Pre 1914 love poetry from the Victorian and Elizabethan era.

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Alex Norwood 10Y1

G.C.S.E ENGLISH COURSEWORK ASSIGNMENT

PRE 1914 LOVE POETRY FROM THE VICTORIAN AND ELIZABETHAN ERA

Conventional females were considered to be second class citizens who were expected to refrain in conveying their natural feelings and emotions. Women were also socially neglected, as they were expected to remain at home whilst their respective husbands ensured the upkeep of the family by managing the family finances. The male population at this point in time ignorantly viewed women as coy, innocent characters, seemingly unaware that women had the same feelings and emotions as themselves.

 At the time in which poets like Robert Browning lived, the majority of marriages were arranged. Property and power were two main factors which influenced negotiations for marriage between the two families of the bride and groom. As the bride was unable to provide land, she was expected to take a substantial amount of money to the marriage, which in turn, was given to the father of the groom. In this respect, daughters were considered to be a financial burden on their parents, hence their decision to get their daughter married into a wealthy family as soon as they could.

 During the Pre 1900 period of history, many Victorians had become desensitised to violence, yet wouldn't allow their views on controversial aspects of 'showbusiness' to be released into their various social circles, in a bid to upkeep their public persona. In public they were formal, and lived by a strict moral code, whereas secretly, in the comfort of their own homes, they had become fascinated by sexuality, violence and scandal.

 Robert Browning was one of the great poets of the Victorian age. Having been fortunate to experience the happiness of mutual love, he wrote moving love poetry, yet the dramatic monlogue, entitled 'My Last Duchess' has little to do with love as most of us would understand it. However, it does give us a complete impression of a Renaissance nobleman.

 The dramatic monologue begins with an insight into the Duke's interest in the collection of fine artwork. In the same way, we can establish that the Duke also enjoys the collection of women, in the way that he introduces his next piece of art.

'That's my last Duchess...'

                                 Line 1

The Duke seems to be a man who expects his wife to be the 'conventional' female, and abide by the strict gender roles that existed at this period in history. He repeatedly downgrades his wife, and makes out that she doesn't appreciate the high social rank which she has married into. He even goes as far as indicating that his wife has been unfaithful - all an attempt to really try and justify his reasons as to why he 'gave commands'.

[She] had a heart - how shall we say? - too soon made glad.

                                                                                    Line 23

 In this quote, Browning tells us that his 'last duchess' was easily pleased by compliments that she received from other people. We sense that she also voices her gratitude for these compliments, and in this way, the Duke has become disillusioned and because of this, he downgrades his wife for basically being a nice person.

In another pretty feeble attempt to justify his actions, he tries to make his wife out as a disrespectful person. He tells how every single gift that she received from various people 'would draw from her alike the approving speech'. From here, the Duke cleverly calculates his speech, in another attempt to vindicate his behaviour, as he again tries to imply that his wife doesn't really respect his gifts or value his aristocratic background.  In the following quote, the Duke voices his disgust at the fact that his wife seems to value gifts from everybody regardless of wealth or status in the same way. Therefore, the Duke feels she is being unconventional and he isn't used to this 'ignorance'. He feels that just by marrying her, he has given her a gift worth more than anybody else could afford to pay.

'Somehow - I know not how - as if she ranked

My gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name

With anybody's gift.'

                          Lines 32 - 34

 We get the idea of how the Duke longs for ultimate power when he tells of what he actually said to his wife, and we can assume that with the way in which the speech is worded, that this was probably one of the final confrontations between the pair. Here, we sense that the Duke is trying to mould his 'duchess' and tells her how he expects her to act in public and in the company of men.

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 '...Just this

Or that in you disgusts me; here you miss,

Or there exceed the mark,'

                                   Lines 37 - 39

'...and if she let

Herself be lessoned so, nor plainly set

Her wits to yours, forsooth, and made excuse.'

                                                                Lines 39 - 41

Finally, the Duke gets ...

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