My Last Duchess - Robert Browning

'Sir' - Pronoun, direct address
'Her looks went everywhere' - Not interested in him, other men
Dramatic momnologue
16th century marriages, arranged, money, class
'Last' - Adjective, more than one, what happened to one before?
'As if she were alive' - Simile, dead?
Inspired by Shelley
Based on Duke Alfonso II, the Duke of Ferrara
'Fra Fandolf's hands worked busily' - On painting, on her
'Will't please you sit and look at her?' - Rhetorical question, audience, another man to look at her
'Durst' - Verb, dare to look at her
'None puts by the curtain I have drawn for you, but I' - Power over her, who can see her, his
'!' - Anger, volume in voice
'Half-flush that dies along her throat' - Strangled, dead, paint can't reproduce beauty
'Not the first' - Looked at by many men
'? -' - Punctuation, breaks, natural speech, conversational, pretending
'I call that piece a wonder, now' - Punctuation before 'Now' can control painting, not her, fine art, miss her now, not when alive
Ran away to marry in Italy, moved to London after wife's death
'Not her husband [...] called that spot of joy into the Duchess' - Paranoid, unfaithful, someone else
'Cherries some officious fool broke in the orchard for her' - Equally happy with everything, jealous
'Too soon made glad, too easily impressed' - Flirty, easy, unexperienced, young
'Ranked my gift of a nine-hundred year old name with anybody's gift' - Context, doesn't understand, appreciate, above others, compared to other men
'Stoop' - Verb, lower his name if people found out
'I gave commands' - Verb, power, had her killed
'Even had you skill' - Does have skill, lying
'She thanked men, - good! but thanked somehow - I know not' - Does know, sexually
'Let herself be lessoned' - Taught a lesson, is she allowed it, admitted
'Made excuses' - Noun, lied, denied
'Who passed without much the same smile' - Gave everyone same smile, treated everyone the same as him
'All smiles stopped together' - If he can't be happy/have her, no one can
'Will't please you rise?' - Acting as if nothing's been said, nothing happened, inflicting fear
'Dowry will be disallowed' - Happy with dowry, sound desperate
'Nay' - Envoy tries to leave
'Notice Neptune' though, taming a sea-horse' - Symbolic, nouns, power over her, warning
'Cast in bronze for me!' - Money, power, wealth
'Rarity' - Noun, rare, expensive

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My Last Duchess - Robert Browning

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