"Consider the characteristics of two dramatic monologues that you have studied."

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“Consider the characteristics of two dramatic monologues that you have studied.”

A dramatic monologue is a story that is told by some character, not by the poet himself. It is whenever s character tells a story in detail and in some way it is dramatic.  In a dramatic monologue the speaker always has a silent listener.  The two dramatic monologues I have studies are “My last duchess” and “Prophyria’s lover.”  Both poems were written by Robert Browning a Victorian poet in the 1800’s.

“My last duchess” is about a duke that reveals not only the reasons for his disapproval of the behaviour of his former duchess, but aspects of his own personality as well.  The duke tells the tale of is last duchess, a fair lady, who he felt did not give him the respect he wanted and shows the painting by Fra Pandolf of his last duchess.  

The story starts of were the duke of Ferrar a renaissance nobleman is showing and describing a painting to a visitor.  We are aware that the painting is off his wife who is now dead “looking as if she were alive.”  He is very fond of the painting and compliments the artist for the work that he has done “that piece a wonder”.  The painting is off great value to him and he admires it.  Are first impression of the duke are that he is a wealthy man, who is very much in love with his wife, he is very polite and rather formal “will’t please you sit.”  I find it strange that he keeps the painting hid behind a curtain but it means he is in control of whoever gets to see the painting.  So far we feel some sympathy towards the duke as we are given the impression that he is mourning for his wife’s death.

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        But then our impression of the duke begins to change, when the duke goes on to criticise his wife.  He does not like the fact that other things apart from him make her happy “twas not her husbands presence only, called that spot of joy.”  He does not understand his wife’s warm native, he struggles to find words to explain her personality “a heart-how shall I say? – too soon made glad.”  The duchess is described as being friendly, pleasant, warm, affectionate and full of “joy”.  He uses words such as “hand flush”, “glad” and “liked” to describe her but ...

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