I read “My last Dutchess” and at first I did find it hard to “complete” the poem but after going over it in class I was able to understand it better, The poem is about a manipulative Duke that killed his wife because he wasn’t able to control her and acts like or tries to hide that he didn’t.
I was able to “complete” the poem because I found clues left by the author to help me grasp the Duke’s character and understand that he was lying and was an abusive husband, as he talked about that it was inevitable that she would be killed because she flirted with the painted, and how she was easy to please and blushed alot. All these clues led to me being able to understand that he killed her.
One thought on “Denzel Usiagwu Discussion 4”
Denzel, I agree that “My Last Duchess” by Robert Browning is a difficult poem to “complete.” The author begins the poem with the speaker showing his visitor a portrait of his last duchess that he keeps hidden behind a curtain. The visitor notices the emotion in the duchess’ expression, and the speaker goes on to describe how amiable the duchess was. He described with distaste how she would treat other men with the same care as she treated her husband. Then, the reader must must “complete” the idea that the husband had the duchess killed. At the end of the poem, one can gather that the visitor works for a Count whose daughter the Duke wants to marry. This part really surprised me. Were you also surprised the Duke would be telling all of this to a visitor in such position?