My Last Duchess Essay

Murder, mystery and intrigue all describe Robert Browning's poem, "My Last Duchess." From the speakers' indirect allusions to the death of his wife the reader is easily lead to think that the speaker committed a vengeful crime out of jealousy. His elaborate speech confuses and disguises any possible motives, and the mystery is left unsolved. Even if he did not kill his wife, he certainly has something to hide. Based on the poem's historical references, style and structure, the Duke's controlling and jealous nature becomes evident.

In "My Last Duchess," the speaker describes a specific painting to the reader. It is a portrait of the Duke's late wife. The speaker directs the reader's attention to the Duchess's passionate responses given not only to the Duke, but also to many other men who admire her beauty. The artist conveys this lady's charming and flirtatious personality. The Duchess had many admirers that competed for her attention. Her rare beauty and flirtatious manner attracted many admirers. Her facial features express her passion and gratitude towards the men that competed for her attention. She had a teasing and playful quality, which she used to make the Duke jealous of the men attracted to her beauty. The Duke spoke communicated his displeasure about her improper behavior. She continued to smile and attract the attention of

In My Last Duchess, Robert Browning uses voice to create a sinister tone by the use of words he chooses for the Duke of Ferrara to use in his dramatic monologue. The Duke is an arrogant, selfish man who loves the arts. He introduces his deceased wife as “That’s my last Duchess, painted on the wall,” he says as if he owned her. The Duke was not happy when she participated in things that that he did not provide her with, she didn’t bow down to his aristocratic ways and this displeased him to a great extent. Then nonchalantly, he tells the ambassador that “I gave commands, Then all smiles stopped together.’ This is the dukes sinister way of confessing he had her murdered.

The Duke describes, “Oh, sir, she smiled, no doubt, / Whene’er I passed her; but who passed without / Much

his description of his duchess, proves his own need to be in control. He initially asks his

In Robert Browning’s poem, My Last Duchess, is about a conversation surrounding a portrait. The focus swirls around the untimely death of the duchess, Alfonso II last wife, because of some impropriety. She looks alive, and the duke attributes this to the skill of the painter, Frà Pandolf. This serves to remind the reader that the duke does not approve of the way the duchess handled herself. Evidently, the duke does not approve of the zest for life that the duchess exhibited. He of course compliments her beauty,

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.

Indeed, it quickly becomes clear that the Duke disliked many things about his dead wife. The Duke dislikes how the Duchess liked everything that she saw, believing that she was “too easily impressed; she liked whate’er she looked on”. It disappoints him because he wanted to impress her with his marriage to her and also with his money and lifestyle. What annoyed the Duke most was that:

Love, death, and infidelity were weaved through the readings this week. In “My Last Duchess” by Robert Browning, the speaker is a Duke who is looking at a painting of his last (now deceased) Duchess and remembering her. His memories are not fond; he was jealous and possessive, and frankly, a bit of a drama queen. His suspicion is evident repeatedly, starting in line 13 where he states, “Sir, ‘twas not/ Her husband’s presence only, called that spot/ Of joy into the duchess’ cheek”. Lines 21-24 boldly say what he was alluding to earlier on, “She had/ 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.” She blushed easily and enjoyed looking at things, so in his mind she was a bit promiscuous. He thought his wife unfaithful basically because she was polite. This, as well as his uppity attitude, are both made clear in lines 31-34, “She thanked men, —good! but thanked/ Somehow—I know not how— as if she ranked/ My gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name/ With anybody’s gift.” He thinks that his name alone is a better gift than anything else; he’s conceited and entitled.

The irony in his tone is used primarily when the Duke postulates how his wife behaved around other men. His sarcastic, demeaning speech shines through when he states “she had a heart—how shall I say?— too soon made glad” (21-22). Not only does this line deliver verbal irony, it also gives insight on the Duke’s perception of his wife. Though he has no concrete evidence for her “suspicious” behavior, he does not hesitate to passively critique her. Browning additionally develops this critical personality when the Duke fantasizes about the gifts his wife received from other men.

“My Last Duchess” can be seen as diverse when compared to the poem “Porphyria’s Lover”. In this poem, Robert Browning tells of a story of a man who is searching for a new wife after the death of his old one. The only dilemma is the minutiae of how this prosperous Duke felt of his last lady. “It’s precisely her heart (effusive) and her gaze (delighted) that infuriates the Duke” (Guthrie). The Duke who speaks in this poem, implies the idea that because his last wife was so happy, he had no other option other than to kill her. In the poem, it says “A heart-how shall I say?-too soon made glad, too easily impressed; she liked whate’er Sir” (line 21). The Duke feels that because this woman was ecstatic from all things, it took her attention away from him. Because this idea overwhelmed him, he was filled with fury and told her to be cautious in what she expressed. She must not have complied, as she did not live to continue out the life they planned to spend together.

The Duke talks of his desire to control his wife and manifests his control-freak nature. Revealing himself in such negative terms does not portray the image of a person desiring marriage as he was already in love with another woman, Pandolf. This leads to the Duke being characterized as both shrewd and witless as he puts his obsession towards another person as he says, “A heart…how shall I say…too soon made glad” (Browning & Imtiaz,

Fra Pandolf’s hands/Worked busily a day, and there she stands.” In these lines, the Duke is talking about how his last duchess is painted on the wall. He also talks about how he had Fra Pandolf, who is a famous painter, be the one to paint her. Now, if someone famous paints you and your significant other pays

In Robert Browning’s “My Last Duchess,” a servant of a man named the Count is coming to see a duke to arrange a marriage between the Count’s daughter and the duke. During the meeting, the duke reminisces about his late wife, the duchess. When discussing the late duchess, the duke talks about how the duchess was unfaithful to him with men who gave her gifts. However, the duke subtly gives hints that he is not the best spouse. He is an intimidating man, and he thinks of himself superior to everyone, including his wife.

Likewise, in the poem “My Last Duchess,” as the Duke discusses his dead wife, it becomes increasingly clear that he is insecure. The Duke implies that his former wife had been unfaithful, but does not have any evidence to support his theory. Instead, like a child, the Duke swears that his wife’s passionate gaze was not kept solely for him. The Duke believes that she had “A heart—how shall I say?—too soon made glad, / Too easily impressed: she liked whate'er”(Browning 1282). The Duke saw his wife as being too pleasant and friendly with everyone and was offended by it.