...Allison Honeycutt Ms.Kuhn English 12 20 April 2014 Robert Browning When the Victorian period comes into someone’s mind, they may think the Industrial Revolution. This period was a specific time of change, many people who lived during this period would agree. The Victorian period lasted during Queen Victoria’s reign, which is how the name was established. Queen Victoria started as Queen in 1837 which is when the beginning of the period was. The period ended in 1901, which was the death of the Queen. Other then the Industrial revolution, there were many other events that happened in the 64 years of this era like a depression, “The Hungry Forties”, The Potato Famine, and most important very poor working conditions. One poet that really stood out during all of these tragic events was a man named Robert Browning. Robert Browning wrote many different works, but two works that are common but different are “Prospice” and “My Last Duchess” which both come with common themes but different approaches to those themes. Robert Browning was born on May 7th, 1812 in Camberwell, London to a middleclass family. When Browning was a very young child he decided that he wanted to be a poet. His love for poetry came from his father, also a Robert Browning. His parents were completely supportive with his decision to become a poet. His father specifically educated Browning at home. It is said that the reason of his “wide range of unusual information the mature poet brought to his work” (Poetry...
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...The similarities between Robert Browning's two poems, “My Last Duchess” and Porphyria's Lover, are ordinary, as they can be compared in theme, plot, style, language, perspective and various other ways. The two poems make the same statement concerning men and love and men and their relationship with women. In both poems, the male narrator looks like a jealous, overbearing tyrant and the woman a passive victim of circumstance. Neither poem makes men look very good. This is a single stanza poem. The structure used of “My Last Duchess” by Robert Browning. This poem provides a good use of Euphemism and Persona. The structural elements include iambic pentameter, the line, heroic couplet, strophe and stanza. Poets combine the use of language and a specific structure to create imaginative and expressive work such as My Last Duchess by Robert Browning. The structure used in some Poetry types is also used when considering the visual effect of a finished poem. The structure of many types of poetry results in groups of lines on the page which enhance the poem's composition. This poem provides a good example of Euphemism and Persona. “Porphyria’s Lover,” while natural in its language, does not display the colloquialisms or dialectical markers of some of Browning’s later poems. Moreover, while the cadence of the poem mimics natural speech, it actually takes the form of highly patterned verse, rhyming ABABB. The intensity and asymmetry of the pattern suggests the madness concealed within...
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...Analysis of Robert Browning’s “My Last Duchess” Melvin J Rogers L26599934 Liberty University Robert Browning’s poem “My Last Duchess” is based on an incident in the life of the Italian Duke Alfonso II d’Este of the Duchy of Ferrara (eNotes.com, 2014). The use of the dramatic monologue is the most effective device to reveal what Browning believes to be the true nature of the narrator, the Duke. By allowing the narrator to tell his own story it becomes readily apparent to the reader that he is a flawed person; self-centered, arrogant, controlling and bordering on the narcissistic. In order to lead the reader to the pre-determined conclusion regarding the Duke’s character, Browning creates two tones, one for the Duke, and one for the poem overall. The tone of the Duke is one of arrogance or insolence; he is quite proud of himself in the way in which he feels he commands those around him and he feels that he is superior to them. Several lines in the poem paint this picture for the reader. The Duke feels that merely being a part of his family is something that should be celebrated and cherished (“- as if she ranked/My gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name/With anybody’s gift.”) (lines 32 – 34). The Duke refers to the artist who painted the portrait of his wife in a way that implies that not just anyone could secure his services (“I said/ “Fra Pandolf” by design …”) (lines 5 - 6). He is proud of the fact that he does not compromise (“- E’en then would be some stooping;...
