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My Last Duchess Summary & Analysis by Robert Browning

• Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis
• Poetic Devices
• Vocabulary & References
• Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme
• Line-by-Line Explanations

“My Last Duchess” is a dramatic monologue written by Victorian poet Robert Browning in 1842. In the poem, the Duke of Ferrara uses a painting of his former wife as a conversation piece. The Duke speaks about his former wife's perceived inadequacies to a representative of the family of his bride-to-be, revealing his obsession with controlling others in the process. Browning uses this compelling psychological portrait of a despicable character to critique the objectification of women and abuses of power.

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The Full Text of “My Last Duchess”

      FERRARA

1 That’s my last Duchess painted on the wall, 

2 Looking as if she were alive. I call 

3 That piece a wonder, now; Fra Pandolf’s hands 

4 Worked busily a day, and there she stands. 

5 Will’t please you sit and look at her? I said 

6 “Fra Pandolf” by design, for never read 

7 Strangers like you that pictured countenance, 

8 The depth and passion of its earnest glance, 

9 But to myself they turned (since none puts by 

10 The curtain I have drawn for you, but I) 

11 And seemed as they would ask me, if they durst, 

12 How such a glance came there; so, not the first 

13 Are you to turn and ask thus. Sir, ’twas not 

14 Her husband’s presence only, called that spot 

15 Of joy into the Duchess’ cheek; perhaps 

16 Fra Pandolf chanced to say, “Her mantle laps 

17 Over my lady’s wrist too much,” or “Paint 

18 Must never hope to reproduce the faint 

19 Half-flush that dies along her throat.” Such stuff 

20 Was courtesy, she thought, and cause enough 

21 For calling up that spot of joy. She had 

22 A heart—how shall I say?— too soon made glad, 

23 Too easily impressed; she liked whate’er 

24 She looked on, and her looks went everywhere. 

25 Sir, ’twas all one! My favour at her breast, 

26 The dropping of the daylight in the West, 

27 The bough of cherries some officious fool 

28 Broke in the orchard for her, the white mule 

29 She rode with round the terrace—all and each 

30 Would draw from her alike the approving speech, 

31 Or blush, at least. She thanked men—good! but thanked 

32 Somehow—I know not how—as if she ranked 

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

34 With anybody’s gift. Who’d stoop to blame 

35 This sort of trifling? Even had you skill 

36 In speech—which I have not—to make your will 

37 Quite clear to such an one, and say, “Just this 

38 Or that in you disgusts me; here you miss, 

39 Or there exceed the mark”—and if she let 

40 Herself be lessoned so, nor plainly set 

41 Her wits to yours, forsooth, and made excuse— 

42 E’en then would be some stooping; and I choose 

43 Never to stoop. Oh, sir, she smiled, no doubt, 

44 Whene’er I passed her; but who passed without 

45 Much the same smile? This grew; I gave commands; 

46 Then all smiles stopped together. There she stands 

47 As if alive. Will’t please you rise? We’ll meet 

48 The company below, then. I repeat, 

49 The Count your master’s known munificence 

50 Is ample warrant that no just pretense 

51 Of mine for dowry will be disallowed; 

52 Though his fair daughter’s self, as I avowed 

53 At starting, is my object. Nay, we’ll go 

54 Together down, sir. Notice Neptune, though, 

55 Taming a sea-horse, thought a rarity, 

56 Which Claus of Innsbruck cast in bronze for me!

“My Last Duchess” Summary

“my last duchess” themes.

The Objectification of Women

• See where this theme is active in the poem.

Social Status, Art, and Elitism

Control and Manipulation

Line-by-line explanation & analysis of “my last duchess”.

That’s my last Duchess painted on the wall,  Looking as if she were alive. I call  That piece a wonder, now; Fra Pandolf’s hands  Worked busily a day, and there she stands.  Will’t please you sit and look at her?

I said  “Fra Pandolf” by design, for never read  Strangers like you that pictured countenance,  The depth and passion of its earnest glance,  But to myself they turned (since none puts by  The curtain I have drawn for you, but I)  And seemed as they would ask me, if they durst,  How such a glance came there; so, not the first  Are you to turn and ask thus.

Lines 13-19

Sir, ’twas not  Her husband’s presence only, called that spot  Of joy into the Duchess’ cheek; perhaps  Fra Pandolf chanced to say, “Her mantle laps  Over my lady’s wrist too much,” or “Paint  Must never hope to reproduce the faint  Half-flush that dies along her throat.”

Lines 19-24

Such stuff  Was courtesy, she thought, and cause enough  For calling up that spot of joy. She had  A heart—how shall I say?— too soon made glad,  Too easily impressed; she liked whate’er  She looked on, and her looks went everywhere.

Lines 25-31

Sir, ’twas all one! My favour at her breast,  The dropping of the daylight in the West,  The bough of cherries some officious fool  Broke in the orchard for her, the white mule  She rode with round the terrace—all and each  Would draw from her alike the approving speech,  Or blush, at least.

Lines 31-34

She thanked men—good! but thanked  Somehow—I know not how—as if she ranked  My gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name  With anybody’s gift.

Lines 34-43

Who’d stoop to blame  This sort of trifling? Even had you skill  In speech—which I have not—to make your will  Quite clear to such an one, and say, “Just this  Or that in you disgusts me; here you miss,  Or there exceed the mark”—and if she let  Herself be lessoned so, nor plainly set  Her wits to yours, forsooth, and made excuse—  E’en then would be some stooping; and I choose  Never to stoop.

Lines 43-47

Oh, sir, she smiled, no doubt,  Whene’er I passed her; but who passed without  Much the same smile? This grew; I gave commands;  Then all smiles stopped together. There she stands  As if alive.

Lines 47-53

Will’t please you rise? We’ll meet  The company below, then. I repeat,  The Count your master’s known munificence  Is ample warrant that no just pretense  Of mine for dowry will be disallowed;  Though his fair daughter’s self, as I avowed  At starting, is my object.

Lines 53-56

Nay, we’ll go  Together down, sir. Notice Neptune, though,  Taming a sea-horse, thought a rarity,  Which Claus of Innsbruck cast in bronze for me!

“My Last Duchess” Symbols

The Painting

• See where this symbol appears in the poem.

The Statue of Neptune

“my last duchess” poetic devices & figurative language.

• See where this poetic device appears in the poem.

Personification

“my last duchess” vocabulary.

Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.

• Fra Pandolf
• Countenance
• Munificence
• See where this vocabulary word appears in the poem.

Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “My Last Duchess”

Rhyme scheme, “my last duchess” speaker, “my last duchess” setting, literary and historical context of “my last duchess”, more “my last duchess” resources, external resources.

Robert Browning's Answers to Some Questions, 1914 — In March of 1914, Cornhill Magazine interviewed Robert Browning about some of his poems, including "My Last Duchess." He briefly explains his thoughts on the duchess.

Chris de Burgh, "The Painter" (1976) — Chris de Burgh (a Northern Irish singer-songwriter, best known for "Lady in Red") wrote a song from the perspective of the Duke of Ferrara about his former wife, in which the duchess was having an affair with Fra Pandolf.

My Last Duchess Glass Window — The Armstrong Browning Library and Museum at Baylor University has a stained glass window inspired by "My Last Duchess."

Julian Glover performs "My Last Duchess" — Actor Julian Glover performs "My Last Duchess" with a suitably dramatic tone of voice. Note how he emphasizes the conversational quality of the poem.

Nikolaus Mardruz to his Master Ferdinand, Count of Tyrol, 1565 by Richard Howard, 1929 — This poem by American poet Richard Howard provides the Ferrara's guest's perspective on the meeting between himself and the duke.

LitCharts on Other Poems by Robert Browning

A Light Woman

Among the Rocks

A Toccata of Galuppi's

A Woman's Last Word

Confessions

Home-Thoughts, from Abroad

How they Brought the Good News from Ghent to Aix

Life in a Love

Love Among the Ruins

Love in a Life

Meeting at Night

Pictor Ignotus

Porphyria's Lover

Soliloquy of the Spanish Cloister

The Bishop Orders His Tomb at Saint Praxed's Church

The Laboratory

The Last Ride Together

The Lost Leader

The Lost Mistress

The Patriot

The Pied Piper of Hamelin

Women and Roses

Ask LitCharts AI: The answer to your questions

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Robert Browning: Poems

By robert browning, robert browning: poems summary and analysis of "my last duchess".

"My Last Duchess" is narrated by the duke of Ferrara to an envoy (representative) of another nobleman, whose daughter the duke is soon to marry. These details are revealed throughout the poem, but understanding them from the opening helps to illustrate the irony that Browning employs.

At the poem's opening, the duke has just pulled back a curtain to reveal to the envoy a portrait of his previous duchess. The portrait was painted by Fra Pandolf, a monk and painter whom the duke believes captured the singularity of the duchess's glance. However, the duke insists to the envoy that his former wife’s deep, passionate glance was not reserved solely for her husband. As he puts it, she was "too easily impressed" into sharing her affable nature.

