Comment on Browning's presentation of power relationships between men and women in 'My last Duchess' and 'Porphyria's lover'.

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Lakshman Nandwani                English poetry coursework

Comment on Browning’s presentation of power relationships between men and women in ‘My last Duchess’ and ‘Porphyria’s lover’

        ‘My Last Duchess’ and ‘Porphyria’s Lover’ are both dramatic monologues presenting the poems as confessions with a single narrator in each poem. In these two poems, Browning tries to expose the truth behind what people have stereotyped men and women from the Victorian times and the Renaissance times. Men were seen to be the protector and provider and women were envisioned as passive people. On the outside, men seemed to have power and control, but in reality many of them were insecure and it was the woman who had the power.

In ‘My Last Duchess’ the author presents the poem showing the Duke as a man with a lot of power especially against his wife and the envoy, he is talking to. In the title itself we can realise that the Duke thinks of his wife as a possession. The fact that “My” comes before “Duchess” shows one aspect of the relationship between the Duke and the Duchess.

The poem has a structured rhyme scheme. There are ten syllables a line; therefore it is an iambic parameter. The rhyming meter is ‘aa bb cc’. Even though the poem is structured evenly the rhyme is not realised as easily, yet it is fluent. The rhyming is every two lines. Examples of this rhyming scheme are: wall, call/ hands, stands…This comes in comparison with the way the narrator has used the idea of order in the poem. This relates to the point of control that the Duke had and it shows how the narrator has control of the poem.

The poem is based on the Duchess which the Duke has a portrait of, which he keeps behind a curtain. The author uses a metaphor for us to realise that the Duke is hiding his wife from the rest of the world because he is embarrassed of her or he is over-protective of her. The portrait is referred to many times. This is iterative imagery. “Fra Pandolf’s hands worked busily a day…” This is also a literal portrait as he actually talked about how it has been painted to make the Duchess look so beautiful.

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The Duke is obsessed with his Duchess even though she is dead. He perceives that people think sexually of her from what they see in the painting but in reality they see a normal human being.  “A heart…too soon made glad”. This remark by the Duke shows that he is sexually jealous of his wife and he has sexual paranoia and insecurities. There is a power reversal as he is jealous of her. “And her looks went everywhere” That is why the portrait is hidden behind the curtain. This symbolises his control over her. The author uses the symbolism ...

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