My Last Duchess By Robert Browning

Monologue is a form of conversation where only the speaker is speaking. There may be an auditor or more than one person who is or are listening to the speaker.

Dramatic Monologue is when the speaker explains many incidents in a dramatic manner to talk about one thing. Listeners will not interrupt when he is speaking. He might constantly address to the auditor/s or audience without any interference.

Robert Browning’s poem “My Last Duchess” is one of the most appreciated monologues of that time period (19th century). Generally, Browning used to write his poems in the form of a Dramatic Monologue and this is his masterpiece.

The speaker in the poem is the Duke of Friar who is talking to the messenger of Duke of Tyrel, his neighboring Duke. We can also interpret that the third listener in the poem is the Duchess. She is completely lost and she isn’t physically present there. So overall there are three people in the conversation.

One of the most important elements in Dramatic Monologue is silence and it is clearly portrayed here. Duke wishes to marry again and thus the neighboring Duke has sent a proposal of his daughter’s marriage through his messenger.

Duke says to the messenger that he will unveil the painting by himself and that it is one of the first paintings painted by a famous painter in a single day. It represents the Duke’s insecurity and obsession with his wife. The painting made by a famous painter is representing his societal status, economic status and his affordability.

He says that she is smiling and blushing for the reason that the painter has appreciated his wrist which was covered by the cloak and that she should remove it. The Duke is jealous of the painter. Also that the painter should not appreciate her, only he (Duke) can appreciate her.

It reflects the irritating nature of the Duke also since he doesn’t like the Duchess smiling and blushing at every person who gifts her anything. According to him, the Duchess should not thank and smile equally at every gift she receives even if it is a necklace by the Duke or a piece of cherry branch by a commoner. She is not able to differentiate between these trivial things.

In this way, Duke’s character is revealed here, as he is kind of painting at the fact that what kind of wife is he actually looking for, also what characters that girl should be having whom he is going to marry.

He is showing antiques to the messenger. For example, Neptune riding a sea horse. It represents his dictatorial commanding and controlling nature. He is compared to the Neptune and the Duchess to the seahorse who is to be controlled by him. His purpose of showing his wealth to the messenger represents the idea that he is looking for a large sum of dowry.Since, the Duchess is very vibrant, affable, sincere and playful which he doesn’t like at all, he orders her to be killed. It represents the tyrant and oppressive side of his.

Jennifer Wagner A. Lawler in her essay talks about the importance of 'silence' in a dramatic monologue. She says silence plays an important role in deciding the character of the speaker and this is an important deciding factor for the readers.

In this particular poem “My Last Duchess” by Browning, we get to know the important characteristics which the Duke possesses. For example, intolerance, tyranny, greed, oppression, authoritative, suppression, unsympathetic, commanding nature, etc.