Essay On My Last Duchess

The narrator (Duke) who is of an upper-class is having a conversation with an envoy when he mentions ‘Will’t please you sit and look at her?’. This shows the Duke’s commanding nature as he almost forces the envoy to look at his painting although he uses a question it is rhetorical (envoys do not reply) and it shows how the Duke has power. Also, the Duke’s power is emphasized as he chooses who can see the painting ‘since none puts by the curtain I have drawn’. This gives him a sense of importance. Browning also writes ‘she ranked my gift…with anybody’s gift’. This shows that the Duke believes that names and status hold importance, power even and he expects the ‘name’ of Duchess will be enough for her but she treats everyone the same, this angers him. Throughout the poem the Duke says that he does not have ‘skill in speech’ which from the poem we can see is false. When discussing his lack of skill he says ‘which I have not’, This shows the power in words and ultimately how he couldn’t stop her with his words because he would have ‘to stoop’ he used a different way to fix his problem. Also, he says ‘I choose never to stoop’. The ‘I choose’ shows hierarchy as he has the choice. The use of the verb ‘stoop’ is interesting as it means to directly to bend one’s head, associating with the lower class or submitting yourself. This also shows the Duke’s commanding nature as he refuses to ‘stoop’ he

The poem “My Last Duchess” is a historical event that involves the Duke of Ferrara and Alfonso who lived in the 16th century. Robert Browning "My Last Duchess" presents a narrative about a recently widowed Duke who talks with an emissary had come to an arranged marriage with another lady from a powerful and wealthy family. In the perspective of Duke, power and wealth were integral in marriage and was determined to be married to a wealthy lady from a famous family. As the Duke orients the emissary through the palace, he stops and shows a portrait of the late Duchess who was a lovely and young girl. The Duke then begins by stating information about the picture and then to the Duchess. Duke claims that the Duchess flirted with everyone and did not appreciate the history of the family: “gift of a nine hundred years old name.”(33) However, when an individual continues to read the poem, it is evident that the Duke played an important role in killing the lady. Duke states that “he gave commands; / Then all smiles stopped together”(45-46) he used these words to define the death of his beloved Duchess. The aim of the essay is to analyze literary devices that emphasize the content of the poem, which includes rhetorical questions, exclamation mark, and em dash.

the personality of his duchess, he is shown to be a heartless, arrogant man. His complete

One can imagine the messenger standing up and bolting towards the stairs, to warn his master of the dark intentions of the Duke, only to be abruptly halted. This is a clear example of his controlling nature and provides insight into the oppressive nature of the Duke. The Duke is so narcissistic and oppressive the he feels entitled to express his darkest attributes and still maintain his social and political status through subtle yet blunt manipulation. This is reflected in the structure of the poem through the use of a dramatic monologue; where the Duke commands the conversion and guides it where he wants to go, forcing his thoughts onto the audience and drawing focus only to what he desires. This mentality of oppression is further reflected in the diction and syntax that is used; where the Duke uses phrases to control the individual in a seemingly polite way. This view is shared by Joshua Adler in his article Structure and Meaning in Browning's "My Last Duchess".

Browning closes My Last Duchess by establishing that envy can lead a person to commit extreme acts and hinder their- or someone else’s sanity. Browning uses characterization to exploit the character development of the duke and also enhance how envy can lead

“My Last Duchess,” by Robert Browning, depicts powerful husbands attempting to control the actions of their wives as they are free to do as they please. In contrast, women are expected to be faithful and attentive only to their husbands. The power and control of the Duke is conveyed by a painting of the Duchess. It belongs to the Duke and is referred to as “my last Duchess” (1). The use of “my” demonstrates the possessive nature of the Duke and his claim of the Duchess as his own personal possession, much like the painting itself. As the Duke persists on forcing domination upon the Duchess, he is greatly displeased to find that she treats and considers him as the same value as nearly any other man.

