct portraits depicting the love shared between two people. The qualities of beauty, selfishness, and jealousy appear in both poems. In both works, the author explores the hidden influence death has upon the relationship shared by two lovers.

none puts by / The curtain I have drawn for you, but I)' He acts like

A fireplace is roaring inside the cottage when Porphyria arrives. The speaker clearly is attached to her and loves being with her. She comes in and dries off and they both sit on a bench together and appreciate each other. Then, all of a sudden he plays with her hair and wraps it “three times” around her throat, making sure she’s dead. However, three lines before that, the speaker says that “Happy and proud; at last I knew Porphyria loved me” (Lines 32-33) He is exuberant with the final realization that she loves him. He seems to be so happy but after he kills her he feels as if this is the nicest thing he could do for her. Obviously, he becomes too obsessed. He becomes so obsessed with her that he seems to give up on just simply being happy with her and that he fears how God will judge him. He mentions how he makes sure she was dead which is another testament to the true insanity and the cautionary tale woven by the author. Thanks to the wonderfully crafted characters developed by Connell and Browning

look at but he feels as if the Duchess takes him for granted and she

The narrator of the poem is in love with Porphyria. He soon learns that love taken to the extreme is not much love at all. “I listened with heart fit to break” He was so attached to her that any emotion she shows greatly affects him. “To set its struggling passion free, From pride , and vainer ties dissever.” This is the beginning of his consciousness disconnection her from being a person to her being a construct of his obsession. She became just a figment that he could control. Nevertheless, turning from love into and overwhelming insanity. “And strangled her. No pain felt she; I am quite sure she felt no pain.” He thinks she felt no pain because he does not associate her with a living being anymore. Furthermore, she is just a side effect of a twisted individual's mind consumed by his extreme love for her.  The extreme change in his mood shows his love changing from a feeling to an

In the late 19th century, Victorian ideals, which were religious moralities and societal standards, were expected to be upheld by the common individual, primarily women. The name “Victorian” comes from the queen and stems from royalty and purity. However, during the 19th century, the rebellious youth began to veer away from these ideals based on their own personal human desires. Robert Browning’s “Porphyria’s Lover” is a poem that establishes a stance on the issue of sexual repression by using love between different social classes and the control-freak man portrayed in society. Porphyria, an upper-class woman, and the Speaker, a lower-class man, are in love, but the restriction of interaction between social class creates tension that causes

Porphyria's Lover also demonstrates several of Robert Browning's defining characteristics as a poet. It contains his criticism towards the beliefs and practices of self-restraint and his traditional use of dramatic monologue to expose a single character's personality, which in turn often provides an additional depth to his works in coordination with his use of unpoetic language. Also taking into account the author's own personal experiences with his wife, the poem can also be perceived as a representation of the development of their relationship. Browning's criticism of the idea of self-restraint is evident throughout the poem "Porphyria's Lover" as it was shown in the internal debates both characters underwent as they decided whether or not they should consummate the love between them.

Nevertheless, it is the only poem on the list containing dramatic irony. The title alone is misleading, as the poem is not about Porphyria’s lover, rather her murderer. The speaker is completely unaware that he has done something wrong, proclaiming in line 42, after strangling her, “I am quite sure she felt no pain.” He believes he made her happy, and that her love is his forever, whereas the readers know that he is insane and that he has just murdered this woman. There is a sort of detached madness in his belief that he has won her ultimate

He calls the painting of her “a wonder” and does not elaborate upon this, suggesting that while he was fond of his wife, their love was quite subdued. This allows him to remain calm and present a dignified front. However, as the poem continues, he becomes more obsessive over her and speaks quite aggressively of what he deems to be promiscuous behaviour. The “bough of cherries some officious fool broke in the orchard for her” seems to be a major part of his outrage, as he is offended that “she ranked my gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name with anybody’s gift”. By telling his companion of this in a conversation that merely started with mention of a painting, the Duke reveals that he is very much not in control of himself. These constant tests of his patience – which seem very much unintentional on the Duchess’ part – seem to weigh heavily on the Duke’s mind as he says “here you miss, or there exceed the mark” showing heavy criticism on the Duchess. He wanted her to “let herself be lessoned so”, which shows the extent to which her behaviour troubles him. It also creates the air of superiority in that he sees himself as a sort of teacher, and her as the student. The loss of control comes where “all smiles stopped together”, suggesting a macabre end to the story. Both Medusa and the Duke seem to cause destruction and chaos around them as a direct result of being emotionally impacted by those they love. This weakness

While some differences between “My Last Duchess” and “Porphyria's Lover” are evident, the similarities are salient and through the use of chillingly descriptive imagery and vivid personification, Robert Browning conveys the unmerciful nature of love. One principal similarity is that the theme of the poems is about love and in the both poems the protagonists kill their lovers in order to keep their woman just to themselves. In the dramatic poem “My Last Duchess” the Duke kills the duchess because of his suspicions against her which was a result of self love and jealousy from the Duke. In the poem “Porphyria's Lover” the protagonist murders his lover in order to keep her to himself because he loved her so much. Another similarity between the

In both poems Browning presents violent, resentful, bitter, arrogant personas with a jaundiced perspective of women. The bitter tone presented within the hyperbole, ‘she liked whatever she looked on,’ in ‘My Last Duchess,’ provides the reader with an insight into the persona’s jealous and controlling nature. Furthermore, both personas actions towards their respective lovers are implied to be aggressive, hostile and belligerent. In ‘Porphyria’s Lover,’ the personas commits murder through strangulation, while in ‘My Last Duchess,’ Browning implies, through the use of sibilance and sinister connotations within the dialogue, ‘all smiles stopped,’ that the persona ordered the murder of his Duchess. Throughout both poems Browning suggests that the effectiveness of relationships is primarily concerned with a sense of mutual trust and respect, equal status for both the male and female, and lastly the ability to compromise. The failure of the respective personas to adhere to these vital values within their relationships, coupled with the implied sense of male superiority and the vanity of both personas, is suggestive of the notion of

The two Browning poems, ‘Porphyria’s Lover’ and ‘My Last Duchess’ were written to convey to the reader how women were treated in that era; as possession, as assets. Both of these poems can be read from different points of view and they also both are what is

In Porphyria's Lover, this line is written "The smiling rosy little head, so glad it has its utmost will."(52-53) It's utmost will? Only you have a will for yourself. The look on Porphyria's face once he was done strangling her was a look of calmness, not like she was in terror of just being strangled. This symbolizes Porphyria's will to die and not that this madman her lover strangled her. This line shows that Porphyria wanted her lover to commit this act.

A Comparison of the Dramatic Monologues of Porphyria's Lover and My Last Duchess by Robert Browning