His tone grows harsh as he recollects how both human and nature could impress her, which insulted him since she did not give special favor to the "gift" of his "nine-hundred-years-old" family name and lineage. Refusing to deign to "lesson" her on her unacceptable love of everything, he instead "gave commands" to have her killed.

The duke then ends his story and asks the envoy to rise and accompany him back to the count, the father of the duke's impending bride and the envoy's employer. He mentions that he expects a high dowry, though he is happy enough with the daughter herself. He insists that the envoy walk with him "together" – a lapse of the usual social expectation, where the higher ranked person would walk separately – and on their descent he points out a bronze bust of the god Neptune in his collection.

"My Last Duchess," published in 1842, is arguably Browning's most famous dramatic monologue, with good reason. It engages the reader on a number of levels – historical, psychological, ironic, theatrical, and more.

The most engaging element of the poem is probably the speaker himself, the duke. Objectively, it's easy to identify him as a monster, since he had his wife murdered for what comes across as fairly innocuous crimes. And yet he is impressively charming, both in his use of language and his affable address. The ironic disconnect that colors most of Browning's monologues is particularly strong here. A remarkably amoral man nevertheless has a lovely sense of beauty and of how to engage his listener.

In fact, the duke's excessive demand for control ultimately comes across as his most defining characteristic. The obvious manifestation of this is the murder of his wife. Her crime is barely presented as sexual; even though he does admit that other men could draw her "blush," he also mentions several natural phenomena that inspired her favor. And yet he was driven to murder by her refusal to save her happy glances solely for him. This demand for control is also reflected in his relationship with the envoy. The entire poem has a precisely controlled theatrical flair, from the unveiling of the curtain that is implied to precede the opening, to the way he slowly reveals the details of his tale, to his assuming of the envoy's interest in the tale ("strangers like you….would ask me, if they durst, How such a glance came there"), to his final shift in subject back to the issue of the impending marriage. He pretends to denigrate his speaking ability – "even had you skill in speech – (which I have not),” later revealing that he believes the opposite to be true, even at one point explicitly acknowledging how controlled his story is when he admits he "said 'Fra Pandolf' by design" to peak the envoy's interest. The envoy is his audience much as we are Browning's, and the duke exerts a similar control over his story that Browning uses in crafting the ironic disconnect.

In terms of meter, Browning represents the duke's incessant control of story by using a regular meter but also enjambment (where the phrases do not end at the close of a line). The enjambment works against the otherwise orderly meter to remind us that the duke will control his world, including the rhyme scheme of his monologue.

To some extent, the duke's amorality can be understood in terms of aristocracy. The poem was originally published with a companion poem under the title "Italy and France," and both attempted to explore the ironies of aristocratic honor. In this poem, loosely inspired by real events set in Renaissance Italy, the duke reveals himself not only as a model of culture but also as a monster of morality. His inability to see his moral ugliness could be attributed to having been ruined by worship of a "nine-hundred-years-old name.” He is so entitled that when his wife upset him by too loosely bestowing her favor to others, he refused to speak to her about it. Such a move is out of the question – "who'd stoop to blame this kind of trifling?" He will not "stoop" to such ordinary domestic tasks as compromise or discussion. Instead, when she transgresses his sense of entitlement, he gives commands and she is dead.

Another element of the aristocratic life that Browning approaches in the poem is that of repetition. The duke's life seems to be made of repeated gestures. The most obvious is his marriage – the use of the word "last" in the title implies that there are several others, perhaps with curtain-covered paintings along the same hallway where this one stands. In the same way that the age of his name gives it credence, so does he seem fit with a life of repeated gestures, one of which he is ready to make again with the count's daughter.

And indeed, the question of money is revealed at the end in a way that colors the entire poem. The duke almost employs his own sense of irony when he brings up a "dowry" to the envoy. This final stanza suggests that his story of murder is meant to give proactive warning to the woman he is soon to marry, but to give it through a backdoor channel, through the envoy who would pass it along to the count who might then pass it to the girl. After all, the duke has no interest in talking to her himself, as we have learned! His irony goes even further when he reminds the envoy that he truly wants only the woman herself, even as he is clearly stressing the importance of a large dowry tinged with a threat of his vindictive side.

But the lens of aristocracy undercuts the wonderful psychological nature of the poem, which is overall more concerned with human contradictions than with social or economic criticism. The first contradiction to consider is how charming the duke actually is. It would be tempting to suggest Browning wants to paint him as a weasel, but knowing the poet's love of language, it's clear that he wants us to admire a character who can manipulate language so masterfully. Further, the duke shows an interesting complication in his attitudes on class when he suggests to the envoy that they "go Together down," an action not expected in such a hierarchical society. By no means can we justify the idea that the duke is willing to transcend class, but at the same time he does allow a transgression of the very hierarchy that had previously led him to have his wife murdered rather than discuss his problems with her.

Also at play psychologically is the human ability to rationalize our hang-ups. The duke seems controlled by certain forces: his own aristocratic bearing; his relationship to women; and lastly, this particular duchess who confounded him. One can argue that the duke, who was in love with his "last duchess,” is himself controlled by his social expectations, and that his inability to bear perceived insult to his aristocratic name makes him a victim of the same social forces that he represents. Likewise, what he expects of his wives, particularly of this woman whose portrait continues to provide him with fodder for performance, suggests a deeper psychology than one meant solely for criticism.

The last thing to point out in the duke's language is his use of euphemism. The way he explains that he had the duchess killed – "I gave commands; Then all smiles stopped together" – shows a facility for avoiding the truth through choice of language. What this could suggest is that the duchess was in fact guilty of greater transgression than he claims, that instead of flirtation, she might have physically or sexually betrayed him. There's certainly no explicit evidence of this, but at the same time, it's plausible that a man as arrogant as the duke, especially one so equipped with the power of euphemism, would avoid spelling out his disgrace to a lowly envoy and instead would speak around the issue.

Finally, one can also understand this poem as a commentary on art. The duke remains enamored with the woman he has had killed, though his affection now rests on a representation of her. In other words, he has chosen to love the ideal image of her rather than the reality, similar to how the narrator of " Porphyria's Lover " chose a static, dead love than one destined to change in the throes of life. In many ways, this is the artist's dilemma, which Browning explores in all of his work. As poet, he attempts to capture contradiction and movement, psychological complexity that cannot be pinned down into one object, and yet in the end all he can create is a collection of static lines. The duke attempts to be an artist in his life, turning a walk down the hallway into a performance, but he is always hampered by the fact that the ideal that inspires his performance cannot change.

Robert Browning: Poems Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Robert Browning: Poems is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Comment on Robert Browning's philosophy of love as expressed in his"The Last Ride Together".

Browning's poem emphasizes the idea that the love one has shared on earth will be shared after "The Last Ride" together. These are lovers who are moving beyond what they have had on earth. He blesses her name in "pride and...

In Browning's "My Last Duchess" what is a euphemism?

"I gave commands; Then all smiles stopped together"

My Last Duchess

The Duke shows us a portait of his late wife.

Study Guide for Robert Browning: Poems

Robert Browning: Poems study guide contains a biography of poet Robert Browning, literature essays, a complete e-text, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis of his major poems.

• About Robert Browning: Poems
• Robert Browning: Poems Summary
• My Last Duchess Video
• Character List

Essays for Robert Browning: Poems

Robert Browning: Poems essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of poems by Robert Browning.

• Shelter From the Storm
• Hatred in Robert Browning's Soliloquy of the Spanish Cloister
• The Insanity of Blindness: The Narrators in Browning's "Porphyria's Lover" and "Soliloquy of the Spanish Cloister"
• Where Are the Women?
• Robert Browning and the Representation of Desire

E-Text of Robert Browning: Poems

Robert Browning: Poems e-text contains the full texts of select poems by Robert Browning.

• Chronological List of Browning's Works
• Introduction: Life Of Browning
• Introduction: Browning As Poet
• Introduction: Appreciations
• Introduction: Bibliography

Wikipedia Entries for Robert Browning: Poems

• Introduction

• “My Last Duchess” Poem by Robert Browning Words: 986
• “My Last Duchess” by Robert Browning: The Gloominess of the Character’s Soul Words: 1106

“My Last Duchess” by Robert Browning

Introduction.

“My Last Duchess” is a beautiful poem written by Robert Browning and it also reveals the poet’s style of using dramatic monologue in writing his poems. The sixteenth century Italian background of the story adds richness to the theme, as Italy was the centre of arts. The attention of the readers has been taken away by the sentiments emerging from the story of the poem, ignoring the greatness of the portrait of the Duchess as a great piece of art. Though it is true that the portrait exposes the selfishness and the sexual greed of the Duke, the basic quality of the story and the poem is in the great skill of the poet in capturing the wicked nature of the Duke through the portrait of the Duchess. This brief paper takes a critical look at the poem.

