Analysis of the poem, “My Last Duchess” in the Psychoanalytical Framework

A POEM BY POET OF THE VICTORIAN AGE , ROBERT.D.BROWNING

SETTING OF THE POEM

Setting of the poem is a private art gallery in the palace of the Duke of Ferrara in mid-sixteenth-century Renaissance Italy.

SPEAKER OF THE POEM

Analysis and summary of the poem, “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. Browning helps us understand these details with his illustrative irony he employed in the poem….contd

At the outset, 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

His tone grows harsh as he recollects how both human and nature could impress her, for which he was humiliated since she ignored his "nine-hundred-years-old" family name and lineage. Refusing to stoop to "lesson" her on her unacceptable love of everything, he instead "gave commands" to have her killed.

The duke ends his story by asking 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. And on their descent he points out a bronze bust of the god Neptune in his collection.

Psychoanalytical framework of the poemThe Pyschological element is reflected in the poem when the Duke intends to flatter the Count's envoy by giving him the privilege of beholding what he regards as an extraordinarily beautiful work of art.  Browning's psychopathic Duke finds satisfaction only in manipulating and controlling others, the outward and visible signs of his imposing his will being wealth and what wealth enables him to purchase. Browning said that the Duke used his wife's supposed shallowness as an excuse--mainly to himself--for taking revenge on one who had unwittingly wounded his absurdly pretentious vanity, by failing to recognize his superiority in even the most trifling matters.  The statue of Neptune is a psychological projection of the Duke himself as both enjoy dominating what is beautiful, delicate, feminine, and natural.

My Last Duchess," published in 1842, is undisputedly 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. He can be identified as a monster, since he had his wife murdered thus committing a fairly innocuous crime.

And yet he is impressively charming, both in his use of language and his affable address. He is remarkably a moral man nevertheless has a lovely sense of beauty and he is an adept in engaging his listener. In fact, the duke's excessive demand for control ultimately comes across as a striking contrast to his character. The most revealing example of this is the murder of his wife. Her crime could be barely perceived 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 compelled to murder by her refusal to save her happy glances exclusively for him. 

To some extent, the duke's amorality can be understood in terms of aristocracy. 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 such as compromise or discussion. Instead, when she violates his sense of entitlement, he gives commands to kill her. 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 relies on a representation of her. In other words, he has chosen to love the ideal image of her rather than the reality. 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.

REFERENCES

1. Berman, R. J. Browning's Duke. New York: Richards Rosen Press, 1972.2. Corsan, Hiram. An Introduction to the Study of Robert Browning's Poetry. Boston: D. C. Heath, 1889.3. Fotheringham, James. Studies in the Poetry of Robert Browning. London: Kegan, Paul, and Trench, 1887.4. Harmon, William, and C. Hugh Holman. A Handbook to Literature. 8th edn. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1999.5. Jack, Ian. Browning's Major Poetry. Oxford: Clarendon, 1973.6. , B. R. "Browning's Witless Duke." Modern Language Association Journal, June 1957: 488-493.7. Mitchell, Domhnall. "Browning's 'My Last Duchess'." Explicator 50, 2 (Winter 1992) : 74-75.8. Palmer, George H. "The Monologue of Browning." Harvard Theological Review, XI, 2(April 1918) : 121-144.9 Poems in English 1530-1940, ed. David Daiches. New York: Ronald, 1950. Pp. 462-463.10. Robert Browning The Poems, Volume One. Ed. John Pettigrew and Thomas J. Collins. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1981. Pp. 349-350.11.Shaw, David W. "Browning's Duke as Theatrical Producer." Victorian Newsletter 29 (Spring 1966): 18-22.12. Tucker, F. Herbert, Jr. Browning's Beginnings: The Art of Disclosure. Minneapolis: U. Minnesota Press, 1980.13. Victorian Poetry and Poetics. Ed. Walter E. Houghton and G. Robert Stange. Boston: Riverside, 1959. Pp. 179-180.14.Browning: Poems Summary and Analysis of "My Last Duchess, www.gradesaver.com15. Applying Modern Critical Theory to Robert Browning's "My Last Duchess"Philip V. Allingham, Contributing Editor, Victorian Web; Faculty of Education, Lakehead University, Thunder Bay, Ontario