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...Gendered Violence in Browning’s Poems “My Last Duchess” and “Porphyria’s Lover”, both written by Robert Browning in 1842, contain strong elements of gendered sexual violence that is likely a product of the repression and censorship that typified the Victorian Age. While “Porphyria’s Lover” is much more graphic and obvious in its depiction of sexual violence, “My Last Duchess” contains a number of elements that are dark and disturbing in their own right. Most important of these is the objectification of the duchess, which reduces her identity to that of another display in a collection. Both similarities and differences between the poems will be analyzed, including theme, symbolism, rhyme scheme, tone, and the nature of the sexual violence itself. This will show that the gendered sexual violence present in Browning’s poems is indicative of their historical context, primarily the social norms of the time. There are strong similarities between the two poems, particularly in theme, where both poems display a preservation of the mens’ idea of the feminine in a form that fit their ideal. In “My Last Duchess” this is seen in the opening lines, “That's my last Duchess painted on the wall / Looking as if she were alive . . .” and a little later in lines nine and ten, when it is revealed that the Duke keeps the painting curtained so that only he can enjoy the sight and smile of his late wife (1-2,9-10). In “Porphyria’s Lover” the theme is present in the narrator’s desire to fix Porphyria...
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...“My Last Duchess” Annotated Bibliography 1 When Lou Thompson’s wrote his article titled Browning’s MY LAST DUCHESS he wanted to compare the poem My Last Duchess by Robert Browning with the poem by Geoffrey Chaucer called The Book of the Duchess. Thompson talks about the “obvious parallels” (Thompson) it has In his article he describes the differences and similarities between the two men in the poems. In lines 21-24 of My Last Duchess and lines 873-875 of Book of the Duchess there are resemblances. In both poems the speakers describe their wives, which similarly they were both duchess’s and both have passed away. Both poems deal with the gladness and the looks of the women, and even the word ‘glad’ appears in both excerpts in a line-final position. The descriptions, however, are incompatible as Chaucer’s poem praises the wife “for were she never so glad, Hyr lokynge was not foly sprad, Ne wildely, thogh that she pleyde” (Chaucer). In Robert Browning’s My Last Duchess, the duke does the opposite “She had/A heart—how shall I say?—too soon made glad—she liked whate’er/ She looked on, and her looks went everywhere” (Browning). Thompson goes on to compare the two poems by explaining the two men’s concerns with their wives’ and how beautiful both women in the poems were. The knight in the Chaucer’s poem worships his duchess while the Duke in Browning’s poem does not. Thompson also states how the Black Knight in Chaucer’s poem grieves for his dead wife and the Duke has no sympathy for...
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...Comparative essay on ‘My last Duchess’ and ‘Porphyria’s lover’ Robert Browning was born in May 1812 and died at the age of seventy. Browning was an English poet who has become known as the person to invent and popularise the dramatic monologue. This made him the foremost Victorian poet; two of his most successful dramatic monologues are those of ‘My last Duchess’ and ‘Porphyria’s Lover’. The reoccurring theme within the two monologues is murder as they show the idea of men killing a lover Dramatic monologues are significant in that there is only one point of view expressed throughout. In Victorian times dramatic monologues were very popular; Browning was seen as the innovator of this style of writing along with other eminent Victorian poets such as Rossetti and Tennyson. The dramatic monologue takes its style from Shakespeare’s soliloquies were a character speaks their thoughts and feelings aloud. This idea and style has been extended to the preset day, with Alan Bennett’s ‘Talking Heads.’ The speaker in ‘Porphyria’s Lover’ is the lover himself, residing in a cottage in the countryside at the beginning of the poem. The mood of the narrator is established right at the start as he talks about “the sullen wind’ ‘tore,’ ‘vex’ and ‘spite.’ He is clearly angry and unhappy. However as soon as Porphyria ‘glided’ in, the mood changes and she ‘ shut the cold out and the storm.’ The narrator feels warmed by her presence. At once the reader sees that Porphyria has taken control...
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...The Victorian era, the period of the nineteenth century when Queen Victoria ruled England, was a time in which there were many advances and changes that occurred in English society. Robert Browning was one of the leading poets of this time, and many of his poems contain the theme of violence, focusing especially on violence against women. Browning’s use of violence in his poetry is symbolic of the oppression of women during this time period by their husbands and society. This oppression is seen through the examination of two of Browning’s most well-known poems, “My Last Duchess” and “Porphyria’s Lover”. Browning’s “My Last Duchess” is a poem written in dramatic monologue in which a Duke in Renaissance Italy shows the servant of his future wife a painting of his former wife, and recounts the circumstances which lead to her death. Duke...