The place is the palace of the Duke of Ferrara in the year 1564. The speaker in the poem is the Duke. He is talking to a representative of the Count of Tyrol, who has come to negotiate with the Duke about his next marriage to a daughter of another great family. This gentleman is shown the portrait of his last duchess and the way he narrates his relationship with her is the focus of the poem. The Duke says that she was looking as if she were alive. He tells his visitor that “That depth and passion of its earnest glance, /But to myself they turned” (Duchess). His emphasis on “myself” exposes his possessive nature. Like the inquisitive visitor the reader becomes anxious to know the Duke’s involvement in shaping the fate of the Duchess. “She had/ A heart – how shall I say? – too soon made glad”, says the Duke. What then went wrong is the obvious doubt hovering over the readers’ (or the visitor’s) mind. The Duke explains it: “her looks went everywhere”, something which, as her husband, the Duke could not bear. The character of he Duke becomes clear as the poem moves. He is possessive. He looks at his wife as a mere object, and not as person or individual.

The intensive emotion of the Duke comes to light as he narrates the event further. He says, “Oh sir, she smiled, no doubt, / Whene’er I passed her; but who passed without/ Much the same smile? “ The poet brings out the wicked nature of the Duke very slowly through his own words. She gives him her hearty smile whenever he passes, but he cannot bear to see her smile thrown to every passerby. These words of the Duke carry the existing nature of the Italian lovers in the sixteenth century. It is difficult for a modern woman to accept these words of the Duke. “This grew I gave commands”, tells the Duke. Though it is not made explicit what command he gave, it is obvious that he killed her. It is shocking to hear the Duke casually telling his visitor that “There she stands/ As if alive. Will ‘t please you rise?” At last the Duke takes him downstairs to negotiate for his next wife: “Nay, we’ll go/ Together down, sir”.

Browning’s superb ability in blending sex, violence, and art in this small poem is excellent. The way it is presented, using his usual style of dramatic monologue is what makes the poem unique. The pressure the poem puts on the reader to hate the Duke for his domineering nature gets nullified by his love of art. That he caught the most emotional moment of his last Duchess in the form of an artistic portrait with the help of a painter is what softens the readers’ dislike towards him. In other words, Browning has succeeded in taking a touching historical event to transform it into a beautiful piece of art. It is the captured moment in art which is lasting becomes the message of the poem.

The gripping quality of the poem has been highly praised by the scholars.

Browning, Robert. “My Last Duchess”.

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My Last Duchess

By Robert Browning

‘My Last Duchess’ by Robert Browning is a well-known dramatic monologue. It suggests that the speaker has killed his wife and will soon do the same to the next.

Robert Browning

Nationality: English

He is considered one of the preeminent Victorian poets of the period.

Key Poem Information

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Central Message: A critique of the oppressive nature of patriarchal authority

Themes: Death , Love

Speaker: The Duke of Ferrara

Emotions Evoked: Dishonesty , Jealousy , Love for Her , Vengeance

Poetic Form: Dramatic Monologue

Time Period: 19th Century

The poem is a masterful example of dramatic monologue, revealing character and theme through the Duke's own words in a single, uninterrupted speech.

Poem Analyzed by Allisa Corfman

Degree in Secondary Education/English and Teacher of World Literature and Composition

The poet’s inspiration for this poem came from the Duke and Duchess Ferrara . The Duchess died under very suspicious circumstances. She was married at fourteen and dead by seventeen. Browning uses these suspicious circumstances as inspiration for a poem that dives deep into the mind of a powerful Duke of Ferrara who wishes to control his wife in every aspect of her life, including her feelings.

Browning, of the Victorian age, wrote real-life poetry that reflected upon some of the darkest aspects of Victorian life. One of those aspects, of course, is the treatment of wives by their husbands. Everyone is familiar with Henry VIII and his many wives, whom he accused and executed when he tired of him. Robert Browning ( Bio | Poems ) reveals that this mentality was widespread during this time. Wives were viewed as disposable, and their husbands would often accuse them of doing away with them when they desired to marry someone else. The life of a Victorian wife was a perilous one.

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Explore My Last Duchess

• 2 Structure and Form
• 3 Literary Devices
• 4 My Last Duchess Analysis
• 6 Similar Poetry

‘ My Last Duchess ‘ by Robert Browning ( Bio | Poems ) is a chilling poem about the value of women in a duke’s life.

In the first lines of the poem, the speaker tells the reader that an emissary is visiting who is trying to negotiate a new marriage for the Duke. He also describes how he was recently married, inspired by a portrait of his late wife. He suggests that she did something he didn’t approve of and that her behavior displeased him. Finally, the Duchess died, and now the Duke is left to choose a new bride.

Structure and Form

‘ My Last Duchess ‘ by Robert Browning ( Bio | Poems ) is a dramatic monologue written in five sections and made up of rhyming couplets . The poem is written mostly in iambic pentameter . This means that the lines contain five sets of two beats, the first of which is unstressed and the second of which is stressed. There are a few examples of trochees and other stresses. Consider the final line of the poem as an example of iambic pentameter . It reads: “ Which Claus of Innsbruck cast in bronze for me!”

Literary Devices

Browning makes use of several literary devices in  ‘My Last Duchess.’  These include but are not limited to:

• Alliteration : occurs when the poet uses the same consonant sound at the beginning of words. For example, “look” and “looked” in line twenty-four.
• Caesura : seen through pauses the poet uses in the middle of lines. For example: “ Somehow—I know not how—as if she ranked.”
• Enjambment : seen through line breaks . For example, the transition between lines two and three as well as lines five and six.

My Last Duchess Analysis

That’s my last Duchess painted on the wall, Looking as if she were alive. I call That piece a wonder, now: Frà Pandolf’s hands Worked busily a day, and there she stands. Will ‘t please you sit and look at her? I said ‘Frà Pandolf’ by design, for never read Strangers like you that pictured countenance, The depth and passion of its earnest glance, But to myself they turned (since none puts by The curtain I have drawn for you, but I) And seemed as they would ask me, if they durst, How such a glance came there; so, not the first Are you to turn and ask thus. Sir, ‘t was not Her husband’s presence only, called that spot Of joy into the Duchess’ cheek: perhaps

My Last Duchess opens up with the speaker asking a listener if he would please sit down and look at a portrait of his last Duchess. This makes the readers wonder why this Duchess is no longer his present Duchess. He does not reveal whether she is deceased or put away in a convent somewhere.

He asks his listener to sit and look at the life-sized painting of her. He reveals that this painting is behind a curtain and that no one but he is allowed to draw the curtain to view the painting or to show it to anyone. This is very suspicious behavior. The reader can immediately sense that the Duke is controlling. The question that still remains unanswered is, why is this his last Duchess?

The Duke describes the look on the Duchess’ face and that she had a joyous look and an earnest glance. He notes that “twas not her husband’s presence only called that spot of joy into the Duchess’ cheek”. This is a curious thing to say. Why would he expect that his presence alone, and nothing else, would bring joy to her face? He does not answer that question, but the fact that he notes this gives a little bit of insight into why he was the only one who was allowed to open the curtain.

All along, he wanted to be the only one who would bring a look of joy to his Duchess’ face. Now that she was put away somewhere, and her life-size painting was on the wall, he could be the only one to ever see that look of joy on her face because he would allow no one else to look at the painting without his permission. Suddenly, our speaker seems somewhat psychotic.

Lines 16-24

Frà Pandolf chanced to say, ‘Her mantle laps Over my lady’s wrist too much,’ or ‘Paint Must never hope to reproduce the faint Half-flush that dies along her throat:’ such stuff Was courtesy, she thought, and cause enough For calling up that spot of joy. She had A heart—how shall I say?—too soon made glad, Too easily impressed; she liked whate’er She looked on, and her looks went everywhere.

In this section of My Last Duchess , the Duke seems to be remembering his former Duchess and all that bothered him about her. It would seem that she was too easily pleased by everyone around her. The Duke was not happy with this. He didn’t like that if someone like “Fra Pandolf” (we don’t know much more about this character) were to tell her that her shawl covered her wrists too much, she would blush.

The Duke did not like that she would blush at the flirtations of another man. He did not like that the things which he called common courtesy would “call up that spot of joy” which she seemed to always have on her face. The Duke accuses her of having a heart that was “too soon made glad” and “too easily impressed.”

He was annoyed that she liked everything that she looked at. This man seems more and more psychotic and controlling as My Last Duchess  goes on. It would seem that he put away his Duchess because he could not control her feelings. He wanted to be the only one to bring her joy and make her blush.

Lines 25 -35

Sir, ‘t was all one! My favour at her breast, The dropping of the daylight in the West, The bough of cherries some officious fool Broke in the orchard for her, the white mule She rode with round the terrace—all and each Would draw from her alike the approving speech,   Or blush, at least. She thanked men,—good! but thanked Somehow—I know not how—as if she ranked My gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name With anybody’s gift. Who’d stoop to blame This sort of trifling?

