Short questions from My Last Duchess
1. What type of poem is My Last Duchess?
Ans. Browning's poem "My Last Duchess" is a fine specimen of Dramatic monologue, a genre of poem in which the speaker is caught in a critical moment of delivering his speech to a silent audience but eventually it leads to the revelation of his own character and psychology.
2. Who wrote the poem and to which period of English literary history does it belong?
Ans. My Last Duchess was written by Robert Browning whose poetry is renowned for his commentary on the social life and the capturing of the psychic reality of his characters.
This poem belongs to the Victorian Age of the British literature.
3. When and where was the poem first published? Or,
What was the original title of the poem ? Where did the original title appear ?
Ans. This poem, My Last Duchess, first appeared in 1842 in Browning's collection of poems Dramatic Lyrics. In the first edition of Dramatic Lyrics the poem was entitled as 'Italy'.
4. What is Ferrara? Or, Mention the historical context of the poem. How did he contemporize it ?
Ans. The poem is preceded by the epigraph "Ferrara:", indicating that the speaker is the fifth Duke Alfonso II d'Este of Ferrara (1533–1598), who ,at the age of 24, had married Lucrezia di Cosimo de' Medici, the 13-year-old daughter of Cosimo I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany.
Browning contemporize the poem with the Victorian orthodox outlook towards woman as "the angel of the house" and thus objectified the Duchess.
5. Who is the speaker in the poem ?
Ans. The speaker in the poem is the Duke whose character is modelled on Alfonso II d'Este, the fifth Duke of Ferrara.
***6. Who is the silent audience in the poem ? What is the purpose of visit?
Ans. The unnamed emissary of the Count of Tyrol is the silent audience in the poem.
The emissary came with a prospect of marriage for the Duke with the sister of the Count of Tyrol. As historically evident her hands were sought by the Duke for marriage.
***7. "That's my Last Duchess painted on the wall"... What does this line signify?
Ans. Through this line, the Duke conflates the painting and his wife into an object of “wonder” to be possessed and shown off. Therefore, “she” is addressed as “that’s”, an object of Duke’s unquestionable authority and dominance, further consolidated by the possessive pronoun "my". The word “last,” hints at his plans for a series of wives as the emissary of the Count to bring forth a proposal of marriage along with a lucrative dowry.
***8. "Looking as if she were alive". Who said about whom? Bring out the irony of this statement.
Ans. The Duke of Ferrara, the speaker the poem 'My Last Duchess' said this about Lucrezia, his last Duchess.
This line ironically reveals the true colour of cruelty and psychological complexity of the Duke who hardly knows any difference between a human and an object. What he expects is an absolute dominance over the Duchess. But as she failed to conform to his expectations he killed her made her a "voiceless" object of his unquestionable authority and dominance.
***9. "I call / That piece a wonder"...What does the speaker call "a piece"? Why he considered it as a " wonder"?
Ans. This line ironically reveals the true colour of cruelty and psychological complexity of the Duke who hardly knows any difference between a human and an object. Inspite of using pronoun as "she" he deliberately used "its" and made her a nameless "piece" of object. He considered it as a "piece of wonder" as it looks alive, though ironically he made her die, but wants to make her alive through lifeless art so that he can possess her without having "a voice of her own".
****10. Who is Fra Pandolf?
Ans. Fra Pandolf is a fictional portrait painter who designed the portrait of the Duchess in Robert Browning's poem "My Last Duchess".Pandolf is likely inspired by the Italian early-renaissance painter, Fra Angelico.
***11. What does Neptune taming the sea horse signify?
Ans. The sculpture of Neptune taming the seahorse is a symbolic replica of the Duke's ultimate desire to dominate his wives and made them docile beings. Like Neptune, he too tamed the "voice" of his women and made them a "silent" object of art upon which he can thrust his male gaze of dominance and unquestionable authority.
