Robert Hayden's 'My Last Duchess'

The Duke’s jealousy and ego make for a deadly combination, shown in this quote which implies that it was he that caused the death of his last duchess. He could not control her the way he wished to in life, so in fact he made the decision to control her in death – that is, to make the decision, ‘give the command’, to end her life. If he could not be the only one to receive that smile of hers, he would make sure that no one else would ever be able to receive it either, nor her be able to give it. The Duke shows a very strict guideline that he expects his wife to follow; if she does not follow the guideline he sets, if she does not only have eyes for him (or at least, in his opinion anyways), then when he attempts to reel her back in through his own reign of control it may not end very well. The Duke is clearly a very dangerous man to be around should a person challenge the way he believes to be right, their fate will surely follow the same as his former wife.

Through out the monologue, the Duke reveals his arrogant and pride stem from his aristocrat ancestry name. He criticized the Duchess appreciations in life to be unfair. For example, this quote explain the Duke’s arrogant as he belief she did not respects his “gifts” enough, ”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.” (Browning 893) The line “nine-hundred-years-old name” can also be interpret that the Duke consider his status to be superior than hers, therefore it is the Duchess’s obligation to valued what he has given, more than others. Furthermore, the Duke’s pride would not allow him to stoop lower than his position in order to protest

A positive reputation is an important part of being successful; being respected for your workmanship, determination and professionalism is, for many people, a major goal in life. Throughout “My Last Duchess,” Miss Bessie is described as having, “[a] no-nonsense professional appearance,” as well as being, “the best English teacher in the school.” The narrator also remarks about Miss Bessie’s intolerance for meer passing marks, stating that, “...she wanted top marks from us. She had the reputation of the school to keep up, and also her own reputation.” It can be inferred that Miss Bessie is quite conscious of her reputation and treats it as a

He probably thinks it’s the Duchess own fault for her death because he was very annoyed with her attitude towards everything and couldn’t tell her. “Who’d stoop to blame this sort of trifling?” (Browning30) Even thought he is so bothered by her behavior he thinks he shouldn’t have to lower himself to talk to her about it. There was lack of communication in their marriage and he never expressed his feelings about his wives demeanor to her, due to his poor communication skills. As he stated: “Even had you skill In speech – (which I have not) – to make your will Quite clear to such an one, and say, "Just this Or that in you disgusts me; here you miss, Or there exceed the mark" – and if she let Herself be lessoned so, nor plainly set Her wits to yours, forsooth, and made excuse, E’en then would be some stooping; and I choose Never to stoop.” (Browning 40) In this the murderer arrogantly states what he wanted from her and how he had no “Skills in speech” in which to tell the Duchess but he clearly tells the envoy how he feels, so he is clearly lying to the

indicates that the Duke is in a state of mind where he sees himself as

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

“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.

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:

They both insist on the objectification of their female spouse so that they will remain dominate and in control. In “My Last Duchess” the duke praised his “last Duchess painted on the wall, / Looking as if she were alive” [1-2]. The duke has a preference to whether his last duchess was alive, of course, he wanted her dead, “I gave commands; / Then all smiles stopped together” [45-46].

In My Last Duchess, however, love appears to be concerned with the extent to which the Duke loves himself, “I choose/never stoop”. This infers that the Duke views himself in a

Although, he knows in his heart that he is not happy about the things she has done while he was nowhere to be found. He claims that she would let every man who laid eyes on her flirt with her, messing around with her necklace that reached up to her corpse. He probably was also upset about how he, being her husband, was not getting enough attraction as she gave others. If a relationship ends up with one person cheating on the other, this is a bad relationship, and that is the time to let him or her go. The Duke did just that; he was determined to let his last duchess and find him a new wife.

The characterization of the Duke in “My Last Duchess” and the characterization of the speaker in “Porphyria’s Lover” further establish Browning’s messages about love. In “My Last Duchess,” the Duke is portrayed as arrogant and believes he is superior to others. Because of his status as Duke, his arrogance becomes prevalent, as he brags about his “gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name.” He also believes he is superior to others, especially the Duchess, as

The Duke takes control of the situation entirely as he is the only speaker throughout the poem and his way of speaking leaves no scope for interruption, by the listener. The way he addresses his listener, “That’s my last duchess”, calls attention to the peculiarity of his designation which he indicates in a very proud manner. The apparent pauses throughout the poem, shown by dashes, indicate hesitation as the Duke considers what to say. This clearly suggests his manipulative attitude. As soon as he points towards the standing portrait of his last wife, he asks his listener to sit down –“Will’t please you sit and look at her?” His way of asking is not very polite and is more of a command which shows the psychology of a man with power.