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...Women and society, both in the past and present, have a tumultuous relationship. In the past, societal norms for behaviors and female expectations were, generally, decided upon by the patriarchy. In some occasions, these norms are impressed on one woman who impresses it onto another. Throughout history, women’s fate draw upon societal expectations, as represented in “Sadie and Maud” by Gwendolyn Brooks, in which there can be disastrous results as represented in “My Last Duchess” by Robert Browning and “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy. In order to appropriately discuss the three works, one must know what a feminist, new historical approach entails. In “Feminism and the ‘New Historicism’”, written by Judith Lowder Newton, one definition may be: “In feminist history, moreover, sexuality and reproduction, both constructed, both seen as sites of power and struggle” (Newton, 154). It is both the difference in gender and the fact that women are capable of birthing children affects literature. Depending on the piece, it can be seen as a “power” over men, but in other cases, it’s a main point of argument for a patriarchal society. “Sadie and Maud” is a telling of two sisters’ lives through perfect rhyming quatrains. The nursery...
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...“My Last Duchess” by Robert Browning was a poem inspired by the Renaissance Duke, Alfonso Ferarra. This poem is based loosely on historical events involving Alfonso, the Duke of Ferrara, who lived during the Renaissance in the 1500’s. The Duke is the speaker of the poem. He begins with revealing to his readers that he is entertaining an emissary who has come to negotiate the Duke’s marriage to the daughter of another strong and political family. While entertaining the emissary throughout the palace, he stops at a painting of his late wife, his last Duchess. The portrait captures the smile of an obvious happy young lady. While reflecting on the painting of his late wife, the Duke begins to remember and reflect on the portrait sessions conducted by Fra Pandolf and about the late Duchess. Applying the techniques of a dramatic monologue, Browning talks about his relationship with the Duchess to the visitor, and while in the process, disclosing some very personal information and secrets. Foremost, the Duke’s rants presents itself in a dramatic form. Using iambic pentameter AABB couplets, Browning reveals the horrifying story of the murder of the duke's previous wife through the duke's conversation with the emissary. In the process, he tries to paint himself as a loving and abused husband who was forced to kill his wife. This leads to an ambiguous portrayal of the Duke’s character. In the poem, he elaborated on the Duchess’s disgraceful behavior: he claimed she flirted with any...
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...it. The interpretations of many poems are based upon the measures of the time period in which they were written and often tend to reflect on the time period. A poem’s theme is usually interpreted by not only the plot, but the elaborate diction and language used that contribute to the mood evoked by the poem. Three poems were written in different time periods that all contain a similar theme of “supremacy” are “My Last Duchess” by Robert Browning, “I like to see it lap the Miles” by Emily Dickinson, and “My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke. Disregards to the dissimilar time periods of these poems, the audience’s comprehension of the theme to each poem will...
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...How does Browning tell the story in the Laboratory Robert Brownings, The Laboratory tells the story of a woman entering the “devil’s smithy” in order to create a poison, in which would kill the woman because she was seeing a man. The Laboratory is told in first person narrative so immediately it makes the poem very imitate with the reader and so we feel like the woman is speaking to the reader about her problems and how she is going to kill the woman. The quote “he is with her” shows how she doesn't like how the man has gone for the woman but also the tone of this is very spiteful when she says this and shows how the woman is arrogant. As the woman speaks she uses imperatives like “grind” and “pound” the use of these violent imperatives show her edging on and how she is reinforcing her pleasure showing how she is enjoying herself with what she is about to do. The quote “I am no it haste” also shows how she is enjoying the pleasure of the poison. The woman can also be viewed as scornful shown in the line "he is sure to remember her dying face", suggesting she wants a seemingly innocent woman to die ugly, simply because she spoke to a man she should not have by the woman. Browning also uses the use of exclamttives to show the characters journey through the poem, “a filigree basket!”, this exclamative shows how the woman is getting more excited about the poison and it shows the delight in which she enjoys. Browning also uses context in his he telling of the story in...
