Robert Brownings My Last Duchess - Essay Example

Anuja Chandramouli 5 May 2006 MY LAST DUCHESS - AN ANALYSIS Introduction The main theme in Robert Browning's My Last Duchess is the Duke of Ferrara's obsessive need for control in every aspect of his life and his subsequent jealousy, possessiveness and pride. The poem is a dramatic monologue; the Duke himself is the narrator and the reader is given an insight into his character as well as the Duchess's. Rather inadvertently it is the Duchess who evokes our sympathy, for she is the victim of a power-hungry renaissance man's ego.

How the theme is addressedAt the very onset, the Duke calls attention to a painting on the wall, which happens to be that of his late wife - "That's my last Duchess painted on the wall/ Looking as if she were alive." This statement reveals how the Duke relegated his wife from being a living, breathing person to a mere adornment on the wall. In this manner she is finally entirely within his grasp. In life the Duchess had been free-spirited and blessed with a sunny disposition which had irked the Duke as he felt he could not suppress and possess her completely.

In the finishing lines of the poem the Duke makes an allusion to Greek mythology which further illustrates his manic need for control and his inherent pride-"Notice Neptune, though/Taming a sea-horse, thought a rarity/Which Claus of Innsbruck cast in bronze for me!Poetic techniques used to represent the themeThe poem is written using iambic pentameter and rhymed couplets. This sets the tone for the poem, and the language thus used gives the reader an impression of power wielded by the narrator.

Another poetic device called the enjambment is used so that the lines at times have an unfinished feel creating a hanging effect, and ultimately creating a mood of apprehension as the Duke makes his chilling revelations. He is a compelling narrator and the words he uses have a subtle yet forceful quality to them. In the lines -"A heart-how shall I say too soon made glad"and"she liked whate'er/she looked on, and her looks went everywhere." The Duke sneers at his wife's love of living and is outraged because he feels all her attention should be focused on him.

The poem's similarity to OthelloMy Last Duchess and Othello are similar in that the themes revolve around unjustified jealousy and consequent destruction. The Duke and Othello are powerful characters. Both are respected men characterized by an all-encompassing jealousy, which drives them to do away with their spouses in a lamentable manner. The former feels his wife does not appreciate his "gift of a nine-hundred-old name." and ensures that her "smiles stop together" while the latter loves his wife "not wisely but well" and kills her in a jealous fit of rage.

The Duke's and the Moor's wives are both the victims of cruel destiny. Another point of similarity is the plot. The Last Duchess and Othello explore how even the most innocent action can appear hideous when viewed through eyes diseased with prejudice and faulty perception. Thus the duchess's playful flirtations and Desdemona's harmless friendship with her husband's underling lead to their respective deaths. Both plots drive home the fragility of human existence.Visual imagery is put to good use by both writers.

Both use exquisite imagery to create a hauntingly sublime atmosphere.Conclusion Browning uses his theme to take the reader on an exploration of the darker side of human nature. And he successfully sounds out the depths to which humans are capable of sinking.Reference:"Robert Browning's Poetry, study guide." SPARKNOTES. 2006. Barnes & Noble. 05 May.2006http://www.sparknotes.com/poetry/browning/section3.rhtml"Shakespeare study guide."SPARKNOTES. 2006. Barnes & Noble. 05 May.2006http://www.sparknotes.

com/shakespeare/othello/