In these lines of My Last Duchess , the Duke continues to explain all of the flaws in the Duchess’ character. He says that she values her white mule, a branch of cherries, and sunset as much as she values a piece of jewelry that he had given her. He is irritated that she does not seem to see the value in what he gives to her or that she seems to value the simple pleasures of life as much as she values his expensive gifts to her. He also seems irritated that she does not seem to understand the importance of his place in life.

By marrying her, he had given her a “nine-hundred-years-old name.” This reveals that his family had been around for a very long time, and thus, he gave her a well-known and prestigious name in marrying her. She did not seem to be any more thankful for this than she was thankful to watch the sunset. This irritated the Duke so much that he was not even willing to “stoop” to her level to discuss it with her. He thinks it would be “trifling” to do so.

Lines 35-47

Even had you skill In speech—(which I have not)—to make your will Quite clear to such an one, and say, ‘Just this Or that in you disgusts me; here you miss, Or there exceed the mark’—and if she let Herself be lessoned so, nor plainly set Her wits to yours, forsooth, and made excuse, —E’en then would be some stooping; and I choose Never to stoop. Oh, sir, she smiled, no doubt, Whene’er I passed her; but who passed without Much the same smile? This grew; I gave commands; Then all smiles stopped together. There she stands As if alive. Will ‘t please you rise? We’ll meet

The Duke continues to explain that he chooses never to stoop to discuss with his Duchess what made him so disgusted with her. Yet, he seems quite comfortable discussing it with this listener. Perhaps he thought himself too high and mighty to stoop to talk to a woman, even if that woman was his wife. He admitted that she smiled at him pleasantly when he passed by, but it bothered him that everyone received that same smile from her. He explained that he “gave commands” and “then all smiles stopped together.” This causes the reader to feel sorry for the Duchess, and rightly so.

She was a lovely, happy, smiling person. It seems that the Duke commanded her in such a way as to make her stop smiling altogether. He robbed her of her joy with his controlling attitude toward her. After explaining what happened when he commanded her, the Duke turns his attention back to the painting on the wall and says, “There she stands as if alive”. This suggests that the real Duchess is no longer alive. The Duke seems happier with a painting of her because he can control who gets to look at the joy in her face. The Duke then invites his listener to return downstairs with him.

Lines 47-56

The company below then. I repeat, The Count your master’s known munificence Is ample warrant that no just pretence Of mine for dowry will be disallowed; Though his fair daughter’s self, as I avowed At starting, is my object. Nay, we’ll go Together down, sir. Notice Neptune, though, Taming a sea-horse, thought a rarity, Which Claus of Innsbruck cast in bronze for me!

This section of My Last Duchess reveals the identity of the Duke’s listener. He is the servant of a Count in the land, and they are trying to arrange a marriage between the Duke and the Count’s daughter. The Duke says that his “fair daughter” is his “object”. He brings the man back downstairs with him, and as they walk, he points out the bronze statue that was made especially for him.

The statue is of Neptune taming a sea horse. Neptune, of course, is the god of the sea. This symbolizes the Duke and the sea horse symbolizes any Duchess he would acquire. The Duke views himself as a god, and he wishes to tame his wife to do whatever he wishes her to do and even to feel whatever he wishes her to feel. This man is clearly demented and controlling, and the speaker in My Last Duchess reveals Browning’s ideas of his fellow men.

The Duchess is the Duke’s former wife, who has passed away under suspicious circumstances. She is the subject of the portrait that the Duke shows to the emissary.

The poem is set in the Italian city of Ferrara during the Renaissance period. The action takes place in the Duke’s private chamber, where the portrait of the Duchess hangs.

The poem is a dramatic monologue , a form that allows for deep character exploration through a single, continuous speech .

The Duke is not a reliable narrator , as his perspective is biased and self-serving. His monologue inadvertently reveals more about his own flaws than about the Duchess he attempts to describe.

Similar Poetry

Readers who enjoyed  ‘My Last Duchess’  should also consider reading some other Robert Browning poems . For example:

• ‘ Boot and Saddle ‘ – is a perfectly rhymed poem that depicts the ride of an Englishmen going to fight during the English Civil War.
• ‘ A Woman’s Last Word ‘ – is made up of a wife’s request to her husband that they stop arguing for the night and enter into a peaceful sleep.
• ‘ Love in a Life ‘ – tells of a speaker’s seemingly endless quest to find his lover within the numerous rooms of their shared home.

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19th century, love for her, unrequited love, dramatic monologue.

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i really loved this analysis i thught it gave a great insight into the poem and the many menaing behind it

Why, thank you.

Thank you so much, many things are explained clearly that the main syllabus books haven’t .

I’m glad you think so – by chance I am teaching this tomorrow so may have a quick read myself!

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Corfman, Allisa. "My Last Duchess by Robert Browning". Poem Analysis , https://poemanalysis.com/robert-browning/my-last-duchess/ . Accessed 28 September 2024.

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My Last Duchess

Introduction, historical background, about the poem, my last duchess summary, themes in my last duchess, objectification of women   , communication gap, murder and sadness, my last duchess literary analysis, lines 13-21, lines 21-24, lines 25-31, lines 31-35, lines 35-43, lines 43-47, lines 47-53, lines 53-56, analysis of literary devices in the poem, heroic couplet, rhetoric question, more from robert browning.

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My Last Duchess and La Belle Dame Sans Merci Comparison

Coursework        Power Dynamics In The Two Love Poems        Due 05 February, 2009

My Last Duchess and La Belle Dame Sans Merci are two poems that explore a wide range of power dynamics that result from love. Patriarchal power is a key theme that is explored in these two poems, with conflicting views on each. La Belle Dame sans Merci tells of a sorry tale of how a knight, a typically powerful figure, is cast away by a woman who had no love for him. This theme is almost mirrored in the other poem; however the other poem, My Last Duchess seems to exert a more male perspective, focusing more on patriarchal power. A women to Her Lover, seems to be a blend of the two poetic styles of the previous two poems, as it both states the various patriarchal powers, and then proceeds to tear down these beliefs, and also tear down the conventions which were typically seen as the norm of the day.

The title of the poem is typically an indicator of what to expect from the poem, and in what vein it will be written. My Last Duchess is no exception as it immediately gives the reader a sense that the narrator, The Duke, see’s his late wife as a possession. He refers to her with the possessive pronoun ‘My’ to try, it appears; to regain a certain degree of control over her. This wanting of control is further explored when he says that ‘The curtain I have drawn for you,’ which portrays the sense that he feels he is the one who is giving others the right to see his wife. During the Renaissance (a period which Browning based his characters society as) was a time that was largely seen as patriarchal, and so the duke would typically want to conform to this norm. Furthermore, it may be this possessiveness that leads to his jealousy when she is seen as accepting a ‘bough of cherries’ from someone who he regarded as an ‘officious fool’. He also felt that she had a heart which was ‘too soon made glad’ and that it wasn’t only her ‘husband’s presence’ that she appeared to crave. These lines seem to be the Duke commenting on how her rather flirtatious and outgoing nature, not typical of women in that period, displeased him greatly. Furthermore, it seemed that he wanted her to end this affiliation with the other people, and this gave rise to the suspicion that he killed her, to end the constant barrage of seeming embarrassment and discomfort from his wife’s various exploits.  

In those days there were always certain classed that would always be prejudiced against. Therefore, this incidence could have been regarded as his wife trying to exert some egalitarian power, by making the ‘officious fool’ feel like an equal, and also by riding round on a ‘white mule’, something which was often seen as a past time of the poor, as they could not afford to buy a proper horse. This form of power did not seem to go down well within the constraints of the love relationship. The duke seemed particularly afraid of this form of power as he proceeded to mention the fact that he thought that she felt that she ‘ranked’ his ‘nine-hundred year old name’ with anyone’s ‘gift’. This shows that he feels that the social classes should stand as they are. This is quite ironic, as this is set in the Renaissance period where it was said that people were becoming more scientific and were ready to embrace new ideas. This is at odds with what actually happens in the poem, with the man defecting to the typical view of women being ‘slaves’ to the men, but during a very socially obligated period.

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As well as this, the poem also manages to explore the power of love itself. This is shown with the infatuation of the widowed husband over the picture, as is demonstrated when the Duke believe that there is ‘depth’ in the painting, and that the women portrayed in the painting still holds some ‘passion’ for him. This could either be the power of the love, or, in fact, the power of the painting. This could, however, represent the actual mentality of the Duke, as he falls in ‘love’ with a painting of a woman who is deceased. This displays the underlying power of the love that had blossomed between these two individuals, and how the power of the painting was so influential that up to this point (in the poem), he still feels the attraction of the painting. However, this is at odds with what he says later on in the poem, written using enjambment to make it a more conversational style, when he talks about how he ‘tamed’ her, and rather uncharacteristically he uses a metaphor, perhaps to inject some frivolity into the proceeding so as to avert any fear of being caught. However, he also mention ‘I gave commands’, perhaps referring to getting her killed, and then he goes on to say that ‘all smiles stopped together’. This form of power could also be regarded as patriarchal power or perhaps more accurately as sheer male strength over the opposite gender.

