Last Duchess Cask of Amontillado rewrite
Baudet, Charlene
Prof. Mackenzie
ENG 120
February 11, 2015
“The Cask of Amontillado” and “My Last Duchess”
In “The Cask of Amontillado,” by Edgar Allan Poe, two acquaintances, Montresor and Fortunato, are related through vengeance and murder. Poe practices deception to produce an appealing character before altering his symbolic tactic to a state of suspense. In the poem, “My Last Duchess”, by Robert Browning, the Duke of Ferrara tells the story of his last Duchess to a mysterious listener. The Duke narrates the poem causing us to wonder why the Duchess is now his “last” Duchess. “The Cask of Amontillado” also written in first person, keeps us in a state of suspense; we wait to see where Montresor will take Fortunato. Although we end up empathizing with murderers, these authors use techniques that create tension for the audience. “That’s my last Duchess painted on the wall” (1), permits us to understand that something has happened to his Duchess. Is she dead or was marriage not meant to last forever? The portrait of the Duchess is painted by Fra Pandolf and located on the wall of his private gallery. In “My Last Duchess,” the Duke shows a visitor a painting of his last wife, but the visitor comments that he doesn’t understand her expression or blush. We don’t get a sense of what setting the Duchess is in, what she’s wearing, or what the color scheme or brushstrokes are. “And seemed as they would ask me, if they durst, / How such a glance came there.” (11-13) In these few lines, we are able to comprehend that his gallery is very private, and the question of what the consequences could be if someone broke the rules is introduced. Was that why his Duchess was now his last Duchess?
The Duke portrays his former wife as a having a “spot of joy” (21) that appears in her cheek, an unintentional indication of the Duchess’s delight, in other people and nature. The Duke considers her blushing as a form of corrupted nature. Browning uses a collection of images that
Prof. Mackenzie
ENG 120
February 11, 2015
“The Cask of Amontillado” and “My Last Duchess”
In “The Cask of Amontillado,” by Edgar Allan Poe, two acquaintances, Montresor and Fortunato, are related through vengeance and murder. Poe practices deception to produce an appealing character before altering his symbolic tactic to a state of suspense. In the poem, “My Last Duchess”, by Robert Browning, the Duke of Ferrara tells the story of his last Duchess to a mysterious listener. The Duke narrates the poem causing us to wonder why the Duchess is now his “last” Duchess. “The Cask of Amontillado” also written in first person, keeps us in a state of suspense; we wait to see where Montresor will take Fortunato. Although we end up empathizing with murderers, these authors use techniques that create tension for the audience. “That’s my last Duchess painted on the wall” (1), permits us to understand that something has happened to his Duchess. Is she dead or was marriage not meant to last forever? The portrait of the Duchess is painted by Fra Pandolf and located on the wall of his private gallery. In “My Last Duchess,” the Duke shows a visitor a painting of his last wife, but the visitor comments that he doesn’t understand her expression or blush. We don’t get a sense of what setting the Duchess is in, what she’s wearing, or what the color scheme or brushstrokes are. “And seemed as they would ask me, if they durst, / How such a glance came there.” (11-13) In these few lines, we are able to comprehend that his gallery is very private, and the question of what the consequences could be if someone broke the rules is introduced. Was that why his Duchess was now his last Duchess?
The Duke portrays his former wife as a having a “spot of joy” (21) that appears in her cheek, an unintentional indication of the Duchess’s delight, in other people and nature. The Duke considers her blushing as a form of corrupted nature. Browning uses a collection of images that