Welcome! This page is dedicated to Robert Browning’s poem, My Last Duchess. Read on for the poem, historical and cultural context, and a biography on the author. Click in-text links to discover more on that phrase or the definition of that word in context with the poem. ** _My Last Duchess_ ========= ###By Robert Browning That’s my last Duchess painted on the wall,
Looking as if she were alive. I call
That piece a wonder, now; Frà Pandolf’s hands
Worked busily a day, and there she stands.
Will ‘t please you sit and look at her? I said
“Frà Pandolf” by design, for never read
Strangers like you that pictured countenance,
The depth and passion of its earnest glance,
But to myself they turned (since none puts by
The curtain I have drawn for you, but I)
And seemed as they would ask me, if they durst,
How such a glance came there; so, not the first
Are you to turn and ask thus. Sir, ‘t was not
Her husband’s presence only, called that spot
Of joy into the Duchess’ cheek: perhaps
Frà Pandolf chanced to say, ‘Her mantle laps
Over my lady’s wrist too much,’ or ‘Paint
Must never hope to reproduce the faint
Half-flush that dies along her throat:’ such stuff
Was courtesy, she thought, and cause enough
For calling up that spot of joy. She had
A heart—how shall I say?—too soon made glad,
Too easily impressed; she liked whate’er
She looked on, and her looks went everywhere.
Sir, ‘t was all one! My favour at her breast,
The dropping of the daylight in the West,
The bough of cherries some officious fool
Broke in the orchard for her, the white mule
She rode with round the terrace—all and each
Would draw from her alike the approving speech,
Or blush, at least. 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. Who’d stoop to blame
This sort of trifling? Even had you skill
In speech—(which I have not)—to make your will
Quite clear to such an one, and say, ‘Just this
Or that in you disgusts me; here you miss,
Or there exceed the mark’—and if she let
Herself be lessoned so, nor plainly set
Her wits to yours, forsooth, and made excuse,
—E’en then would be some stooping; and I choose
Never to stoop. Oh, sir, she smiled, no doubt,
Whene’er I passed her; but who passed without
Much the same smile? This grew; I gave commands;
Then all smiles stopped together. There she stands
As if alive. Will ‘t please you rise? We’ll meet
The company below then. I repeat,
The Count your master’s known munificence
Is ample warrant that no just pretence
Of mine for dowry will be disallowed;
Though his fair daughter’s self, as I avowed
At starting, is my object. Nay, we’ll go
Together down, sir. Notice Neptune, though,
Taming a sea-horse, thought a rarity,
Which Claus of Innsbruck cast in bronze for me! ** ###Historical & Cultural Context

My Last Duchess, published in 1842, was featured in Dramatic Lyrics, a collection of poems by Robert Browning. All poems encompassing that collection were dramatic monolouge. Although not as noticed in his time, Browning was an intelligent writer who is famous for contributing the dramatic monolouge to literature. (Dramatic monolouge includes a narrator, usually of doubtful morality, who addresses another character in a high-stakes situation). While Browning wrote his poem in the Victorian age, which spanned roughly from 1837 to 1901, the inspiration for My Last Duchess came from an time in the past.

Who’s the Duke?

My Last Duchess is written in a way that is raw and real, giving readers an insight on the psychological state of the Duke. The Duke in the poem runs parallel with the history of a duke that lived during the Renaissance time period: Alfonso II d’Este of Ferrara. In 1561, Alfonso’s young wife, Lucrezia, died under suspicious circumstances. Lucrezia was apart of the Medici family, which was a family of great wealth and power in Europe. However during Lucrezia’s lifetime, the Medici family, considered “upstarts” by other nobility, were still building their foundations of power. Lucrezia was unable to relish in those riches because she was married at 14 years old and died two years later. It is thought that Alfonso was behind Lucrezia’s death, but without DNA testing and considering Alfonso’s status, her death was never investigated. Alfonso’s next bait, whom he courted and eventually married, was the niece to the Count of Tyrol. Browning’s anecdote, My Last Duchess, inspired by history, welcomes readers into the mind of a psychopath.

Analyzing the Duke and the Duchess

As stated before, My Last Duchess is a dramatic monologue and the speaker is the Duke. The poem flows in rhyming couplets, which suggests the Duke’s desperate need for control. However, the lines utilize enjambment, or the continuation of a clause or sentence over a line break. Enjambment struggles against the structure of the rhyming couplets, which suggests the Duke’s fear of loosing control. The Duke is speaking to a count, which has a daughter the Duke would like to marry. The two are negotiating the daughter’s dowry. In this conversation, the Count is being shown a portrait of the Duke’s “last Duchess,” which is “painted on the wall / Looking as if she were alive” (1-2). The phrases “last Duchess” and “looking as if she were alive” let us know that the Duchess is now deceased. It is also important to note, the painting is covered by curtains, which “none puts by” besides the Duke himself (9). In other words, the Duke controls who will and will not see the painting. Reading further, we learn the Duchess was “too soon made glad” and “Too easily impressed” by simple pleasures, which is a behavior the Duke asserts is for his “presence only” (22-3; 14). In other words, the Duchess was content with life; she appreciated the “dropping of daylight in the West” (or sunset) as much as she appreciated the life the Duke provided her with (26). In the 21st century, we might consider the Duchess as an all-around happy person. However, in the 16th century, men dictated the societal expectations of women. The Duke was not happy with his wife’s behavior, choosing “Never to stoop” (43). In other words, the Duke feels superior to the Duchess and therefore unable to communicate to her about her “trifling” (35). Since the Duke will not communicate with his Duchess, what other option does he have? The Duke “gave commands” and “all smiles stopped together” (45-6). In other words, the Duke “gave commands,” which suggests he hired a hit man to kill the Duchess. This would stop her from smiling forever and gives the Duke complete control over his Duchess. Now the Duchess “stands / As if alive” in a painting, in the Duke’s house, covered by a curtain, which only the Duke can draw. Moreover, the Duke has reestablished his power of his Duchess by immortalizing her on an inanimate object that he has sole control over.

