Both Jones and Browning’s Duke Ferrera argue with the idea that a patriarch is needed because women and wives need to be dominated in order for men to maintain their authority.įig. The Duke shows this overwhelming sense of insecurity in his monologue when he says, “Too easily impressed she liked whate’er she looked on, and her looks went everywhere” (Browning 23, 24). Just as this painting depicts Nimue as seductive, the Duke attempts to portray his former wife in the same light. This image closely relates to the theme of power seen in “My Last Duchess” because the Duke feared the instability he had in his marriage and his failed attempts to “tame” and control her. This painting sums up a common Victorian patriarchal argument: that women should remain weak and submissive because women’s intelligence is a hindrance to society. It’s easy to see in the painting that the idea of women with knowledge is dangerous here, and is seemingly harmful to society. However, in this painting, Nimue also has snakes running through her hair- which could be in reference to the mythological being, Medusa. Her figure completely overbears that of Merlin, showing her superiority in the painting. In this painting, Merlin is lying helplessly while Nimue towers above him. In this painting by Edward Burne-Jones, it is based on "the Beguiling of Merlin", a cautionary tale because Nimue refuses to become Merlin’s lover until he teaches her sorcery and magic, but yet when he does, she uses her newfound powers against him and starts a cycle of events that destroy Camelot. "The Beguiling of Merlin." Daily Art Magazine, "Browning's MY LAST DUCHESS." Explicator, vol. Each of the illustrations are from painters in the 18th century to early 19th century, and includes propaganda as well as a drawing book that was common for women in the 18th century.īrowning, Robert. The images below explore the idea of Victorian women gender roles in Victorian society as it relates to patriarchy, sexuality, and feminism. In relation to the attention that the last Duchess received, Miller reveals, “given the poem’s social milieu, such verbal liberties with a Duke’s wife would be unthinkable unless some encouragement prompted them” (Miller 32). Miller also examines the social aspects of Victorian life as a way to argue that the Duke’s ego is not only self-fed but encouraged by society as well. The idea of male superiority is infused into the personal beliefs of the Duke as well as many other male Victorian’s in that time period leading to the struggle of patriarchy and women’s fight for human rights and power in society. Michael Miller uses the “My Last Duchess” monologue to explore the Duke’s jealous nature and possessive qualities in his article, “Browning’s “My Last Duchess.”” According to Miller, “the Duke’s account of the presence of the spot of joy in the portrait does not condemn his Duchess to a moral position tending to excuse his actions toward her, but instead reinforces the poem’s greatest achievement: the delineation of an ego…” (Miller 33). The Duke’s former wife’s character is revealed in the monologue through the Duke’s story to the messenger and plays a crucial role in the presumed way a typical woman lived during the Victorian Era. In this exhibit, focus will be placed on the Duke’s former wife specifically - and women’s roles during this time period and how it impacted their livelihood due to the patriarchal society they lived in. In this poem, the Duke reveals common beliefs in society during the Victorian Era that women are objects to be controlled, possessed, and then thrown away when there is no more use. “My Last Duchess” is a dramatic monologue in which a Duke is telling the messenger of his potential future wife about his previous wife’s passing.
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