My Last Duchess Group at eNotes

Browning's poem is an excellent example of a dramatic monologue. It is a...

Mon, 8 Jun 2009 12:56:17 PST

Browning's poem is an excellent example of a dramatic monologue. It is a monologue because the entire poem consists of the words spoken by a single voice, Duke Ferrara's. It is dramatic because it contains the elements of drama, primarily characters, a narrative, physical action, and a physical setting. Through these devices of drama, the poem becomes a scene that could be staged with actors and props. In the poem, the Duke speaks to another...

How is the poem "My Last Duchess" a dramatic monologue?

Mon, 8 Jun 2009 10:51:22 PST

How is the poem "My Last Duchess" a dramatic monologue?

The answer to whether we think he did it all hangs on one line that the...

Tue, 28 Apr 2009 17:56:03 PST

The answer to whether we think he did it all hangs on one line that the Duke utters to his guest in the poem: "I gave commands; then all smiles stopped together." This, depending on how you interpret "commands" and "all smiles stopped", is basically a confession that he sent someone out to kill his wife. Personally, I believe with sure confidence that he killed his wife, and that those lines are a flat-out confession of that crime. He...

I don't have an answer for you :( A more interesting question to me...

Tue, 28 Apr 2009 16:31:21 PST

I don't have an answer for you :( A more interesting question to me would be, "How can they prove that he is insane." I don't see anything in his conversation that leads me to think he is insane. Perhaps you could make a case for extremely jealous, but I doubt that adds up to insanity. You might even have trouble making the case for murder; not only do you not have a smoking gun, you don't really have all that much evidence. It sure...

I'm on prosecution charging Duke with 1st degree murder. What r some...

Tue, 28 Apr 2009 16:05:51 PST

Defense will say he is innocent by reason of insanity. I don't have a smoking gun. I need to destroy his character prove he was completly sane at the time he commissioned the murder.

thank you! that was very helpful :)

Tue, 14 Apr 2009 18:15:28 PST

thank you! that was very helpful :)

In these lines, the Duke explains that in the first place, it is beneath...

Sun, 12 Apr 2009 19:33:20 PST

In these lines, the Duke explains that in the first place, it is beneath him to talk of such matters; they are such petty and silly issues, really. He, as a duke, shouldn't have to concern himself with these things; he has more important things to do. He states, "Who'd stoop to blame /This sort of trifling?" He is upset that he would even have to speak to her of them; she should just automatically know that she is insulting him with her...

In "My Last Duchess" how would talking to the duchess about her...

Sun, 12 Apr 2009 19:16:07 PST

In "My Last Duchess" how would talking to the duchess about her smiling and blushing compromise the duke's position of power?

Questions to consider for "My Last Duchess" by Robert Browning

Through the use of symbols, the Duke reveals himself to be a man who...

Tue, 31 Mar 2009 13:03:07 PST

Through the use of symbols, the Duke reveals himself to be a man who desires total and complete power and submission from those around him. This desire for power and control is symbolized in the picture of his wife, which he keeps behind a curtain, and "none puts by the curtain" or draws it open, unless it is he, himself. His wife was a bit too out-of-control while she was alive. Her being represented by a still painting, hidden behind a...

What does the Duke in "My Last Duchess" reveal about himself, supported...

Tue, 31 Mar 2009 12:39:38 PST

What does the Duke in "My Last Duchess" reveal about himself, supported by literary techniques?

Another difference is the time peroid.

Wed, 4 Feb 2009 16:24:36 PST

Another difference is the time peroid.

Analyze Robert Browning's poem, "My Last Duchess" using the criteria for...

Fri, 30 Jan 2009 00:04:18 PST

Analyze Robert Browning's poem, "My Last Duchess" using the criteria for "good poetry" set for by Elizabeth Barrett Browning in Aurora Leigh.

It is told in the 3rd person, with a limited narrator. It is the duke...

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 11:35:11 PST

It is told in the 3rd person, with a limited narrator. It is the duke himself speaking, and that is the only perspective we get. It is just a monologue of his thoughts and perspectives. So, his guest's thoughts are never portrayed, and we have to infer what the guest is thinking based on what the duke says. For example, at the end, we can guess that the guest was attempting to leave when the duke states, "Nay, we'll go together...

Is "My Last Duchess" is told in 1st. person, objective...

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 11:04:55 PST

Is "My Last Duchess" is told in 1st. person, objective speaker, omniscient narrator, or is it about Robert Browning's late wife?

The duke is a very proud, vain and egotistical lord who views his...

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 04:33:00 PST

The duke is a very proud, vain and egotistical lord who views his ex-wife as an object or "trophy" rather than as a person. Super-macho and so blasé as to not even be aware of it, he takes pride in showing his house guest various family heirlooms, among them being her portrait done by a reputed artist named Fra Pandolf. The duke evidently wants to show off his wealth, his acquisitions, and his elitism, flounting the fact of having rubbed...

Analyze the character of the duke in Robert Browning's poem "My...

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 01:10:26 PST

Analyze the character of the duke in Robert Browning's poem "My Last Duchess."

The way Browning used the dramatic monologue was very often hugely...

Tue, 2 Dec 2008 17:09:11 PST

The way Browning used the dramatic monologue was very often hugely ironic, simply in the way it was deployed. The form gives you a - usually, at least - uninterrupted monologue in a character's voice, and, in Browning monologues, as the voice continues talking, they usual reveal more than they want to reveal. As the reader continues to "listen" to the voice, they find out things the voice didn't want them to know. So, for example, in...

How does dramatic irony work in Browning's "My Last Duchess"?

Tue, 2 Dec 2008 09:53:45 PST

How does dramatic irony work in Browning's "My Last Duchess"?

The Duke probably wants to do two things: show off his acquisitions...

Sun, 30 Nov 2008 07:44:38 PST

The Duke probably wants to do two things: show off his acquisitions (what he considers his late wife), considering he is especially proud of them. But more importantly, he wants to send a covert message to his new "acquisition", the new Duchess. That message is that she had better behave in line, and value his name and rank for its worthy status, or else. He is looking for a docile, controllable woman who worships...