The Victorian Age

With Alfonso and his wife Lucrezia’s history fitting into the lines of the poem, how does this poem relate to Browning and the time he lived in? In the 19th Century, science was largely influenced by Darwin’s theory of evolution. Furthermore, under this premise, men were seen as superior to women because of their role in reproduction. First, a woman’s role in reproduction, delegated by nature, was bearing children. It was thought that women were subordinate because the formation of a child in the womb and her development of breast milk required no though; it was a natural process. On the other hand, men’s role in reproduction was to protect and support his family. A man needed to brainstorm how to provide basic necessities, like housing, food, and water. This was seen as superior to women’s role, which is purely physical, whereas a man’s role requires intelligence. Secondly, the Victorian age was characterized the public/private spheres: men dominated public spheres, which included work and friends, where women dominated private spheres, which was domestic homecare duties. Additionally, if a woman left the private sphere to enter the public sphere without her husband, it was claimed women “became corrupted by the transgressive values of the city” (Moore). With this information, it is easier to see how My Last Duchess relates to the context of the time Browning lived. While on the surface, the poem is an anecdote about an arrogant, self-conscious Duke and Duchess, who fell victim; on the other hand, Browning is trying to get those in the Victorian era to think about the way their society ran. Moreover, Browning is suggesting, “not much has changed.”

About the Author . . .

Robert Browning

1810-1829

Robert Browning, a 19th century English poet, was born in Camberwell, United Kingdom on May 7, 1812. Browning was close with his mother, Sarah Anna Wiedemann, who was a highly skilled pianist. While his father, Robert Browning, was a well-paid bank clerk in London. He was sent to work on a sugar plantation in the West Indies, but returned to London, revolted at the slavery. At a young age, Browning had complete access to his father’s extensive bookcase, which included over six thousand volumes of books. In 1814, Browning’s sister, Sarianna, was born. Browning and his sister were highly intelligent, both encouraged by their father to pursue literature and arts. In 1825, Browning was given a collection of Shelley’s poetry, which influenced Browning a lot: he announced himself an atheist and vegetarian after reading Shelley’s Queen Mab.

Thanks to his father’s passion for literature and arts, Browning’s education was mostly unconventional. Browning attended the School of the Rev. Thomas Ready in London, but most of Browning’s education was by books and tutors in various subjects. At the age of fourteen, Browning had already learned Greek, Latin, Italian, and French. In 1828, when Browning was sixteen, he attended the University College of London, but discontinued his enrollment shortly after. Browning continued to educate himself, but his education accounts for obscure references made later in his work.

1830-1839

Pauline: A Fragment of a Confession was published anonymously in 1833. Follwing, two years later was Paracelsus, however not as successful as Pauline. In 1840 Browning published Sordello, a narrative poem. Although Browning had been working on perfecting Sordello for four years, the poem was a complete failure. Bells and Pomegranates, comprised of several books, was published consecutively between 1841 and 1846. Although Browning’s plays were not the most successful, writing such plays helped Browning develop techniques in diction and rhythm, which would later come to be known as dramatic monologue.

1840-1889

In 1845, after reading her poetry and corresponding through letters, Browning met his soon-to-be wife, Elizabeth Barrett. Despite Barrett being six years his senior, the couple eloped on September 12, 1846 at St. Marylebone Parish Church in London. Because the couple married against Barrett’s father’s wishes, one week after eloping, the two ran off to live in Pisa and then Florence, Italy where they lived out the rest of their married lives. A couple years later, the couple’s only child, Robert “Pen” Browning, was born in 1849. Within that same year, two volumes of Browning’s selected poetry was published. Browning went on to publish several more works, such as Christmas Eve and Easter Day (1850) and Men and Women (1855). Despite mild success, Browning was better known as “Elizabeth Barrett’s husband.” In 1861, Barrett died and Browning moved back to London. The couple’s home in Italy, called Casa Guidi, stands as a memorial for the two poets.

Once back in London, Browning published several more works. In 1864, Browning published Dramatis Personae, but his most famous work, the Ring and the Book, was published between 1868 and 1868. Interestingly enough, the Ring and the Book was inspired by the Old Yellow Book, which Browning had purchased a copy of in a second hand stall before leaving Florence in 1860. Browning died on December 31, 1889 at 78 years old. That same day, Asolando was published. The only work left unpublished by Browning was Incondita, a volume of Byronic verse he wrote in 1824. On December 12, 1889, Browning was buried in Poets’ Corner in Westminster Abbey next to Williams Wordsworth.

Despite his meager popularity in the early two-thirds of his life, Browning would become recognized and greatly respected for his development of the dramatic monologue. My Last Duchess is written as a dramatic monologue.

Bibliography

This page was constructed by Cara Pencak, an undergraduate English major at Arizona State University.