My Last Duchess And Porphyria's Lover

Every single human being is shape by his or her personal desires in life. Desires constantly influence people’s characteristics in both positive and negative ways. Likewise, many authors and poets create their based on internal ambitions of a person. Often times, their messages portray how people can act a certain ways motivated by desires. For example, Robert Herrick uses a Carpe diem theme to express his desires in “To the Virgin, to Make Much of Time.” Moreover, Robert Browning expresses personal desires in “My Last Duchess” and “Porphyria’s Lover” using dramatic monologue. As shown in these texts, desires negatively affect people according to a priest’s motivation for women to pursue marriage, a Duke’s killing of his Duchess, and a lover’s
He utilizes dramatic monologue to portray the poem from the perspective of a Porphyria’s lover. The poem begins with the speaker sitting alone in the house one stormy night, but the atmosphere suddenly changes when Porphyria visits him, sacrificing social expectation. His inner desire provokes when he realized she loves him. Browning expresses, “That moment she was mine, mine, fair, / Perfectly pure and good; I found / A thing to do, and all her hair / In one long yellow string I would / Three times her little throat around, / And strangle her” (Browning 36-41). In these lines, the readers get the glimpse of a lover’s affection turning into madness. Through the use of repetition, “she was mine, mine,” the readers can see that the madness driven by the desire of a Porphyria’s lover. He longs for her love and wants to preserve the moment forever. His psychotic intention further grows when he says, “Perfectly pure and good; I found/ A thing to do.” This statement uses situational irony to demonstrate that he plans to do something dreadful to her because Porphyria is a “pure” and benevolent woman. Moreover, he loses his sanity when he chokes her to death. He depicts “In one long yellow string I would / Three times her little throat around, / And strangle her.” Here, imagery is being used to illustrate how he preserves the attentive moment by murdering her. Because she sacrificed societal expectation, he fears that she might stop loving him one day due to social pressures. His desire indicates an egotistic response, which is created by taking action on his terms, rather than understanding from Porphyria’s perspective. Thus, Browning validates that a lover’s desire for love can motivate him to become a compulsive