Compare My Last Duchess And The Farmers Bride

Both ‘London’ and ‘My Last Duchess’ explore the ideas of power through social structures, hierarchy and synecdoche.

Marriage is recognized in society as one man and woman in union for a legal contract. Marriage has numerous definitions, for example, legal and moral provision for generations among humans. This word can represent more than its definition. Marriage for various writers signifies hate, passion, oppression, and euphoria which have been serving as the focal point of many literary works. One example is “Linoleum Roses”, one of the vignettes that make up The House on Mango Street, a coming-of-age novel by Mexican-American writer Sandra Cisneros. Cisneros in this specific vignette reveals the inherent oppressiveness of particular marriages, which by their nature rob people of their independence.

In the story “My last Duchess,” the Duke is speaking to the envoy of another nobleman of his second bride to be. The Duke describes the circumstances of his last duchess in which it was painted and boasted how Fra Pandolf the painter made her “look as if she was alive”. The Duke continues speaking about the unfortunate fate of his former wife. It is evident that a crime has been committed; He was jealous and annoyed of his easily impressed wife so he murdered her. His tone and demeanor is one of extreme arrogance and it is clear he is a dangerous man who poses a threat to any and all women he claims to love.

The idea of marriage is praised in all the in last few stories we have read. Marriage or domesticated relationships are held to a very high status back then in Victorian times and even now with some people today. In The Coquette written by Hannah W. Foster, marriage played a huge part of the power and dominance in the text. The men’s sexual control from the text used sex and marriage for their own personal desires showed power. She was abused and if she would have lived, she would have been chastised for her actions.

A woman’s only mission, in the 19th and early 20th century, was to get married, take care of her husband and have babies. Often, marriage was nothing more than a practical bond, in other words, a woman didn’t always choose a husband because she was in love. In the short story “The storm” by Kate Chopin and “Lamb to the slaughter” by Roal Dahl a contrast is created between the two main characters concerning the view of love and marriage. The view on the connection between marriage and love differs between Calixta from “The Storm” and Mary from “Lamb to the Slaughter” but coincide when it comes to the conception of marriage.

In Robert Browning’s poem, My Last Duchess, is about a conversation surrounding a portrait. The focus swirls around the untimely death of the duchess, Alfonso II last wife, because of some impropriety. She looks alive, and the duke attributes this to the skill of the painter, Frà Pandolf. This serves to remind the reader that the duke does not approve of the way the duchess handled herself. Evidently, the duke does not approve of the zest for life that the duchess exhibited. He of course compliments her beauty,

A young woman, Hannah, is soon to be married to William Drew of Isle of Wight County. Her family has been planning the wedding for years, and preparing her to be appreciated as a member of society and a successful housewife, being as Hannah has trained her whole life to be a wife and mother, and is less concerned about love in marriage than about how it will affect her socially. Hannah has courted William Drew as many other young women in the society of England around the 1800’s have also done in order to take their first step into adulthood; marriage (Elizabeth Maurer). Hannah is an example of a young girl who lived in England during the 1800’s and went through courtship and marriage. Courtship and marriage during the Victorian days compared to today’s relationships varies tremendously and can be encompassed into general information, courtship, the effect of social class, and divorces.

“That’s my last Duchess, painted on the wall...Will’t please you sit and look at her? ...since none puts by the curtain I have drawn for you.” Later in the poem, the reader realizes s/he is an emissary of a potential marriage. Being a dramatic monologue, the reader gets a front row seat to Alfonso’s shift in motive and attitude. The reader initially is led to believe Alfonso adored his late wife by the way he originally describes the fresco, “I call that piece a wonder...the depth and passion of its earnest glance...how such a [flattering] glance came there.” Later in the poem, however, the reader realizes Alfonso’s true feelings toward Medici by the way he tells the emissary of her personality. Listening from the emissary’s point of view makes the poem more interactive because it’s almost like Alfonso is having a personal conversation with the reader. It also makes the poem more mysterious because the reader doesn’t know if Alfonso is a “reliable” character—the reader only knows what Alfonso has told him or her (the emissary). By putting the reader in this position, Browning suggests that the emissary would have had the same opinions on objectification (arranged marriage, obsession with status) as Alfonso did; otherwise, why would he have said, “I gave

