Analysis of My Last Duchess by Robert Browning

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Mind Map on Analysis of My Last Duchess by Robert Browning, created by Heather Crosby on 18/03/2016.
Heather Crosby
Mind Map by Heather Crosby, updated more than 1 year ago
Heather Crosby
Created by Heather Crosby about 8 years ago
47
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Resource summary

Analysis of My Last Duchess by Robert Browning
  1. Vocabulary
    1. Countenance - face, expression
      1. Durst - dared
        1. Mantle - cloak
          1. Courtesy - polite
            1. Bough - branch
              1. Officious - busybody
                1. Munificence - generosity
                  1. Warrant - guarantee
                    1. Avowed - promise
                      1. Dowry - money for marrying a man's daughter
                      2. Poet and Background
                        1. Based on the life of Alfonso II Duke of Ferrara, Italy
                          1. The Duke's first wife died in 1561 after 3 years of marriage
                            1. We learn about the Duke by what he says about his wife and how he says it
                              1. We learn about their relationship, what was expected, how she responded
                                1. The Duke is talking to an emissary of his future wife's father
                                  1. The Duke is only interested in money an material possessions but his money and power will not buy him love and respect
                                  2. Poetic Techniques
                                    1. 'My' - possessive pronoun, the wife is the Duke's property
                                      1. Dramatic monologue - one person's point of view on an incident, biased
                                        1. Written in Iambic Pentameter - beats like a heartbeat (de dum, de dum). The poem is about matters of the heart
                                          1. Sections in brackets - internal thoughts
                                          2. Ideas and Imagery
                                            1. The Duchess is the Duke's possession and gives him status
                                              1. The Duchess is a modest, shy person who got embarrassed by compliments
                                                1. Jealousy - the Duke's 900 year old name is more important than other gifts e.g. cherries
                                                  1. Uses words 'throat', 'breast' associated with areas of the body which could be injured and cause death
                                                    1. A curtain covers the portrait - again a sense of ownership, a possession
                                                      1. The Duke had his wife killed because she was kind and made him jealous
                                                        1. The Duke does not realise how much of himself he has given away in the criticism of his former wife
                                                          1. The Duke accidentally reveals his weaknesses during the conversation
                                                            1. The Duke is only interested in money and material possessions but his money and power will not buy him love and respect
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