My Last Duchess

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.

Within My Last Duchess, the reader is introduced to the character of Alfonso, the Duke of Ferrara. Throughout the poem, Alfonso is talking to an emissary about his late wife (Robert Browning, My Last Duchess). He then goes on to discuss in detail about how his wife would flirt with every man she saw, “She had a heart- how shall I say? - Too soon may glad, too easily impressed; she liked whate’er she looked on, and her looks went everywhere” (Robert Browning, My Last Duchess). From this statement, it is made apparent that Alfonso and his previous wife didn’t have the greatest of relationships, this is further segmented when he goes on to say that she held no respect for the influence he bore, “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” (Robert Browning, My Last Duchess). Just from these two excerpts alone, it could be assumed that Alfonso and the Duchess’

In another pretty feeble attempt to justify his actions, he tries to make his wife out as a disrespectful person. He tells how every single gift that she received from various people 'would draw from her alike the approving speech'. From here, the Duke

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,

‘My Last Duchess’ was written in 1842 and was published that same year in Ferrara, Italy. The ‘Last Duchess’ is believed to be ‘Lucrezia di Cosimo de' Medici’ who was 14 at the time of her marriage to the Duke of Ferrara who will have been around ten years older than her. Robert Browning uses imagery to create a story of what at first seems to be a Duke and his Duchess in ‘My Last duchess’. However, the end of the poem reveals that this murderous husband is planning his next strike; ‘That’s my last Duchess painted on the wall, / Looking as if she were alive.’

The duke thinks that she should show a lot more respect to him then the servants. He couldn’t risk talking to her in case she rebels against him and he became extremely cold hearted. So, instead of talking to her about it; he just hires someone to kill her. The duchess was easily pleased by anyone for simple things, such “My gift of a nine hundred years old name with anybody’s gift”. (Line 33-34)

The Duke later reveals his true thought when he says “I gave commands;/ Then all smiles stopped together. There she stands/As if alive.” (lines 45-47) This inclines the audience to think that the Duke killed the last Duchess. The idea of appearance vs reality developed by the Duke was that the Duked seemed to be in love with his last wife, but in reality, he hated her and most likely ordered her death.

In the opening lines (1-8) of the poem, the duke is speaking to an unidentified audience. While speaking with this unidentified audience, he uses the pronoun "you" until the completion of the intended audience is identified. He starts by directing out the picture of his "last Duchess" and notices, that the Duchess is "Looking as though she were alive." This immediately tells the audience that the Duchess isn’t alive anymore and the Duke doesn't stop and think for a minute. After making his statement, he proceeds to boast about who the painter was by saying his name more than once. This demonstrates his detachment as well as his selfishness. The Duke goes ahead to state that "since none puts by The drapery I have drawn for you, yet I," (9-10)

The Duke talks of his desire to control his wife and manifests his control-freak nature. Revealing himself in such negative terms does not portray the image of a person desiring marriage as he was already in love with another woman, Pandolf. This leads to the Duke being characterized as both shrewd and witless as he puts his obsession towards another person as he says, “A heart…how shall I say…too soon made glad” (Browning & Imtiaz,

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

Robert Browning’s poem My Last Duchess begins with a man showing a portrait of his Duchess. The Duke starts to slowly reveal how he truly feels, and confesses to killing his Duchess. The Duke talks about different attribute of the Duchess “Her husband’s presence only, called that spot / Of joy into the Duchess’ cheek” (13-14). The spot of joy on her cheek is blush that come from the presence of the Duke, so it appears that the Duchess has something the hide, or is guilty of something that might upset the Duke.

She reflects back on memories of her husband flirting with other women and being fulfilled on his own, without his wife (Spera, 24-28). The speaker in “My Ex-Husband” seemed to be morally stronger than the speaker in “My Last Duchess.” The speaker asks herself “Who’d lower herself to put up with shit Like that” (Spera, 31-32). For the speaker to realize this, question herself, and expel herself from the situation, divorce, shows how she cherished herself along with the well-being of her husband. Her husband was searching for happiness in alternative options, which his wife could not give to him. For this reasons, the relationship was ended for the better of both of

Jealousy took over the Duke. He never openly accused the Duchess nb of cheating but, in a way, insinuated it. He was under the impression that many man were impressed by her: "The bough of cherries some officious fool/ Broke in the orchard for her" (27-28). This sounded as if men often gave her gifts and it made the Duke furious because he thought that men were attracted to her. I interpreted this as meaning that he thought she was a little to flirtatious: "All and each would draw from her alike the approving speech,/ or blush at least" (29-31). Duke found these faults in her to be too hard to bare so it seems he arranged her death: "Oh sir, she smiled no doubt,/ when're I passed her, but who passed without,/ much the same smile?...all smiles stopped (43-46). These lines definitely show his jealousy and rage and give us the idea that he arranged her death.

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:

This is suggested when the Duke was jealous because his wife was “too easily impressed” by other men, which expresses his belief of her being unfaithful. In the lines “she liked whate’er she looked on, and her looks went everywhere”, the Duke further expresses that belief by implying her inability to focus solely on him. As a result in a rage he “gave commands” to have her executed (Browning. Pg. 491). Her death is clear when the Duke draws