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Tone Of My Last Duchess

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In “My Last Duchess,” The poet is clearly unhappy with his last Duchess, the tone is wheedling, reproachful admiration of the actual portrait of the woman, whom he adores—as art. The words, “MY last”, implicate that this is not the only duchess he had. If there were only one, he might have said, “My first’ duchess” He is not interested in mourning his previous wife, but extolling the beauty of the painting of her--while courting a new one. He explains that she was more than delighted to smile at other men, no differently than she did for him. She clearly upstaged him on several fronts, not being deferential to him, or to the name she took on with marriage to him. He equates her value in the portrait highly, while disparaging her human form.

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