The Last Duchess: The Objectification And Subjugation Of Women
A common interpretation of The Last Duchess centers on the idea of the objectification and subjugation of women. We can see that the Duke judges the value of a living woman by referring to the Duchess as "painted on the wall... There she stands as if alive.” He attempts to identify his wife with the painting, due to the fact that the Duchess is no longer there, physically with him, the painting is enough for the Duke and also makes her a lot easier to control. He also refers to the painting of his wife as a “piece” which further supports the idea of objectification. When the Duke says, “I call that piece a wonder now”, it begs the question of why he suddenly decided to change his assessment of the picture, only now judging it to be a wonder?
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In Victorian society, men are put in control over women under most circumstances. Robert Browning shows how men’s constant dependency on their power over women has as a result, weakened them. He uses the dysfunctional relationship between the Duke and the Duchess to illustrate Victorian men's obsession with domination. In this interpretation, one would argue that the Duke feels he has taken back his control once he kills the Duchess. Nevertheless, from the reader's point of view, the Duke is a little boy craving for attention. Stefan Hawlin, a professor at the University of Buckingham, points out that the Duke feels a sense of "absolute control" because the reader and the count do not know the Duchess's side of the story. According to Dr. A. Chandra Bose, a professor at Madura College, My Last Duchess is a “dramatic monologue which deals with the dispirited Duke who kills his wife in order to gain control over her. He does not give any chance to the Duchess through which she may clarify herself” (3). Bose writes “While Duchess was alive, the Duke wanted to control her so much that his happiness depended on the Duchess conforming to his will. The Duke wants to rule the Duchess in every way. The Duke wanted her smiles, laughter, and joy to be directed only toward him” (3). Furthermore, we soon become aware that the Duke hires a monk to paint the
In Victorian society, men are put in control over women under most circumstances. Robert Browning shows how men’s constant dependency on their power over women has as a result, weakened them. He uses the dysfunctional relationship between the Duke and the Duchess to illustrate Victorian men's obsession with domination. In this interpretation, one would argue that the Duke feels he has taken back his control once he kills the Duchess. Nevertheless, from the reader's point of view, the Duke is a little boy craving for attention. Stefan Hawlin, a professor at the University of Buckingham, points out that the Duke feels a sense of "absolute control" because the reader and the count do not know the Duchess's side of the story. According to Dr. A. Chandra Bose, a professor at Madura College, My Last Duchess is a “dramatic monologue which deals with the dispirited Duke who kills his wife in order to gain control over her. He does not give any chance to the Duchess through which she may clarify herself” (3). Bose writes “While Duchess was alive, the Duke wanted to control her so much that his happiness depended on the Duchess conforming to his will. The Duke wants to rule the Duchess in every way. The Duke wanted her smiles, laughter, and joy to be directed only toward him” (3). Furthermore, we soon become aware that the Duke hires a monk to paint the