The poetic techniques used are also pivotal to understanding what types of power are being explored. A key feature used in the poem is the iambic pentameter, which is a meter typically associated with a more male poem, due to the stressed single syllable at the end of a line. This is often attributed to the fiercer and fierier poems, which are to be said with an earnest, thus it being seen as a more masculine form of rhyme. As well as this enjambment is used, meaning that all of the lines follow on from each other, giving the poem a more conversational tone. This is quite odd, as the Duke himself comes across as a very contrite kind of person, but this could be due to the Duke trying to appear more powerful in his own home, or estate, meaning hierarchal power is something that is quite high up on his agenda, probably because he feels that hierarchal power is the only way he could have got this relationship.

Overall, this poem is mainly based on patriarchal power, and despite the fact that it does include a few instances of other forms of power, such as egalitarian power, patriarchal power seems to take an overbearing role. It is written from the perspective of someone very high up on the social ladder, and thus would include references to this form of power, inherited, or hierarchal power. La Belle Dame sans Merci on the other hand is a poem which almost admits to a person of rather high importance, the knight, being led astray by a woman. This poem is set in the medieval period. Various power dynamics are explored throughout the poem, mainly the various struggles between the desire of the man, and the simple want of pleasure for the woman.

The atmosphere is largely controlled by the weather displayed in the poem. This poem first begins by thinking of the power of nature and how this seems to coincide with the mood of the narrator, creating a pathetic fallacy. He is described by the visitor as ‘alone’ and ‘palely loitering’, and to add to the rather sombre starting, the atmosphere is seen as in the winter, where the ‘sedge’ has ‘withered’ away ‘from the lake’. This displays how the rather somber natural world seems to effect on his recovery from his painful loss of his girl. The weather seems to dampen his spirits and this is almost confirmed when it says that ‘no birds sing’, or that there is no sign of happiness. This power is quite strong as it is unavoidable, and can have an effect on his love for the woman as he may ponder on the relationship more. However, this is only one power dynamic that may have an effect on his love for the woman, and his overall love outlook. This power is far less prominent in ‘My Last Duchess’ with the atmosphere merely created through the dramatic monologue. Also, the main atmosphere is created through the ranting of the Duke.

A woman’s power over a man is not often accredited, however it is brought to light in this poem with the woman who he (the knight) see’s as a ‘faery’s child’, or in essence a woman with an abundance of beauty. This power of the woman over him may have resulted in him becoming quite ‘haggard’ and ‘woe-begone’ meaning his gradual degrading of state, because of his insistence that ‘she did love’ him, even though he believes she does, although she never explicitly stated those words, and this is backed up later in the poem when he admits she said it in a ‘strange’ ‘language’, which he believed said that she ‘love[d]’ him, even though it was quite plain to see that she did not in fact love him, but was there to be pleasured. This shows that the woman used her power to manipulate what was the result. However, another power that is used to some extent, is matriarchal power, on a more philosophical sense, as the knight imagines the lady wearing a ‘garland’ that could be seen as him trying to believe that the ‘sacred’ woman is still angelic, however, this is contradicted when he describes her as ‘wild’ and that he could only ‘shut her eyes with kisses four’. This shows that he had such an infatuation  with his prospective wife that he looked past these slight niggles, as he was blinded by the power of love, which is essentially what under lied all of the events that occurred in the whole poem. The first poem on the other hand instead looks at the woman as someone who should be at the hand of the man to answer to his every need, not someone who should be able to have fun when she wants, and in this poem the woman is allowed to freely go, whereas in the first poem, she comes to an arguably, sinister end. Furthermore, in ‘My Last Duchess’ the woman is not given much power except those that come with the name, and of course her egalitarian power. Apart from this, ‘My Last Duchess’ has few similarities with this poem with regards to the way women are treated; aside from the fact that the knight believes she should be obedient to him.

Strangely, it seemed that hierarchal power was of not much importance to the two, as despite the promise of power, the woman still left him ‘alone and palely loitering’. This was also unconventional, rather like most of the events that occurred in this narrative, where the woman didn’t jump at the option of gaining some power, but instead just left him. It seems that the woman was just there for the power of the promise of being made love to, but not hierarchal power. Instead this poem seems to focus only on the aspects of love, unlike the first poem which makes sure that the reader is aware of the hierarchal integrity that is needed. This is at odds with ‘My Last Duchess’ which focuses heavily on how the status brings power to the family, and it is essentially this that makes the Duke so incensed by the bad behavior of his wife.

However, this poem doesn’t use the masculine pentameter, instead it has the last two syllables unstressed, which gives the impression of having a much softer, and morose feel to the poem, which is quite suited to the overall theme of the poem. This is in stark contrast to the more conversational, but still fiercer style of the first poem.

Conclusively, the power dynamics explored in the first poem are far more diverse, and it appears that there are much more powerful components involved in the rather complex relationship, and it showed the power of the relationship that the man was ready to kill, or silence his wife. This is contrary to the second poem where the knight seems to be rather constrained and polite at all times, and in this case it is the woman who has control over the man, unlike the trends of the time. Overall, the power dynamics behind love in the first poem varies greatly; largely going down to hierarchal power, but the second poem is a relationship of courtly love, which is not based on true unabated love.

The third poem is a strange mix of the previous two poems, with both patriarchal and matriarchal poems being discussed. A woman to her lover offers a refreshing insight into the inner workings of a woman’s mind. It begins by listing all the conventions, particularly how males usually dominate society. She openly attacks these conventions, by saying that if he wants to ‘make of [her] a bond slave’ then she simply ‘refuse[s]’ him. This is quite odd, as the poem was written at a time, when everything that she is trying to repress was actually the norm of the day, so it is seen as quite unconventional that a woman is being able to exert so much power of a man, by actively refusing to follow the current conventions of the time. This matriarchal power trying to quell the patriarchal power is evident. This is in stark contrast to ‘My Last Duchess’, where the main forms of power explored are those which are typically more to do with patriarchal powers, in a male dominated society. For example, the Duke feels that she should respect his ‘name’. However, this poem does bear some resemblance to the second poem, in the way that both seem to respect that women do have some power over men, however limited and unconventional it may be.

However, this poem is largely egalitarian power, as it largely displays how men and women should be treated as equals, and this is demonstrated when she pleads to her lover, that she wants to be treated as a ‘comrade’, and a ‘friend’. This shows that this woman firmly believed that she was in an equal position to the man, and, despite it being said otherwise in the unwritten law of the land; the woman feels that she should be at the same level as the man. The narrator uses phrases such as ‘o husband’, and ‘I am yours forever’ to try and show that she has submitted to him, and to try and restore some order, with the male again being the more dominant one. This is surprisingly similar to ‘My Last Duchess’ as both women in the poems try to make them equal with the opposite gender, seemingly oblivious to the opposite gender.

Another key aspect of this poem is the way in which it is written, such as organization, and poetic techniques. Firstly, it is written using enjambment, creating a more conversational style to the poem. This means that the woman does not appear to be dominating too much, and is, as a result, courting him on equal terms, emphasizing the fact that she feels that it should be a ‘level playing field’ for them. It is also quite clever in the way it manages to make the things that it is trying to crack down on come first and then it brings them down by saying what she would actually like. This is clever because it sticks in the person’s mind, and creates a stronger argument. The technique of enjambment is similar to the first poem, where it manages to create a conversational style so as to appear to converse with the other messenger, while realistically the Duke isn’t very sociable. However, none of these literary techniques are echoed in the second poem, La Belle Dame Sans Merci, which is probably due to the problem of both being written in completely different styles, with one being a more sorrowful poem, and the other being a more commanding and endearing poem.

Conclusively, the three poems all share a variety of power dynamics that are all explored. The most common theme was that of which gender was more dominant and which gender was controlled. This was mostly explored in ‘My Last Duchess’ and ‘A woman to her lover’. Inevitably this led on to the topic of equality, and it is in this way that egalitarian power was brought to light. Even ‘La Belle Dame Sans Merci’ explored how the woman and the man were both equal as they could both enter and leave the relationship as they did please. However, poetic techniques were used to further enhance the message of the poem; with all the poems using a different poetic technique to enhance and improve it’s delivery of different love and power dynamics. In the end, the power of love seemed to encompass all the poems, as all three showed how love took control of the.

Document Details

• Word Count 2849
• Page Count 7
• Subject English

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116 My Last Duchess Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

Inside This Article

The poem "My Last Duchess" by Robert Browning is a classic piece of literature that has captivated readers for generations. The poem tells the story of a Duke who is showing off a portrait of his late wife, the Duchess, to a visitor. As the Duke describes the painting and his relationship with his wife, it becomes clear that he is not the loving husband he initially presents himself to be.

