My Last Duchess Text

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The text I have selected to discourse is ‘My Last Duchess’ by Robert Browning. which was written in 1842. “My Last Duchess” is a dramatic soliloquy of one side of a conversation between a Duke and a Count’s courier who are negociating a matrimony to the Count’s girl. The Duke’s address about his ‘Last Duchess’ reveals possibly more than he foremost intended to.

The Duke shows the Count’s envoy a picture of his ‘Last Duchess. ’ he talks lovingly of the picture and goes on to depict the Duchess. He describes her as beautiful. easy pleased and coquettish. The scene of this verse form is the sixteenth century. where adult females were considered mere ownerships. objects. kid carriers. –not people– and taught to obey orders without contradiction. which could be punishable by decease.

In this essay I intend to discourse what I consider to be the poem’s intent and significance.

In “My Last Duchess” the Duke appears to be a really proud. covetous. and good educated adult male. He complains that the Duchess treats his gift to her of a 900 twelvemonth old name as if it were of the same value as the bough of cherries and the white mule given to her by some ‘officious’ sap. He is genitive and commanding. and it is his covetous nature that causes the duchess’s decease.

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It would non be just to state that the Duke ordered for the Duchess to be disposed of. merely because she flirted with other work forces. he gave her warning and she disobeyed him. In the sixteenth century this would hold been considered a great abuse. Womans were treated as slaves. and if they disobeyed their hubbies or male members of their household so they would be known as an embarrassment to their household and their hubbies. who would hold nil more to make with them.

My Last Duchess Form

The duchess insults the duke. who is already covetous of her ‘relationships’ with other work forces. who has given her warning. and who she has insulted and go an embarrassment to. the Duke feels he has no other pick but to dispose of her. The Duke chooses his words really carefully when discoursing the decease of the duchess with the minister plenipotentiary. dropping merely little intimations. but giving adequate grounds to take us to believe that did so ‘get rid of her’ . Her decease would hold been quiet and discreet ; which I believe would hold been the Duke’s manner. no dither and no incommodiousness for the duke. Due to the rubric of the verse form. and how the duke describes the duchess as simply his ‘last’ . doing it appear as though there has been many duchesses before her.

She was his trophy married woman. and he prided himself on holding a beautiful. immature married woman. but was unable to command his green-eyed monster over those who besides appreciated her beauty. I think the duke has married many times to procure land. money and more significantly. power. The Duke craved power. money and wanted the perfect married woman. who was beautiful and followed his every bid. The Duke is covetous of the manner the Duchess treats other people. non because he loves her and wants all her love for himself. but because he wants her to admit his power over her.

The ‘Last Duchess’ was a immature miss when she married the Duke. she could hold been around 13 or 14 old ages old. At this age. although she is old plenty to cognize right from incorrect. and will non be every bit immature as a 10 or twelve twelvemonth old. it is dubious that she is old plenty to get by with so much duty. to be married to the duke for the remainder of her life and to avoid going an embarrassment to her household. To the reader. she may look as if she is simply smiling at other work forces. thanking them for their gifts and crimsoning at regards. Though. to the duke she is smiling at other work forces. the same manner she smiles at him. this causes him to worry that she is being unfaithful. She besides rates his gift of a nine-hundred-year old name the same as any other old gift. non genuinely understanding the value and importance that he believes his name to be.

She blooms and smilings. when paid regards. naming that “spot of joy” into her cheek. of which the Duke is so genitive over. He besides comments that “She had a heart—how shall I state? —too shortly made glad. excessively easy impressed ; she liked whate’er she looked on. and her expressions went everyplace. ” By stating this. he is connoting that she was excessively easy impressed. she liked anyone she seen. and she looked at everyone. The duchess. is immature and immature. she has been warned by the duke she must halt flirtation with other work forces. or face the effects. She sees the Duke’s weak topographic point. his green-eyed monster over her. and returns to tease him. possibly smiling at work forces when she knew she was being watched. this finally. is the cause of her death- her inability to halt smile.

He says. “Oh sir. she smiled. no uncertainty whene’er I passed her ; but who passed without much the same smiling? This grew ; I gave bids ; so all smilings stopped together. There she stands as if alive. ” The duchess still smiles at the duke. but besides at anyone else who passes. this annoys the Duke. who. when she disobeys him has decided that he can non take it any more. It all of a sudden dawns on the reader that the Duke has non stopped her from simply smiling. he has stopped her from take a breathing. it is a chilling disclosure. He has ordered her to be disposed of. and so he all of a sudden changes the subject back to the picture. about as if he can’t be bothered to discourse the affair any farther. I think the Duke and Duchess may hold had feelings for each other. and instead than appreciate the feelings of the Duke. she decides to ache them. to badger him. to do him covetous. demoing her immatureness and her naivete of disregarding his warnings.

