my last duchess

A detailed Summary of my last duchess

My Last Duchess, by Robert Browning, is an example of a dramatic monologue. A

dramatic monologue is a kind of narrative poem in which one character speaks to one or

more listeners whose replies are not given in the poem. The Duke is speaking to an envoy

about his fisrt wife who is apparently dead. From what he is telling him, one can conclude

that he is arrogant, domineering, and very insecure about his relationship.

The Duke of Ferrara was a very arrogant man. He did not seem to care about the

happiness of his wife, only his own. He did not like the fact that she found happiness in

other places beside himself, as if he should be the only life in her life. He could not

understand how she could rank his nine thousand year old name with more simpler things

such as her white mule that she rode on the terrace, an act of kindness from an "officious

fool" and the "drooping of the daylight in the west." His wife, no doubt, had no idea he

He reveals his true inner self by explaining the 'vices' of his wife. A feeling of pathos

after mere complements by Fra Pandolf or other such things. Being insecure about her

image of a perfect wife. He wanted things to be his way regardless of how she felt. He

he told his envoy that no one but him could touch the curtain that covered the picture. It is

occurs when the reader finally understands that the wife died innocently through no fault

Approximate Word count = 650
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

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