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‘My Last Duchess’ and ‘Porphyria’s Lover’ are dramatic monologues written by Robert Browning. ‘The Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms’ defines a monologue as “a single fictional or historical character other than the poet [who] speaks to a silent ‘audience’… such poems reveal not the poet’s own thoughts but the mind of the impersonated character”. The Browning’s were a very progressive poetic partnership for the time and did not share patriarchal views typical of Victorian society. Thus, it is interesting that Browning creates works where men kill women when, their relationship was in fact liberal. There does not seem to be any parallels between the poet and persona. According to Sterling (1922) the Browning’s “share a harmony of tastes and a happiness independent of external conditions”. The Browning’s evidently demonstrate their independence from the external conditions of patriarchal beliefs which pervades Victorian society. These beliefs are centred around the notion that women are subordinates to males in both society and literally works. Nevertheless, ‘Porphyria’s Lover’ and ‘My Last Duchess’ contain a dominant male protagonist who determine the fate of their partners. This is demonstrated through formal aspects of the poems which includes the rhyme scheme, the genre of the dramatic monologue and the style in which the narrator speaks.

In ‘Porphyria’s Lover’ Browning uses pathetic fallacy to set the scene and the mood of the speaker; the violent stormy weather which is observed from a cottage is a personification of his psychological state. This erratic mind does not however mirror the poems structured ABABB pattern. This rhyme structure may reflect a calm heartbeat which exposes the speaker’s composure in his violence.

Correspondingly, My Last Duchess is written in rhyming couplets in Iambic pentameter throughout. The structured heroic couplets reflect the Duke’s desire for a structured lifestyle which can only be achieved from possessing ultimate control. The Duke warns the Count when stating that “no one puts by the curtain I have drawn for you, but I” (l.9 & 10). By explicitly clarifying that the portrait can only be viewed with his consent, he immediately creates an atmosphere of tension. Later, in the monologue, we learn that the subject in the portrait is his deceased Duchess as he proclaims, “that’s my last Duchess, looking as if she were alive” (l.1 & 2). The realistic representation of the female emphasises the painter’s expertise. Perhaps Browning intentionally highlights the authenticity of the painting to present the figure of the Duchess observing the negotiator and attempting to appeal for assistance. The possessive pronoun of “my” not only highlights the objectification of the passive female but is also an indication that the Duchess has been captured and contained in the form of a painting, thus highlighting the inability of controlling a living person as opposed to a static object like a painting. Robert Langbaum argues that “Moral judgement [should] be suspended, as a measure of the price we pay for the privilege of appreciating to the full this… man” (Langbaum, cited in Bevis

2013) and thereby, depicting the Duke as a performer to which he takes pleasure in watching. This notion of the Duke being an entertainer is supported by his actions of unveiling a curtain and narrating the story of his last duchess to his audience. The Duke goes on to state “I call that piece a wonder, now: Frà Pandolf’s hands” (l.2 & 3). The Duke gains satisfaction from inanimate objects as opposed to human beings as he admires his Duchess only “now” when detained in a painting. The female subject is again reduced to an object or “piece”. This element of male ownership is a typical feature of the Victorian period. The Duke’s control over language extends further to his desire of controlling others.

According to Francis Bacon (2013) the speaker in ‘My Last Duchess’ is allegedly the sixteenth-century Duke of Ferrara (1533-1598) who espoused a woman socially subordinate to him. She died two years after being abandoned by her husband; poisoning has been suspected. The Duke in ‘My Last Duchess’ is perversely obsessive. Unable to control his wife’s actions, he ends her life. William Lyon Phelps (2016) defines a dramatic monologue as “confessional, addressed… orally… to another person or… group of listeners. These other figures… are necessary to the understanding of the monologue ”. ‘My Last Duchess’ displays no resemblance to that of a confession. The Duke uses the process of focalisation to supress some of facts (for example the events surrounding the death of the Duchess) and his motivations for doing so. The limited information provided on the Duchess’ death is hidden in the Duke’s stylized language. Using innuendos regarding murdering his wife, the reader is left to make postulations from interpreting his speech. The Duke states “she smiled, no doubt, whene’ver I passed her; but who passed without much the same smile? This grew; I gave commands; Then all smiles stopped together” (l.34-46). The glossy terminology of giving “commands” alludes to his decision of assassinating his wife. The ecstatic charm of the female epitomised in her relentlessly delighted disposition is disapproved by this overbearing man. The caesura within these lines may also be emblematic of her death. Moreover, the reader gains more information concerning the Duke’s character through the conversational elements or rather “other figures” such as the envoy. The Duke asks the envoy “will’t please you sit?” (l.5) and “will’t please you rise?” (l.47), initially appearing to be polite enquiries yet could equally be orders supplied by someone of a higher rank. This insistence of rising and sitting displays the envoy as one of the Duke’s string-puppets. The Duke’s manner therefore consists of asserting his dominance over all individuals including this envoy and his forthcoming Duchess. The conversational element of the dramatic monologue enhances our understanding of the Duke’s character.

