English Literature Coursework - My Last Duchess & Porphyria's Lover

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Compare the way the relationships between men and women are portrayed in the poems ‘Porphyria’s Lover’ and ‘My Last Duchess’

Porphyria’s Lover & My Last Duchess

The poem ‘Porphyria’s Lover’ written by Browning, first appeared in 1836, one of the earliest and most shocking of Browning’s dramatic monologues. In the poem, it indicates that the lover is speaking the poem hence it is in first person and he tells us in the form of a dramatic monologue. The lover recounts the murder of Porphyria to create a perfect moment. The lover narrates it in a chronological matter, systematic, structures which suggests he has remorse for what he has done.

The poem opens with a description of the outside world which sets the scene as dark & mysterious which contrasts with the romantic image of Porphyria’s entrance. ‘The sullen wind was soon awake, It tore the elm-tops down for spite’ is personification which shows us that the emotions further portray the outside world as being aggressive and foreboding. What this reveals about Porphyria when she enters the cottage she is walking to her fate by in the quotation ‘when glided in Prophyria; straight’ this shows that the word glided was possibly chosen/ linked to her impending fate.

The tone of the poem changes from romantic, ideal image to a sexual tone by shedding off the outside world to him which reinforces the lovers in a time/place of their own by it starts changing from a romantic tone to a sexual tone in the quotations ‘withdrew the dripping cloak and shawl’, ‘laid her soil’d gloves’, ‘untied her her’, ‘She put my arm about her waist’ and ‘made her smooth white shoulder bare’. This shows that Porphyria is responsible for the chain of events that are about to take place which shows that the sexuality portrayed is condemned which will lead to the death of her and the happiness of both of them.

The social/historical events that we learn about from Porphyria’s Lover is that he is abnormally possessive, passionate and obsessive. From these characteristics we can see that he is one of the characters which are possessive and the other is Prophyria by that she is passionate and obsessive. The lover’s jealousy and need for power drives him to their goal by that she is an object to her and that she tempts him into a sexual event by that she is flirtatious & is taking control of the situation which makes him achieve what they desire. Death. ‘To set it struggling passion free from pride, and vainer ties dissever, and give herself to me forever’. This quote show that Porphyria’s Lover has achieved his end goal by that Porphyria was in control of the situation in life and Prophyria’s lover is in control of the situation in death.

The power relationship changes from Porphyria to her lover when she says about how much she loves him in the quotation ‘Murmuring how she loved me – she too weak, for all heart’s endeavour’. This shows what he thinks of her and he thinks he has power over her since she came to him that night which Porphyria goes to him during the storm and he then realises that she does in fact worship him. At this point his jealousy stops for a few moments and he wants to keep this moment forever and the only way he thinks he can do this is by killing her. He also believes that he has granted her, her one and only wish. That wish was to be with him forever, ‘…she guessed not how her darling one wish would be heard.’ ‘Porphyria worshipped me’. ‘I found a thing to do’,’ yellow string I wound, Three times her little throat around… these quotes suggests that Porphyria’s Lovers actions were unplanned and therefore he was not expecting her to worship him. Although he seems determined to kill her by wrapping her hair round her throat three times, he states that she felt no pain. But he then has a doubt about what he has done, suggesting that he could have a split personality or even her death was a spur of the moment as he probably couldn’t have handle her loving him.

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The language and phrases that show that this wasn’t a sudden, rash, hasty decision but a deliberate considerate act is Three times her little throat around…" he does this thinking it is what she wants. He believes that Phorphyria wants to be with him forever and that she wanted to die so that she could be with him all the time. He thinks this because of the affectionate way that she is acting around him. He is surprised when he realises that she worships him. Also this quotation ‘for love of her, and all vain’ shows that is the turning ...

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