If you are tasked with writing an essay on "My Last Duchess," you may be struggling to come up with a topic. To help you get started, here are 116 essay topic ideas and examples that you can use as inspiration:

• Analyze the Duke's perspective on marriage and relationships.
• Compare and contrast the Duke's relationship with the Duchess to a more traditional love story.
• Discuss the role of power and control in the poem.
• Explore the theme of jealousy in "My Last Duchess."
• Examine the use of imagery in the poem.
• Discuss the significance of the title "My Last Duchess."
• Analyze the Duke's use of language to manipulate the listener.
• Compare the Duke's treatment of the Duchess to modern-day examples of domestic abuse.
• Discuss the role of women in the poem.
• Explore the theme of art and aesthetics in "My Last Duchess."
• Analyze the Duke's attitude towards art and beauty.
• Compare the Duke's attitude towards the Duchess to his attitude towards other women.
• Discuss the role of class and social status in the poem.
• Explore the theme of control and possession in "My Last Duchess."
• Analyze the Duke's attitude towards his wife's behavior.
• Compare the Duke's treatment of the Duchess to his treatment of other people.
• Discuss the role of gender in the poem.
• Explore the theme of loss and grief in "My Last Duchess."
• Analyze the Duke's use of language to convey his emotions.
• Compare the Duke's attitude towards the Duchess to his attitude towards his possessions.
• Discuss the role of power dynamics in the poem.
• Explore the theme of vanity and pride in "My Last Duchess."
• Analyze the Duke's attitude towards marriage and family.
• Compare the Duke's treatment of the Duchess to his treatment of other women in his life.
• Discuss the role of deception and manipulation in the poem.
• Explore the theme of control and submission in "My Last Duchess."
• Analyze the Duke's attitude towards women in general.
• Compare the Duke's treatment of the Duchess to his treatment of other men.
• Discuss the role of art and aesthetics in the poem.
• Explore the theme of obsession and possessiveness in "My Last Duchess."
• Analyze the Duke's use of language to convey his emotions towards the Duchess.
• Compare the Duke's attitude towards marriage to his attitude towards other relationships.
• Discuss the role of power and authority in the poem.
• Explore the theme of manipulation and deceit in "My Last Duchess."
• Analyze the Duke's attitude towards love and affection.
• Compare the Duke's treatment of the Duchess to his treatment of other people in his life.
• Discuss the role of control and dominance in the poem.
• Explore the theme of desire and lust in "My Last Duchess."
• Analyze the Duke's use of language to convey his emotions towards the Duchess and other women.
• Compare the Duke's attitude towards the Duchess to his attitude towards his possessions and property.
• Explore the theme of jealousy and insecurity in "My Last Duchess."
• Analyze the Duke's attitude towards marriage and relationships.
• Explore the theme of control and manipulation in "My Last Duchess."
• Analyze the Duke's attitude towards women and femininity.
• Compare the Duke's treatment of the Duchess to his treatment of other men in his life.
• Discuss the role of deception and betrayal in the poem.
• Compare the Duke's attitude towards marriage and family to his attitude towards other relationships.
• Explore the theme of obsession and possession in "My Last Duchess."

These essay topic ideas and examples should give you plenty of inspiration for writing a compelling and thought-provoking essay on "My Last Duchess." Whether you choose to focus on a specific theme, character, or aspect of the poem, there is no shortage of material to explore in this classic work of literature.

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The 8 Best 'Modern Love' Essays

Isn't it a fantastic feeling when you stumble upon a column that makes you think, "I can't believe I survived without these stories in my life"? Ever since I read my first New York Times "Modern Love" essay, I was hooked by the series' concept of meditations on connection. The New York Times began publishing essays on the subject, written exclusively by NYT readers, in 2004. However, the series has experienced an upswing in popularity in recent months. This is mostly due to the excellently-produced Modern Love podcast (from WBUR) that's been around since January of this year. In each episode, a talented actor brings a favorite "Modern Love" article to life . Listening to an episode is a great way to freshen up your commute, or provide a soundtrack to your afternoon walk.

But with all these essays, podcasts, and even a Modern Love: 50 True and Extraordinary Tales book out there, I sometimes feel like there's an embarrassment of riches when it comes to "Modern Love." How on earth am I supposed to pick the best stories? Since I know I'm not the only one with this problem, I dug into the "Modern Love" archives from the past three years and picked eight of my favorite stories from 2014-2016. Whether you're a newcomer to the series or you've been a longtime fan, you'll enjoy this assortment of essays on all kinds of unlikely love.

1. Just One Last Swirl Around the Bowl

Dave Barry, the Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter and author of the New York Times' "This Land" column , wrote this essay about his daughter's dying fish. One of the few Modern Love pieces that isn't about romantic love, the essay explores his memories of his parents' deaths, and how he tried to care for them as best as he knew how during their final days. While his daughter comes to terms with the fish's imminent death, Barry, too, reflects on what it means to watch someone you love die.

You can also listen to Jason Alexander read this on the Modern Love podcast , and he does a bang-up job.

2. All Twisted Up by Genderbending

Delacey Skinner doesn't know what to think when she discovers that her ex-boyfriend is dating a trans woman. This information causes Skinner to question her own identity as a woman. She's never felt particularly comfortable in her femininity, so what does it mean that her ex now has a relationship with someone who presents herself as far more traditionally feminine than Skinner herself ever has? Skinner's essay is a poignant and thought-provoking take on gender identity.

3. Putting Love to the Stress Test

What happens when you meet a person so scarily similar to yourself that you assume something has to go wrong? In this essay, Jasmine Jaksic signs up for OkCupid and finds a man who's answered almost every question on the site in the same way as her. Since she and her new beau are both software developers, they decide to implement a real-life version of the "stress test," which is the practice of testing a computer program to its limits. What Jaksic discovers during the four weeks of their stress test changes the way she thinks about the necessities of a relationship.

4. Sharing a Cab, and My Toes

After abandoning her life as an academic, Julia Anne Miller fulfills her decades-long dream of moving to New York City. While working as a writer for a test-prep company, she sets out to explore the city. Each of her coworkers nurses an artistic dream, and the test-prep job is only a way to pay the bills. Miller's dream: to perform. One night, she shares a cab ride home with a coworker, leading to a bizarre sexual experience. This forms the basis of her eloquent meditation on what it means to get what you want.

5. One Bouquet of Fleeting Beauty, Please

This stunning and lyrical essay will make you smell tulips and lilies as you're reading. Written by Alisha Gorder, it tells the story of Gorder's time at a floral shop, arranging and selling bouquets to people trying to communicate with their loved ones through flowers. People often send commonplace messages with their bouquets, such as "Happy Birthday" (H.B.), "Happy Anniversary" (H.A.), and "Thinking of You" (T.O.Y.). But sometimes, what they're trying to say isn't so simple. Gorder weaves those anecdotes into the fabric of her own life: when she was 18, her boyfriend of two years killed himself, and she was forced to learn an agonizing lesson about love.

6. One Thousand and One Nights of Laundry

Wendy Rasmussen, the author of this melancholy reflection on love and loss, married an Iraqi refugee and then divorced him. Her essay captures an episode of her life in which she went to his house with their sons to do laundry, since she didn't have a working laundry machine. One night, her drunk ex-husband told her a story about escaping from Iraq by crossing the Saudi Arabian deserts, and about the man he left behind in the sand. Rasmussen's essay is subtle, but evocative, and it's a read you won't forget.

7. Finding My Own Rescuer

Anna March brings us this story about the love of her life, a man disabled in a car accident when he was 16. Though he has to use a wheelchair, Adam is anything but helpless: he can cook, walk the dogs, and drive, and he helps keep March's life in order when they move in together. But their new house has more than one story, and while they're waiting for the proper ramps to be installed, the tables turn in their relationship. Now March is the one caring for him - and she doesn't know if she's up to the task.

8. No Labels, No Drama, Right?

This is the essay that made me start following "Modern Love" - mostly because I've seen the exact same story play out in my friends' lives so many times. The author, Jordana Narin, writes about the man who occupied the space between friend and boyfriend for so long that she hardly knew how to handle her relationship with him - especially because, as a Millennial and college student, she didn't know how to admit her feelings. If you've tried to navigate the muddy waters of hookup culture, this is an essay that will resonate with you.

Images: Caleb Ekeroth , Brenda Helen , Luis Llerena, Daria Sukhorukova , Kai Oberhäuser , freestocks.org /Unsplash; jill111 , Unsplash , ferobanjo /Pixabay

My First and Last Love Essay Example

• Pages: 6 (1412 words)
• Published: November 29, 2016
• Type: Essay

It all started when Mikaela was in secondary school. Her class consisted only 35 students. She was an introverted and shy girl. Nobody talked to her as she never gave her classmates a chance to get close to her. She was never interested in any kind of relationship. Whenever it comes to a group work, nobody wants her in their group. All she does was to wait if a group lacks a member. Even when one of her classmate made fun of her, she kept quiet. I once told her that she should no longer be an introverted girl, yet she doesn’t know why she can't.

