Starter quiz
- What complaints did the Duke have about the Duchess in 'My Last Duchess'?
- she wore immodest clothing
- she rode mules
- she did not have generational wealth
- she blushed and smiled at many things ✓
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- The Duke in 'My Last Duchess' is shocked at how the Duchess did not feel indebted to him based on his “gift” of…
- beautiful animals.
- acres of land.
- jewels.
- high status and reputation. ✓
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- In the line “she liked whatever she looked on and her looks went everywhere”, from 'My Last Duchess' the Duke seems…
- content
- jealous ✓
- infatuated
- insecure ✓
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- How does the Duke in 'My Last Duchess' seek to present himself as a powerful man?
- He divorces his wife.
- He gifts his wife lots of expensive things.
- He controls the curtain that shields his late wife's portrait. ✓
- He shows off his status through art. ✓
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- How many narrative perspectives are there in 'My Last Duchess' and why is this significant?
- one: it leads us to question the reliability of the Duke's story ✓
- two: we get a fair depiction of the Duke and Duchess' relationship
- three: we hear the Duke's new wife's reservations too
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- Why might Browning, a Victorian poet, have set his poem 'My Last Duchess' in the Italian Renaissance?
- he enjoyed the rich history of Italy
- it disguises his critique of the time and place he lived in ✓
- his wife was Italian
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Exit quiz
- What is similar about the first four and last four lines of 'My Last Duchess'?
- They both speak of the Duchess' horrific death.
- They both speak of the Duchess' promiscuous behaviour.
- They both reference the Duke's artwork. ✓
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- Why is it significant that the Duke has a painting made of his late wife in 'My Last Duchess'?
- It symbolises how he loved her as he wanted to immortalise her.
- It symbolises how he perceives her as a possession. ✓
- It symbolises how beautiful she was .
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- Look at the following quotation from 'My Last Duchess': "(since none puts by/the curtain that I have drawn for you, but I)." What does this show?
- This shows the Duke boasting about the control he has over his late wife. ✓
- This shows the Duke boasting about the expensive materials in his house.
- This shows the Duke accusing his wife of infidelity.
- This shows how protective the Duke was over his wife.
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- Arguably, what does the use of enjambment in the poem 'My Last Duchess' emphasise?
- the Duke's hidden love for his wife
- the Duke's inability to control his rage ✓
- the Duchess' promiscuous behaviour
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- The use of rhyming couplets throughout 'My Last Duchess' may reflect…
- the Duke’s deteriorating mental health.
- the Duke’s need to exert strict control over his wife. ✓
- the Duke’s mourning.
- the Duchess’ promiscuity.
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- In 'My Last Duchess' one could argue that the Duke fails to control the Duchess even in her death as...
- many people sneak a look at her portrait.
- the ''spot of joy'' is a mark of her defiance present in the portrait. ✓
- the Duke struggles to open the curtain shielding the portrait.
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Worksheet
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Presentation
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Video
Lesson Details
Key learning points
- Browning uses art to symbolise the Duke’s craving for power and control.
- By using the form of a dramatic monologue and rhyming couplets, Browning reflects the Duke’s desire for total control.
- Enjambment reveals a single person’s capacity to be carried away by passions and anger, subtly revealing instability.
- Ironically, through his craving for control and power, the Duke reveals himself to be powerless.
- Browning exposing the Duke as powerless and insecure may reflect his critique of patriarchal Victorian society.
Common misconception
The Duke's presentation of himself is of absolute power.
If you look deeper into Browning's presentation of the Duke, he is revealed to lack power.
Keywords
Objectify - to treat a person like a tool or a toy and deny them their emotions
Despot - a person who has absolute power and exerts it in a cruel or oppressive way
Expose - to show what has been covered or hidden
Irony - when something that was intended to have a particular result actually has the opposite result
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