My Last Duchess Flashcards
Who is the speaker in ‘My Last Duchess’?
The Duke of Ferrara.
What is the primary theme of ‘My Last Duchess’?
The theme of power and control in relationships.
True or False: The Duke is remorseful about the death of his last Duchess.
False.
What does the Duke reveal about his last Duchess through the painting?
He reveals his possessiveness and jealousy.
Fill in the blank: The Duke shows his _____ over the Duchess through his words.
control.
What does the Duke compare the Duchess’s smile to?
He compares it to a sign of her supposed flirtation.
What literary device is primarily used in ‘My Last Duchess’?
Dramatic monologue.
How does the Duke feel about the statue of Neptune at the end of the poem?
He admires it and desires to have it for himself.
What does the Duke’s conversation with the envoy reveal about his character?
It reveals his arrogance and lack of empathy.
What is the significance of the Duke’s reference to the Duchess’s ‘fading’ beauty?
It reflects his obsession with status and appearance.
Multiple Choice: What does the Duke want to negotiate with the envoy?
A marriage to a new wife.
True or False: The poem takes place in a modern setting.
False.
What is the final image presented in the poem?
The statue of Neptune taming a sea-horse.
Short Answer: How does the Duke view the role of women based on his treatment of the Duchess?
He views them as possessions to be controlled.
What emotion does the Duke primarily express throughout the poem?
Jealousy.
“That’s my last Duchess painted on the wall,/ Looking as is she were alive.”
What are the structure points
And analysis
Structure: Opening heroic couplet and enjambment
The rhyme links “wall’ to ‘alive” but the enjambment carries the sense that the Duchesses vibrancy spills beyond the canvas- just as her life spills beyond the Dukes control. It immediately establishes the monologue and hints at his possessive gaze.
“She has a heart-how shall i say?-too soon made glad,/ Too easily impressed;”
What are the structure points
And analysis
Structure: Caesura and parenthetical interruption
The dukes self-interruption and the dashes mimics his need to control his narrative, even as he allows a slip of genuine irritation. The caesura fractures the iambic pentameter, betraying his nervousness about admitting her “fault.”
“Sir, ‘twas all one! My favour at her breast,/ The dropping of the daylight in the West,”
What are the structure points
And analysis
Structure: Asyndetic list and enjambment
BY omitting conjunctions Browning speeds up the rhythm, as the Duke rattles off the small things that offended him. The enjambment over the line- break makes the litany feel relentless- nothing was too trivial for his displeasure.
“ I gave commands;/ Then all smiles stopped together.”
What are the structure points
And analysis
Structure: Volta into terse syntax and metrical shift
The semicolon signals the poems moral “turn’; from anecdote to action. In two short lines, the Duke revels his ultimate power- his “commands” are unstated by deadly. The abruness underscores how easily he silences dissent.
“Notice Neptune, though,/ Taming a sea-horse, thought a rarity,/ Which Claus of Innsbruck cast in bronze for me!”
What are the structure points
And analysis
Structure: Closing rhyming triplet and dramatic pivot
After discussing a woman, the Duke nonchalantly shifts to art objects- his real pride. The enjambment through “rareness” into the attribution shows his eye always moving from beauty to possession. Ending on the name-drop of Claus of Innsbruck reinforces his status and the theme of power as ownership.
Analyse the title
Every word of “My Last Duchess”—from the possessive “My,” through the ominous “Last,” to the impersonal “Duchess”—sets up a narrative of control, class and deadly possessiveness, perfectly priming the reader for Browning’s exploration of power in a Victorian marriage.