One day, a new boy called Nathan entered her class. He was fat and dorky. She believed that he would be no different from her. However, he was actually an out

going, nice and smart boy. He was kind to everyone. He praises everybody, especially her. He said, ”Whoa! I'm sitting next to a genius girl!" when he was sitting by her side. She knew she wasn't even that clever, but her English was the best. She doesn't know why he was getting closer to her. He was crossing the boundaries she drew, getting closer and closer to her. She started to get annoyed when her classmates started gossiping about them being together. It hurts her pride, totally. She wanted to shout out that she would never fall for a fat boy, ever!

But she won't deny that since he became acquainted with her quite well, a girl called Queenie became closer to her and Nathan. The other classmates paid more respect to her too. An

they were soon known as the trio of the class. Mikaela hates when her classmates took photos of her and Nathan together as they would make fun of both of them. She doesn't want this pig head Nathan! Their classmates even edited their photo and made them look like a couple. But she has to admit that she was soon being able to open up herself to him, telling him every single secret about her.

Entering university, Mikaela, Nathan and Queenie entered the same university, though majoring in different faculties. Mikaela was no longer an introverted girl. She believed that she was in love with Nathan, but she guess she was still too shy to admit that she like an ugly, fat boy.

One day, Queenie asked Mikaela to talk privately with her. Queenie: Umm... Well... Mikaela, you see... I want to ask you something. Mikaela: What? Queenie: Umm well... Aah, it's embarrassing! Mikaela: Spit it out. Tell me quick! Queenie: Umm... Do you... By any chance, in love with Nathan? Mikaela: Nope Mikaela doesn't even know why she answered "no", seriously. She guesses it's because she wasn't ready to take the fact that she was in love with a boy who wasn't reliable, and on top of that, bad figure. Moreover, she was too nervous to digest the words before replying.

Queenie: Seriously? Mikaela: Yeah… Queenie: Then... Can you guess why I'm asking you this question? This made her insecure. She was too naive to think that Queenie was just randomly asking. And her guess was right. Queenie likes Nathan, just as how Mikaela likes him. Queenie told her how she

has been in love with him, how she was glad that Mikaela wasn't in love with Nathan. In fact, Mikaela regretted for not telling the truth. What should she do now? She knows that her best friend was in love with her crush, and she lied to her best friend. She doesn't want to stab Queenie from the back, but she could no longer hold on this feelings. Mikaela loves him, that time, she was sure, she loves him. Madly, like there was no tomorrow.

It was a hard decision for her to decide that she’ll stay away from Nathan, to give Queenie a chance. She promised, the next time she meets Nathan, she would no longer treat him as she used to. She vowed that she took him only as a brother. However, it was easier said than done. There's no way she could suppress this passion. As a result, she was only getting closer to Nathan, as she was afraid that Queenie would someday snatch him away from her. Whenever she sees jealousy in Queenie's eyes, she felt guilty and knew that she mustn't do this. But seeing them together, she felt like dying.

On Mikaela’s 21st birthday, he brought her a bucket of roses, 21 in number. As he knelt down, he said, "Mikaela. You see, I've been in love with you all this time. I am madly in love with you. You are my everything. I'd do everything for you." She was stuck at his words. It was unexpected. Her feet felt as heavy as the rain. She didn't know what to do. Making the matter worse, she realized,

standing behind Nathan, across her, was Queenie, covered in tears. Nathan then opened the red box he has been holding, inside was a star joint with a moon shaped ring.

She said to him, "I... Nathan, that was touching. I love you too... I love you more than you think I do... But I think you misunderstood, I only take you as a brother". As she rejects him, he no longer talks a lot to her nor Queenie. She was feeling guilty as she hurt him and herself too, but if she didn't, what would become of Queenie? Ever since witnessing that day, Queenie never talked to her anymore. She guesses Queenie was mad at her. She then decided to work overseas, to forget about Nathan. To forget how regretful she was for rejecting her first and only love. She was too stupid to deny her own feelings, only to cause this awkward atmosphere.

2 years later, she returned from working overseas. Soon, she arranged a meeting with Nathan and Queenie. She felt nervous, yet excited to see them. Never did she believe that once again, she could sit on the same table with them. She missed this atmosphere so much. "Well... I have something to talk about." Queenie said while giving her a bright smile. "Me too. You go first." Mikaela replied. She guesses this would be the beginning of our rebuilt friendship. A nice and new beginning. "Here." Queenie said while handing her over a card, "that's our wedding invitation. It's tomorrow. I'm sorry for only telling you this now. Due to your absence, we couldn't tell you about the news

immediately."

She could not believe in what she heard, neither she wants to. Her sight blurred, she doesn't want to believe this fact, this cruel fact. She hoped this was only a dream, yet that dream completely vanished when she saw Nathan and Queenie's name on the card. Her tears was soon formed and gathered, yet she held it on, not trying to make herself look more embarrassing. Queenie even offered her to be her bride’s maid. And she agreed to it quickly.

That night, she cried in her bed. She cried till there was no more tears left, no more voice left. She cried for hours. She wishes she could turn back in time or at least stop the time. She doesn't ever wish that clock would turn 12 o’clock midnight. The next day, in the morning, she was still lying in bed, thinking about how foolish and stupid she was to free that true and last love. However, she took the challenge one more time. She put on a gown and came to Nathan's house. She saw him in his suit already. He looked handsome, gorgeous and wonderful in her eyes. For her, it felt like a Cinderella’s dream to see a living prince right in front of her eyes now. He then returned her stare. That stare she has been missing so much this year, the stare that she has been missing like crazy. If she loved him with all her heart, she would have followed her heart and feelings to be with him. Unfortunately, she didn’t and regretted in the end. I wonder why she didn’t follow her heart

to be with him. And to this day, I still don’t know why she did it.

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Home — Essay Samples — Life — Love — The Many Faces of Love

The Many Faces of Love

• Categories: Love Types of Love

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Words: 533 |

Published: Feb 7, 2024

Words: 533 | Page: 1 | 3 min read

Table of contents

The beginning of love, early stages of love, obstacles and challenges, the power of love, the dark side of love, different forms of love.

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The Concept of True Love Definition Essay

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Introduction

Understanding the unrealistic notion of true love, the concept of love itself is an illusion, works cited.

The concept of true love is based on the belief that to truly love someone you have to accept them for who they are (including their shortcoming and faults), put their happiness above your own (even if your heart is broken in the process) and that you will always love them even if they are not by your side.

In essence it is a self-sacrificing act wherein a person puts another person’s happiness and well-being above their own. For example in the poem “To my Dear and Loving Husband” by Anne Bradstreet she compares her love for her spouse as “more than whole mines of gold or all the riches that the East doth hold” (Bradstreet, 1). While such an example is archaic it does present itself as an excellent example of the value of true love for other people.

What must be understood though is that in recent years the concept of true has been adopted by popular culture as a needed facet in a person’s life. Various romantic comedies produced by Hollywood all portray characters that at one point or another exhibit tendencies akin to the realization that their life is incomplete without true love and that they should seek it out in the form of female or male character that has been provided as an embodiment of what true love should be.

Due to the influences of popular culture on modern day society this has resulted in more people believing in the concept of true love and actively seeking it out as a result. The inherent problem with this is that true love is an ideal that can be considered the embodiment of every single positive thing that can happen actually happening. In that a person that fits your idea of the perfect partner suddenly appears, that events lead the two of you to be together and that the end result is a classic happily ever after ending.

Unfortunately it must be noted that the concept of the “ideal” is based on the best possible action, event and circumstance actually happening. The fact remains that the real world, unlike in the movies, does not revolve around fortuitous circumstances and the supposed ideal is nothing more than a fanciful notion created by the movie industry.

For example in the story “Rose for Emily” it can be seen that the main character, Emily Grierson, goes to such lengths of retaining love that she murders Homer Barron in order to keep him by her side (Faulkner, 1). The reason behind this action is simple, by the time Homer Barron came into her life she couldn’t experience true love as we know it in the movies due to the effect of reality.

Due to this she creates the illusion of love which she wraps around herself. While most people don’t go to the lengths Emily had done it must be noted that they often follow the same pattern of developing the illusion of true love and retaining its idea. Since the concept of finding true love revolves around finding the ideal partner and that the ideal partner is nothing more than a fanciful creation it can be said that the reality of true love does not exist since it revolves around a fictitious notion and principle.

In the story of Araby readers are introduced to the concept of an unrealistic idea of the embodiment of love wherein the narrator (in the form of a young boy) falls in apparent rapture at the sight of Mangan’s sister. Though she is never mentioned by name the line “I pressed the palms of my hands together until they trembled, murmuring: ‘O love! O love!’ many times”, shows that the boy indeed developed substantial feelings for her (Joyce, 1).