The Duke is going on and on and we only have one point of view. He is controlling what the audience perceive the characters as. Browning uses enjambment to make the rhyming couplets flow better in order to make the speech of the Duke more realistic. The easiness of the speech and the fact that it is flowing, shows that the Duke seems to have rehearsed everything that he is now saying to the agent. So he has had to think about what to say and wants to be able to manipulate the agent into taking his side and, indeed, wants to have control over the agent’s opinion of both him and his last Duchess. The duke's loss of control is also depicted through the rhythm of the poem. The enjambment in the poem reveals that the Duke is almost at ease with his wife's murder, because it is so flowing and he doesn’t get upset and almost doesn’t have to stop. Except for once; this is shown by the use of caesura, however as he only stutters once it seems as if he is just doing it for show. Near the end of the poem, the duke loses control. You can imagine the horrified agent rising to go and the duke's uneasiness as he loses control, and his desire to regain control of the situation as he says, ‘Nay we'll go down together, sir’ There is a caesura between ‘Nay’ and ‘we’ll’ which shows the Duke does not want to lose control but then has to pause as he thinks of a reasonable explanation for him saying ‘Nay’ to the agent leaving without him.

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.

Written by Robert Browning, “My Last Duchess” is a poem about an egocentric Duke who has a painting of his last wife upon the wall and is trying to impress an ambassador who is negotiating his next marriage. Although it is obvious that the Duke is trying to persuade this ambassador, however, this is where the first mystery is created. It is almost as if he is trying to persuade no one more than himself.

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

Most of the time he will present a reaction that she has to him or something that he does, and then go into actions of other people that produce the same reaction. By saying she was “too soon made glad”, he changes every smile, kind word or “spot of joy” into something wrong. One generally thinks upon these things as good and desirable, but the Duke looks down upon them, and consequently looks down upon his wife for possessing them. When he repeats example and example of similar things, the Duke drives home his ill thoughts of his wife. His tone when describing her is mocking and condescending, when her only fault is being happy. The contrast with this light, carefree soul makes his own seem all the darker. Browning presents the Duke as an emotionless monster, and the Duke does not even seem to

In Robert Browning’s poem, “My Last Duchess” he killed his last duchess for many specific reasons. The Duke explains to us about his wife in a bad way, but what he says about her is all good things and she sounds to be nice and fun to be around. The duke was upset and disappointed in his wife. He also had a picture of her on the wall. I think he killed her because he got sick and tired of her and just wanted another wife.

The Duke in Robert Browning’s poem My Last Duchess begins to talk about his last wife and inadvertently exposes his domineering and obsessive nature towards his deceased spouse. The Duke reveals to the negotiator the Duke’s traits of possessiveness in his account of his late wife. For example, the Duke recounts how the Duchess reacted to his “gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name” (33).

The dramatic monologue “My Last Duchess” was penned down by Robert Browning. In this poem, the narrator is the Duke of Ferrara, and the listener is the count’s agent, through whom the Duke is arranging the proposed marriage to a second duchess. The poem is ironical and reveals its rhetorical sense, gradually. In the later part of the poem, the Duke claims that he does not have a skill in speech, but his monologue is a masterpiece of subtle rhetoric. While supposedly entertaining the listener by showing his wife’s portrait, he clearly reveals his character. Through his formalized tone of rhyme, he reveals his egoistic and jealous attitude.

The persona of the poem is Ulysses himself. Just like the Duke in My Last Duchess, he uses dramatic monologue. This is demonstrated when he talks to his soldiers during his past years as an energetic youth. Using the stylistic feature of flashback, he takes readers through his past life, connoting the excitement it brought him. He then brings one back to the present that immensely shows the contrast and equal discontent that Ulysses feels. The flashback also aids in building the image of the poem, in order to identify oneself with the persona. Furthermore, he uses a mixture of archaic and simple words, which is also seen in Browning’s