In the opening scene of the verse form. the Duke describes the picture. “That’s my last Duchess painted on the wall. Looking as if she were alive. I call that piece a admiration. now. ” This could easy be mistaken for fancy of the duchess. but he is truly congratulating the picture. He casually tells us that it is his ‘Last Duchess’ on the wall. non trouble oneselfing to call her. as if she were his ownership and refers to her as ‘my. ’ He comments on the painter’s accomplishment and ability to paint her. doing her expression as if she were a existent individual in forepart of them. When the duchess was being painted by ‘Fra pandolf’ . the painter pays her a compliment. which calls a “spot of joy” to her cheek. which the Duke feels should be reserved merely for himself. He is careful non to uncover his feelings towards the Duchess. although he does unwittingly through his green-eyed monster.

He did care for the Duchess. possibly he did non love her. or possibly he thought of her as a ownership and was selfish. declining to portion her smiling with anyone else. but he did hold feelings for her. These feelings grew. and so did his green-eyed monster. the consequence of which unhappily ended in the Duchesses decease. The duke was. at first. lenient with the Duchess. leting her to chat up with other work forces. and when it becomes excessively much for him. warning her. and when she does non take attentiveness of his warning and he worries that his repute will be tarnished he has to move. and act he does. with the Duchess’s decease. Although. at the terminal of the verse form. he asks the minister plenipotentiary to lift. to run into the company that is waiting downstairs. they discuss the dowery which the Duke will have when he marries the Count’s girl. The count so moves on to discourse the statue of a walrus. which he describes the same as he did the picture. doing it look that he did so hold no particular feelings towards the Duchess. and he values the walrus. the same as the duchess.

I believe that this verse form is set in the sixteenth century. in the Renaissance period. where the Italian nobility ruled Italy. the hapless had no say and the aristocracy at the clip treated adult females like slaves. In this period of clip. it was unacceptable for a adult female to demo her legs. excessively much of her weaponries. to be caught entirely with other work forces. whether they were guiltless or non. or to be unloyal to those who had taken attention of her. The verse form is set in the duke’s ‘palatial’ house. there could be so be a party downstairs. perchance to compliment the Duke and the Count’s girls future nuptials.

There will be many of import people invited. such as the Count. his girl and his tribunal every bit good as many other of import people of the clip. The minister plenipotentiary. after discoursing the dowery with the Duke. will return to the party. to speak to the Count and it will be decided the size of the dowery. and whether the nuptials will go on. This is an of import party for the Duke and he will desire to demo that he has wealths. wealth. power and influence to the Count. so that he will be acute for his girl to get married the Duke. The Duke’s house is large. and filled with art. he seems the type of individual to hold retainers who will be taking attention of the party downstairs.

The chief subjects of this verse form are wealths. wealth. power. green-eyed monster and the male dominated society of the sixteenth century. Though there is no subject of love in this verse form. this is non grounds that the Duke did non love the Duchess. he may hold loved the duchess so much. that he could non bear to see the Duchess coquette with other people. The wealths. wealth and power are conveyed through the blue scene of this verse form. the people involved. such as the duke. the count. the duchess. the people who they consider to be below them. such as the minister plenipotentiary. the ‘officious fool’ who gave the duchess a bough of cherries and a white mule that could non perchance compare with the duke’s 900 twelvemonth old name. There is a running subject of green-eyed monster throughout this verse form. and besides a sense of paranoia. the Duke sees the Duchess smiling at other work forces and the thought signifiers in his head that she is traveling to go forth him for anyone she smiles at.

Therefore. in decision I have tried to demo what I consider to be the poem’s intent and significance. I have tried to demo how the duke was genitive over the duchess. how she tormented and teased him. how he eventually could non take any more. and she was disposed of. How he did hold feelings for her. but valued her every bit much as a statue of a walrus made out of bronze. How he discusses his ‘Last Duchess’ and his hereafter duchess as if they were points. used for fiscal addition. The duke’s green-eyed monster is a running subject throughout the verse form. and he is unable to command it. or the duchess and he did non desire to lose face to the remainder of the nobility. The Renaissance was a clip when the violent death of adult females for the simplest of things was considered politically right. I have besides tried to demo that I consider this poem’s intent and significance to be about the Duke’s green-eyed monster and low ego regard to do him conceive of that the Duchess is traveling to go forth for him for anyone and everyone.