Porphyria's Lover Pear 3 Analysis (character) Flashcards
broken iambic tetrameter
The broken iambic tetrameter at this point emphasises that the persona is attempting to justify his frustration and anger
repetition of “mine”
whilst the repetition of “mine” emphasises the speaker’s possessive behaviour and attitude towards her- as if he is asserting his right to do as he wishes with her.
word choice of “fair”
The word choice of ‘fair’ is ambiguous as it not only relates to her beauty, but his insistence that she is his beyond dispute and that he is justified in what follows.
“perfectly pure and good”
Through the positive adjectives “pure” and “good” and the alliteration of “perfectly pure”, Browning emphasises Porphyria’s portrayal as uncorrupted. In the speaker’s eyes, she is the perfect, innocent, virginal woman.
“yellow string”
References to “yellow string” and “three times her little throat” have child-like connotations and are perhaps even suggestive of nursery rhymes. This has a particularly strong contrast with the violence of this moment which creates a sinister tone.
“little”
In describing Porphyria’s throat as “little”, Browning conveys that she is weak and vulnerable as well as the fact that the speaker infantilises her.
“and strangled her”
The short and abrupt phrase “and strangled her” is meant to shock the reader especially as this violent act comes after the speaker’s talk of happiness. The contrast between his previous passivity and this violence is extremely disturbing.
