What Attitude does reflect the poem The Last Duchess, composed by Robert Browning - Literature review Example

?What Attitude Does This Poem Reflect? The Last Duchess, a poem composed by Robert Browning, reflects the Italian renaissance time through one of themost representative dramatic monologues. The character of the Duke and the Duchess is fully revealed through the monologue. The situation is very dramatic wherein the Duke of Ferrara is showing the picture of his last duchess to the silent listener who is an orderly of the Count whose daughter the Duke is going to marry. Ego of the Duke is so immense but surprisingly it does not come in the way of his pride to share the so-called frivolities of his last duchess to the stranger. One can understand that Duke wants to convey his pride of all that he has – power, rank, and richness of his attire of being known by the name of Duke of Ferrara. Trying to find the purpose of the conversation that the Duke wants to project to the emissary of a noble man (“the Count, your master”), one feels that the Duke wants to impress the emissary by his attitude. He is proud to have painted his last Duchess from the famous painter Fra Pandolf, “Fra Pandolf's hands Worked busily a day, and there she stands” (Diaches 462). He hides his purpose till the last from the emissary of conveying his demanding nature to the Count, as he is keen to marry the Count’s daughter just because of her being daughter of the wealthy Count. He makes it clear to the emissary why he is showing a valuable painting of his late Duchess because people like him otherwise can not have such an opportunity to read the face of the last Duchess, “Strangers like you that pictured countenance, The depth and passion of its earnest glance” (Diaches 462). The purpose seems to show the Duke’s personality, his arrogance, pride, and royalty class he belongs to with all the attitude of using his might even to fix a situation in which the Duke finds himself with his last Duchess. He mentions a number of instances where he finds fault with the last Duchess. Although she was a Duchess yet she would please anybody with her beautiful smile irrespective of whether the person was her husband or anybody praising her like the painter even remarking, “Paint Must never hope to reproduce the faint Half-flush that dies along her throat" (Diaches 462). She would give that pleasing smile out of courtesy, which was a drawback in the character of the last Duchess, according to the Duke. Through Duke, Brown wants to represent the Italian aristocracy of the renaissance period. The speaker avoids dealing with the purpose until near the poem’s end because he does not want to send a straight forward message to the Count that he is marrying the Count’s daughter because he is a wealthy man, capable of affording as much dowry as the Duke may desire although it is not because of the status and richness that the Duke is pretending to marry the Count’s daughter but outwardly he admits that he is very much impressed by her beauty. “Though his fair daughter's self, as I avowed At starting, is my object” (Diaches 463). Thus, very cleverly, the speaker hides his greed for dowry from the emissary. Browning wants to present and reflect through his poem the courtesy, dignity, artistic taste, and essential cruelty of a Renaissance autocrat, who can stoop to any extent to maintain his ego and class pride “I gave commands; Then all smiles stopped together” (Diaches 462). It is not easy to fit the Duke into a judgment model, as based on the opinions of various critics. Considering the views of Langbaum who finds difficulty in categorizing the Duke in a judgment model because he is very attractive, proud of his superiority, his intelligence, and his open amoral attitude contrasting with his mannerism, and his impression on the emissary does not help in taking a decision about the speaker (Everett 1). Like the emissary one finds oneself in a tight corner, unable to decide. In stead one feels inspired to know and be part of the thinking pattern of the Duke and his independence, in the frank loyalty of the Duke to himself, one finds a similarity of what a common man or a reader could cherish to become like the Duke although the view dies its own death when the Duke reveals his character by ordering to kill the Duchess to stop her from showering smiles to any Tom, Dick and Harry. Browning at once separates the link between the speaker and the reader, the link of sympathizing with the speaker. In stead all sympathies go the Duchess for being a kind and innocent human being who could not learn to behave according to the norms of aristocracy because of being pious and innocent at heart OR it is the cruel and envious nature of men not to feel at ease when wives mingle with others and talk petty things although with no ulterior motive. Hazard Adams also feels that the speaker does not win the sympathy of the readers while relating with the Duke. Philip Drew also speaks in favor of giving a judgment on the Duke, saying that readers should not suspend their moral leanings while reading the poem. The reader derives pleasure from the brainstorming exercise of knowing about the last Duchess from the Duke to the emissary but it is not subservient to feeling sympathetic with the Duke (Everett 1). In stead of taking a decision on the Duke, we become audience like the emissary, feeling the governing attitude of the Duke. Drama becomes so impressive that as a reader, we become a part of the storyline, ready to play a part. Straightforwardness of the Duke leaves such a stunning effect on the readers that they feel as if they are also involved in the drama. It is the way the Duke refers to the person by the pronoun “you” that as a reader one feels the Duke is referring to the readers, his audiences. The revelation that the Duke is speaking to the emissary comes late in the poem giving the feeling that the readers are being directly addressed by the Duke. Browning gives the only hint, which is the Duke’s monologue (Everett 1). Finally, the Duke reveals his greedy and cruel character to help the readers in labeling him of treating his last Duchess very unkindly, not taking pains to tell her how she should behave with commoners and behave like a dignified and aristocratic way suiting her social status. Browning wants the readers to make a judgment of the Duke to give a message through the poem that values such as innocence and chastity of mind can go hand in hand in a classless society. People belonging to nobility like any human being should cherish such values irrespective of what class they belong to. The speaker’s language illustrate his attitude towards his own power through such words and phrases as “there she stands,” “I said “Fra Pandolf” by design,” “The curtain I have drawn for you, but I,” “My gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name,” “I choose Never to stoop,” “I gave commands.” Browning wants to convey through the speaker that when a man has wealth, power, nobility, and pride, it makes him arrogant to the extent of becoming cruel in nature. His providing all the information about his nature and the last Duchess to the person working for Count is to make his desires clear what purpose he wants to attain from marrying the Count’s daughter, which is to gain more wealth, power, and recognition. Works Cited Allingham, Philip V., ed. Applying Modern Critical Theory to Robert Browning's "My Last Duchess." 8 June 2007. Thunder Bay, Ontario. 29 June 2011 . Daiches, David., ed. My Last Duchess: Robert Browning's Poems in English 1530-1940. New York: Ronald, 1950. 462-463. 29 June 2011 . Everett, Glenn. “The Silent Listener in Browning's "My Last Duchess." 2007. 29 June 2011 . Read More