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.
In the story “My last Duchess,” the Duke is speaking to the envoy of another nobleman of his second bride to be. The Duke describes the circumstances of his last duchess in which it was painted and boasted how Fra Pandolf the painter made her “look as if she was alive”. The Duke continues speaking about the unfortunate fate of his former wife. It is evident that a crime has been committed; He was jealous and annoyed of his easily impressed wife so he murdered her. His tone and demeanor is one of extreme arrogance and it is clear he is a dangerous man who poses a threat to any and all women he claims to love.
That's my last Duchess...' Line 1 The Duke seems to be a man who expects his wife to be the 'conventional' female, and abide by the strict gender roles that existed at this period in history. He repeatedly downgrades his wife, and makes out that she doesn't appreciate the high social rank which she has married into. He even goes as far as indicating that his wife has been unfaithful - all an attempt to really try and justify his reasons as to why he 'gave commands'.
The story “My Last Duchess”, written by Robert Hayden, is about the Duke of Ferrara who is addressing a painted portrait of his last duchess to a visitor. As the Duke articulates how the portrait came to be, his mindset toward the late duchess reveals how he truly feels about their marriage. Throughout the monologue, the reader is made aware of how jealous and controlling the ego-driven Duke truly is. To begin, one can see the Duke, who claims to never stoop down to his last duchess’s unapproved behavior, is ruled by his ego.
In the poem 'My Last Duchess' by Robert Browning, the speaker, or the Duke, develops distinct tones when he speaks in remembrance of his last Duchess' portrait, which hangs from the wall in his gallery. The tone of the Duke portrays his different emotions towards his ex-wife, as he converses with a silent male auditor. In the poem, the Duke speaks about the Duchess with a bitter tone. For instance, he states that the Duchess is "too easily impressed; she liked whate'er she looked on." This quote implies that when the Duchess was alive, she accepted flirtations from different men, and her eyes went everywhere instead of remaining only on her husband.
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.
By different tone and extensive figurative language, the two poets show their discriminating attitude that reflects their desire to control women under a broader society background. While “To His Coy Mistress” is a straightforward written confession to the woman he falls in love with, “My Last Duchess” is a oral introduction of the ex-wife of the dutch during the conversation with a servant of the new woman he courts. Through their vivid description, they show the desire to control and own the women they love instead of pure love. The tone of the two poems are relatively different in that “To His Coy Mistress” utilizes dramatic tone and “My Last Duchess” reveals a palely gloomy tone.
First, women in both of the poems of My Last Duchess and Porphyria’s Lover were greatly objectified by the men who were talking about them. In My Last Duchess, the woman is referred to as the Duke’s “last wife.” You can infer
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 the poem, "My Last Duchess" is about, a Duke who collects portraits. He pulls back a curtain to reveal a portrait of his last duchess. It was painted by a monk and painter named Fra Pandolf. The duke tells the listener that his previous wife was too friendly. He doesnt approve the fact that she is easily impressed or happy.
My Last Duchess is a dramatic monologue where in the Duke of Ferrara is negotiating with an emissary for the hand of the counts daughter. During the negotiations the duke takes the man upstairs to see his gallery which includes a portrait of his late wife which is kept behind a curtain only he can draw. The duke goes on to explain to the man that it was painted by Frà Pandolf and the circumstances in which it was painted. He believed that his wife was having an affair with the painter as she used to smile and blush when around him and even showed him her wrist. Her actions put the duke into a demented rage which forced him to give command that “all smiles stopped together” meaning that he probably had his first wife killed. After telling this story to the family of his bride to be they leave with the duke pointing out some other pieces on the way.
“My Last Duchess,” written by Robert Browning, is simply about a male who was not specially treasured by his, now dead, spouse. The parody of Browning’s poem, “My Ex-Husband,” written by Gabriel Spera, is in a woman’s point of view pondering on a past relationship where she felt she was not properly respected. In both poems, the speakers are reflecting on past relationship conflicts pertaining to the importance they had in their spouse's lives. The speakers' in “My Last Duchess” and “My Ex-Husband” each have different personalities and values, which prompts each individual to react in different ways.
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.
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.
“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.
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.