Love, death, and infidelity were weaved through the readings this week. In “My Last Duchess” by Robert Browning, the speaker is a Duke who is looking at a painting of his last (now deceased) Duchess and remembering her. His memories are not fond; he was jealous and possessive, and frankly, a bit of a drama queen. His suspicion is evident repeatedly, starting in line 13 where he states, “Sir, ‘twas not/ Her husband’s presence only, called that spot/ Of joy into the duchess’ cheek”. Lines 21-24 boldly say what he was alluding to earlier on, “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.” She blushed easily and enjoyed looking at things, so in his mind she was a bit promiscuous. He thought his wife unfaithful basically because she was polite. This, as well as his uppity attitude, are both made clear in lines 31-34, “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.” He thinks that his name alone is a better gift than anything else; he’s conceited and entitled.

In the late 1800’s through early 1900’s women and men were did not “tie the knot” like the women and men do in today’s day. In today’s world, women and men get married because they have many things in common, they are in love with each other, and they choose to get married to one another. In many stories written back then, readers can expect to read about how marriages were arranged and how many people were not having the wedded bliss marriage proclaims today.

In “My Last Duchess,” the Duke becomes envious when his wife looks at other men. “My Last Duchess” states “she likes whate’er She looked on” (Line 23). In addition, the Duke did not like his wife smiling or blushing at other men as shown in lines 30 and 31. In “Porphyria’s Lover” the man also becomes jealous because he did not want her with any other man.

Stephen Bonnycastle writes on the development of gender norms, “Most girls growing up in North American Society are encouraged to repress their masculine traits and develop those that show them to be ‘attractively female’” (191). Similarly, there are social expectations for someone to be married. The view that is established for what the normal person looks like includes someone who is married. In the poem “I’m ‘wife’- I’ve finished that” by Emily Dickinson, the idea that marriage is an ideal is challenged through her punctuation and her tone at the beginning and end of the poem and is also upheld through portrayal of marriage and comparison between the married and single life.

Robert Browning’s “My Last Duchess” depicts the typical Renaissance man and his peculiarities such as his jealousy and severity as a husband, but also his love for money and art. This essay seeks to demonstrate that ‘love’, ‘marriage’ and ‘death’ are all occurring themes that stand by the principals of this poem. Prior to the beginning of the poem, the word ‘Ferrara’ is thoughtfully placed by the poet in order to assert not only the location, but also the ambience of “My Last Duchess”. Set in Renaissance Italy it is natural to assume that the speaker is an opulent Duke of Ferrara, who has been married many times before, this being explicitly suggested from the very beginning.

“I take you, to be my lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part.” These traditional wedding vows conjure up images of true love and unfailing commitment. Although this unconditional love is beautiful, it was not always a reality. This fact became evident within literature of the late eighteen hundreds. “The Storm” written by Kate Chopin, “An Adventure in Paris” by Guy De Maupassant, and “The Lady with the Dog” by Anton Chekhov, are all prominent short stories that portrayed dissatisfied women involved in loveless marriages. For these women, lack of fulfillment and the

In the poem “My Last Duchess” by poet Robert Browning, the speaker is a very wealthy Duke who is showing another man around his estate whilst discussing the terms of his next impending marriage. While showing the visitor his collections of art they come across one work to which the Duke draws back the curtain covering it and states “that’s my last Duchess painted on the wall”. The Duke then goes on to describe his former wife’s demeanor stating in a displeasing tone to his visitor “Sir, ‘twas not Her husband’s presence only, called that spot Of joy into the Duchess’ cheek”. The reader then begins to understand from the statement that; not only was the Duchess was not completely faithful in her marriage to the Duke, but the Duke himself has