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...My Last Duchess and Greek Mythology Robert Browning’s poem “My Last Duchess” contains a wide variety of rhetorical devices and includes some symbolism. One piece of symbolism that has gone relatively unnoticed is the allusion to Poseidon because of the mention of his Roman counterpart Neptune; both aid in making Browning’s point clear. Neptune and Poseidon both have strong connections to the main speaker (the assumed Duke of Ferrara). Browning is trying to make the point that unfaithful women and quick-tempered men should be avoided. Browning’s poem is about a nobleman showing an emissary of a potential new wife around the nobleman’s art gallery. The nobleman points out the portrait of his last Duchess and talks about her flirtatious nature and other qualities that annoyed him “her looks...
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...the four stories, Macbeth, My Last Duchess, Pride & Prejudice, and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde you will learn how all four of these stories are related to today’s time relationships compared back in the medieval or renaissance romans era. In this essay I will discuss and point out key terms about today’s current relationships and what they lack in order to have a strong stable relationship versus back in the old ages where it was more related to today’s, but more complicated and dishonored. My goal in this research paper is to explain how destructive love affects the relationships in Macbeth, My Last Duchesses’ and Pride and Prejudice. Who wears the pants in the relationship? In Macbeth, Lady Macbeth wore the pants in the relationship. In the...
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...Personalities of the Duke in “My Last Duchess” “My Last Duchess" is a poem by Robert Browning, frequently anthologised as an example of the dramatic monologue. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Last_Duchess) In this poem, Browning establishes the personalities of its speaker—the duke indirectly but distinctly through his monologue alone. By reading the monologue, readers can find a duke who is apparently gentle and cultivated, but actually imperious and selfish. This essay is an analysis of the duke’s personalities and how does the poet establish them through monologue. At the beginning and the end of the poem, the duke shows the guest two of his valuable collections. The first one is the portrait of his wife painted by Fra Pandolf. The second one is the Neptune cast by Claus. By showing these valuable masterpieces, the duke wants to prove his love and pursuit of art and to show his good taste. He seems himself as a noble and cultivated gentleman. However, he shows his real personalities such as arrogance, jealousy, hypocrisy and selfishness through his monologue. The poem opens with the duke showing the painting of his dead wife to his guest. The duke calls “that piece a wonder” for his wife looks “as if she were alive”. And he specificly mentions that this painting was done by Fra Pandolf who is an imaginary famous painter. But he immediately says that he mentioned Fra Pandolf “by design” lest his guest fail to appreciate the significance of this painting. At the same...
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...The poem under review in this paper is Robert Browning's “my last Duchess” based on historical events involving the duke of Ferrara (Alfonso) who lived back in the 16th century. The duke is the speaker of the poem about the affection she showed to othermen. It's suggested that this affection causes the narratorto kill her. He tells us that he is entertaining an emissary whom his soon wife to be has sent to negotiate terms of the marriage. He takes him on a tour in his palace, in his gallery specifically. He comes across a portrait painted directly on the wall and volunteers to tell the circumstances in which it was painted and the fate of his unfortunate former wife. He says that his wife was a flirt, she would smile at every man and described her behavior as “disgraceful”, until he gave commands that all her smiles would stop at once –to have her killed-. Having finished his story, he moved on to the next antique as if the past one was nothing. The poet is hiding behind the persona of a real-life Duke who has coldly murdered his young wife and speaks of her as if she was nothing. The title of the poem "my last duchess" suggests that the duke had had more than one duchess that shows greatly how women were treated like objects and properties that were made for men's pleasure. so we can reveal from that ,The dominant theme of this poem is anti-feminism. The way women were perceived at that age is clearly evident in the way the Duke speaks of his wife as if she were a property,...
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