‘Porphyria’s Lover’ is not as colloquial in language nor does it depict the same dialectical markers as ‘My Last Duchess’. This results in a more unnerving response. However, unlike the Duke who conceals his crime, Porphyria’s unnamed lover openly admits to his as he proclaims “all her hair in one long yellow string I wound three times her little throat around, and strangled her. No pain she felt; I am quite sure she felt no pain” (l.38-42). The repetition of “she felt no pain” indicates that the speaker is attempting to convince himself of just that. This vivid description of the murder creates a sense of discomfort as the reader observes the victim being mutilated in a patronising fashion. This is portrayed in the reference to her throat being “little”. Additionally, targeting the intimate area of her “throat” perhaps infers that the speaker is destroying her sexuality. The use of the anastrophe allows Browning to complete his rhymes. This forceful completion of rhymes however, reflects the unnaturalness of death. At the end of the monologue, the unnamed male seems to exempt himself from his actions as he states, “and yet God has not said a word!” (l.60). The exclamation point may be an indication of a strong sense of triumph. The subject exploits the fact that he did not receive divine intervention and by doing so he puts forward the notion that God supports his actions. The murderer mocks the readers who may have expected an element of retribution on his behalf. Armstrong (1975) argues that “Porphyria’s Lover” is “written deliberately to challenge, shock and test the responses of the unthinking reader”. The dramatic monologue can be interpreted in a shocking manner which evidently challenges the initial reading of the text. This extreme analysis of the poem will be explored forthwith.

Porphyria’s Lover can be interpreted as a tale of erotic asphyxiation. The monologue is not a confession to a murder but a confession to pre-marital sex. Monique Roffey (1993) defines erotic asphyxiation as “a method of increasing sexual excitement by restricting the oxygen supply to the brain, usually by tightening a noose around the neck”. The speaker may have substituted a noose with Porphyria’s half. He does so to increase the levels of pleasure she receives. At the same time, he also undergoes higher levels of arousal or perhaps adrenaline from engaging in rather dangerous acts during sexual intercourse. This reading is supported by the fact that after Porphyria had been strangled, her face still seemed to be vigorous. This is depicted in the following lines; “as a shut bud that holds a bee/ I wearily oped her lids: again/ laughed the blue eyes without a stain” (l.43-45). Browning uses a simile to compare Porphyria’s closed eyes to that of a closed flower “ bud” that holds a “bee” inside. Her eyes potentially having the power to wound. This focus on the unification of the two, may be a sexual metaphor concerning the bud and the bee and Porphyria and Porphyria’s lover. Moreover, Porphyria’s “blue eyes” is made a synecdoche for her entire body. Additionally, these eyes lack a “stain”. After being strangled, it would be plausible that Porphyria’s eyes would be bloodshot

yet they are not. This stain may symbolise sin and the fact that Porphyria is left stainless suggests that she has not committed an offense. Moreover, Porphyria’s Lover’ bears a resemblance to an 1818 story in Blackwood’s magazine which discusses the details of a murder case. Therefore, additional support for the erotic asphyxiation reading is seen in the disparities between the speaker’s intense account of Porphyria’s form as well as those of the lovers in Blackwood. The eyes of the lifeless woman in Blackwood’s are blue, but unlike Porphyria’s are “dim”, with an expression “fixed as ice” (Mason, cited in Armstrong 1974).

In conclusion, the formal aspects which consist of the dramatic monologue, the style and manner of the speaker and the rhyme scheme all suggest a deeper meaning. The dramatic monologue, for instance, offers a more conversational tone to the poem which allows for the stream of ideas to be transmitted to the audience. Nevertheless, we learn through these formal aspects that the controlling protagonist has full control over the female’s life.

Bibliography Armstrong, I.A. (1974) Robert Browning. London: G. Bell and Sons. Armstrong, I.A (1975) Robert Browning (Writers and their background). Ohio: Ohio University Press Bacon, F.B. (2013) Letters and life of Francis Bacon. Princeton: Longman, Green, Longman and Roberts. Bevis, M.B (2013) The Oxford Handbook of Victorian Poetry. Oxford: OUP Oxford Phelps, W.P (2016) Robert Browning: How to Know Him. Worcestershire: Read Books Ltd Roffey, M.R. (1993) Health: When masturbation can be fatal: The practice of auto-erotic asphyxia. Available at: URL (http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/healthwhen-masturbation-can-be-fatal-the-practice-of-auto-erotic-asphyxia-is-often-concealed-by-a1484619.html) (Accessed: 29/05/2017) Stirling, A. M. W. (1922) William De Morgan and His Wife. London; Thornton Butterworth. pp.201-2 The Poetry Foundation (2017). Porphyria’s Lover by Robert Browning. Available at: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems-and-poets/poems/detail/46313 (Accessed: (29/05/17) The Poetry Foundation. (2017). My Last Duchess by Robert Browning. Available at: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems-and-poets/poems/detail/43768 (Accessed: 29/05/2017). Miles, R.M. (2013) Victorian Poetry in Context. London: A&C Black...