It fact it is suggested numerous times in the story that the boy thinks that what he feels is true love and this is exemplified by his action of offering to buy the girl some souvenir from the Araby fair. Yet once he gets there he encounters a full grown woman at a stand idly chatting with men on various nonsensical topics.

It is then that he comes to the realization that he had crafted for himself a false ideal and that what lay before him was an example of what he could gain in the future. It must be noted that in essence this particular encounter shows what happens when an “ideal” meets reality in that the boy had been so presumptuous in crafting an “ideal” for himself that he neglected to take into account the possibility of better things in the future.

The line “I saw myself as a creature driven and derided by vanity; and my eyes burned with anguish and anger” is an indication of the point in the story when the boy comes to the realization that his ideal was false and that he only though that way because of his isolated world (Joyce, 1).

The story itself could be considered a microcosm of reality with Mangan’s sister acting as the concept of true love. The isolated nature of the idea of love developed by the boy in the story could be compared to the propagated concept of true love in movie industry wherein concepts related to the ideal partner as exemplified by various movies are in effect false when compared to the realities people face.

All too often people think of a person as their true love in an isolated fashion, conceptualizing in them in a world devoid of the interference of reality wherein their every move is considered lovely and perfect.

While such a concept is seen in numerous films it can be seen though that this particular point of view is usually false since when the outside world of reality is introduced people tend to see their “ideals” for what they really are and as a result their behaviors towards such loves usually change.

In essence it can be boiled down to true love being a fantasy created through the isolation of an individual from reality and as such can never be truly attained since once reality is introduced the fantasies diminish resulting in reality taking over banishing the illusion and subjecting people to the harsh truths that they neglected to see.

In the story bitch by Roald Dahl readers are introduced to the notion that passion incited through the creation of a simple chemical compound. This notion is actually symbolic of an ongoing thought that feelings of love are nothing more than illusion created by chemicals and hormones in the body that induce such feelings in order to propagate the species.

In fact various studies have do indeed show that love is a chemical reaction in the brain and as such if properly triggered through an outside source it can be assumed that this can in effect create the same feelings of love.

In fact the poem “Love is not all” by Edna St Vinven Millay says its best when she states that “Love is not all, is not meat or drink nor slumber nor roof against the rain”; from this it can be said that love is immaterial, nothing more than an illusion created by man (Millay, 1). For example in the story it can be seen that once males are affected by the chemical they all of sudden give into to primal urgings for procreation and don’t remember their actions afterwards (Dahl, 1).

Such an effect is suggestive of the fact that in essence people only consider love as love when there is a thought that tries to explain it. The loss of memory of events in the story is symbolic of the loss of thought and as a result the loss of the ability to associate a particular action with love.

In effect the story suggests that love itself is nothing more than a chemical reaction and that as logical individuals we try to justify it through other means that what it actually is. If this is so, the concept of true love itself is again proven to be nothing more than an illusion since it can be considered nothing more than a chemical and hormonal reaction rather than originating from some arbitrary and yet to be defined origin.

Faulkner, William. “Rose for Emily”.

Dahl, Roald. “Bitch”- Switch bitch”.

Joyce, James.”Araby”.

Bradstreet, Anne.“To My Dear and Loving Husband”

Millay, Edna.“Love Is Not All”

• A Shared Theme between Two Works
• Measuring the Depth of Despair: When There Is no Point in Living
• Critique for ‘A Rose for Emily’
• Iago’s Character as Embodiment of the Darker Side Which All the People Have
• Grotesque in "A Rose for Emily" by W. Faulkner
• Franz Kafka’s ‘The Metamorphosis’ and Joseph Conrad’s ‘The Heart of Darkness’. Theme Analysis
• Coming-of-Age Fiction: "The Bell Jar" by Sylvia Plath
• Langston Hughes’ I, Too, Sing America and Nikki Giovanni’s Ego Tripping: Analysis of Two Poems
• “The Lesson” and “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”
• ‘Out, Out’ by Robert Frost: Themes of Moving On and Sorrow
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

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My Last Duchess and La Belle Dame Sans Merci Comparison

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My Last Shopping List for Him

For exhuming my husband’s bones, I was told to bring a bottle of red wine, chlorine, powdered soap and a white bedsheet.

By Amalia Melis

Even in death, your teeth are perfect.

I stand next to your open grave almost six years after you left me. The gravedigger stands across from me, waiting. I accuse him of having deliberately removed your bones without waiting for me to be here, because I see nothing but dirt in the pit.

Eftyhios says, “No, he is here, look."

In Greek, “Eftyhios” means joy, happiness. This gravedigger has worked in this Athens cemetery for more than 20 years; he knows his decomposed bones. I give him the bottle of red wine, chlorine, powdered soap and white bedsheet I was asked to buy. I cried in the supermarket with such a shopping list. My last one for you.

I look into the pit like a weary archaeologist, nearly missing what is right under my nose — bones laid deep in the dirt, ripped pieces of lace from inside the coffin lid, long bones where your arms were, those arms that once held me. Then I see more: a jawbone, ribs, thigh bones. Your strong thighs wrapped around me so well.

Words once flowed from that jawbone, kisses and goodbyes at airports, ferry docks, comforting murmurs as we drifted off to sleep. For 30 years I listened to you speak, but I cannot remember your voice now as I stand numb beside your grave.

When we bury our loved ones in Greece, tradition requires that we exhume the bones after three years for lack of space; it’s rare to get a two- or three-year extension. I used every excuse to delay it. I told the authorities about relatives who could not travel from New York to be with me for my first time experiencing this upsetting occasion, or my elderly parents who could not be left alone in Andros and needed me to take care of them. All true. And they worked for a while. I paid steep fees to keep you where you were.

But the pandemic created an urgent need for gravesites. The cemetery was running out of room. And I no longer could delay making this site available for someone else.

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Essay on My Last Birthday Celebration

Students are often asked to write an essay on My Last Birthday Celebration in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

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100 Words Essay on My Last Birthday Celebration

Introduction.

My last birthday was a special day. I woke up to the sound of my family singing ‘Happy Birthday’.

The Surprise

I entered the living room and was surprised to see it decorated with balloons and streamers. A large chocolate cake was waiting for me.

Gifts and Games

I received wonderful gifts from everyone. We played many fun games, which made the day even more exciting.

This birthday was memorable because of the love and joy shared. I eagerly await my next birthday to create more such memories.

250 Words Essay on My Last Birthday Celebration

The day began with a surprise orchestrated by my closest friends. They had organized a virtual gathering due to the pandemic, bringing together people from different phases of my life. The surprise lay not just in the event, but in the realization of how technology could bridge the physical distances and foster a sense of togetherness.

The gifts I received were not just materialistic but also emotional. The most memorable one was a video montage of my friends and family sharing their heartfelt messages. It was a gift that reflected the bonds I have nurtured over the years.

Reflections and Realizations

This birthday was not merely a celebration but also a day of introspection. I found myself reflecting on my past and contemplating my future. It was a reminder of my accomplishments, failures, and the lessons learned. It made me realize the transient nature of life and the importance of cherishing every moment.

My last birthday celebration was a unique blend of joy, surprise, and introspection. It was not just a day of receiving gifts, but a day of acknowledging the journey I have embarked on. It was a celebration of life, love, and the person I am becoming. In essence, it was a day that made me value the beauty of relationships and the importance of self-reflection.

500 Words Essay on My Last Birthday Celebration

Birthdays are personal milestones that mark another year of growth, experiences, and achievements. My last birthday celebration was a remarkable event that left an indelible impression on my mind. This was not only because of the jubilant atmosphere but also the deeper realization of the significance of life and relationships.

The Preparations

The celebration.

The day of the celebration arrived, brimming with joy and excitement. As the clock struck midnight, my family gathered around to surprise me with a beautiful cake. The warmth of their love and affection was palpable. The day continued with a series of surprises, including thoughtful gifts and heartwarming wishes from my loved ones.

In the evening, the guests started to arrive. The house buzzed with laughter, conversations, and the clinking of glasses. The air was filled with the aroma of delectable food, adding to the overall merriment. The highlight of the evening was the cake-cutting ceremony, followed by a toast to life, love, and happiness.

Reflections

Lessons learned.

The birthday celebration taught me a valuable lesson about the essence of life. It made me understand that life is not just about the number of years we live, but about the experiences we gather and the relationships we nurture. It emphasized the importance of celebrating not just our existence, but also our journey and the people who make it worthwhile.

My last birthday celebration was more than just a party; it was a celebration of life, relationships, and personal growth. It was a day filled with joy, love, and introspection. As I look forward to the coming years, I carry with me the lessons learned and the memories made, ready to embrace whatever life has in store. As another year unfolds, I am reminded to cherish every moment, appreciate the people in my life, and celebrate the journey that is life.

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