VICTORIAN
ERA
Victorianism
was a 19th century cultural movement associated with middle-class culture. The
dominant cultures of Great Britain and the United States in the 19th century put
a good deal of emphasis on refinement, propriety, restraint, and sexual
prudishness. This cultural phenomenon, although named for England's Queen
Victoria, may have actually been stronger in the United States, where the
middle classes were larger and more dominant in society. Queen Victorian, who
ruled Great Britain for much of the 19th century, was widowed relatively early
and never remarried, and her behavior, dress, and demeanor set the tone for
England culturally for much of the century.
The expression "Victorian" today is actually what most people
mean when they say "Puritanical" — the Puritans of the 17th and 18th
century were actually a very earthy people, with no problem talking about sex,
or bodily functions. (http://www.loyno.edu/~seduffy/victorianism.html)
Victorianism
was one of the cultural movements that separates us from the 18th century and
earlier — we're still the heirs of them, and in some ways still trying to
overcome their prudish ways. Victorian
culture elevated women, but as ideals of the domestic sphere: the "cult of
domesticity" put women "on a pedestal." As a cultural movement of the middle class,
Victorianism was defined partly by what it was not — it was opposed to both the
debauchery which the middle classes associated with traditional aristocratic
behavior, and to the sordid and squalid ways of life which the middle classes
saw in the immigrant poor's tenements. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorian_era)
Discoveries
by Charles Lyell and Charles Darwin began to question centuries of assumptions
about man and the world, about science and history, and, finally, about
religion and philosophy. As the country grew increasingly connected by an
expansive network of railway lines, small, previously isolated communities were
exposed and entire economies shifted as cities became more and more accessible.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorian_era)
The
Victorian movement fit very well with the glorification of
"civilization," meaning
White, Western ways, which was a large part of the imperialist movement of the
end of the century (Victorian attitudes show up very clearly, for example, in
the British behaviour in India, where English women wore layers of clothing and
petticoats despite the tropical heat). Victorian behaviour has since been much
mocked — these are the folks who put skirts on their tables so that men
wouldn't get offended or aroused by the naked table legs — but the Victorians
themselves saw themselves as the very essence of civilization, and believed
their rational and restrained culture had a good deal to teach the rest of the
world. (http://www.loyno.edu/~seduffy/victorianism.html)
The period
is often characterised as a long period of peace and economic, colonial, and
industrial consolidation, temporarily disrupted by the Crimean War, although
Britain was at war every year during this period. Towards the end of the
century, the policies of New Imperialism led to increasing colonial conflicts
and eventually the Boer War. Domestically, the agenda was increasingly liberal
with a number of shifts in the direction of gradual political reform and the
widening of the franchise. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorian_era)
VICTORIAN
POETRY
Victorian
poetry is so defined because it was written predominantly in England during the
reign of Victoria (1837-1901), a long period of magnificent achievement. (http://thecriticalpoet.tripod.com/victorian.htm)
This period
is characterized by intense and prolific activity in literature, especially by
novelists and poets, philosophers and essayists. Dramatists of any note are
few.
As with all
the literature of the Victorian era, much of the poetry of the day was
concerned with contemporary social problems. Change, rather than stability,
came to be accepted for the first time as normal in the nature of human
outlook. Culturally and in
many ways
socially, the Victorian period saw the outset and display of the problems which
the 20th century had to solve. Victorian Poetry, which can be classified as
Early (1837-51), Mid (1851-70) and Late (1870-1901), saw the progress in poetic
sensibility from the Romantic Era to the Modernist Era. (http://thecriticalpoet.tripod.com/victorian.htm)
The Sonnet
was a popular form in Victorian poetry, notably in the work of Christina
Rossetti, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, and Elizabeth Barrett Browning. Gerard Manley
Hopkins experimented very boldly in the form, and produced some of his best
work in what he claimed to be sonnets, though they are often scarcely
recognizable as such. (http://thecriticalpoet.tripod.com/victorian.htm)
Poets in the
Victorian period were to some extent influenced by the Romantic Poets such as
Keats, William Blake, Shelley and W.Wordsworth. Wordsworth was Poet Laureate
until 1850 so can be viewed as a bridge between the Romantic period and the
Victorian period. Wordsworth was succeeded by Lord Tennyson, Queen Victoria's
favourite poet. (http://www.poetseers.org/the_great_poets/victorian_poets)
Victorian
Poetry was an important period in the history of poetry, providing the link
between the Romantic movement and the modernist movement of the 20th Century.
It is not always possible to neatly categorise poets in these broad movements.
For example Gerard Manley Hopkins is often cited as an example of a poet who
maintained much of the Romantics sensibility in his writings. (http://www.poetseers.org/the_great_poets/victorian_poets)
MY
AUTHOR: ROBERT BROWNING
Robert
Browning was born on May 7, 1812, in Camberwell (a suburb of London), the first
child of Robert and Sarah Anna Browning. (http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/rb/rbbio.html)
He was an
extremely bright child and a voracious reader (he read through all fifty
volumes of the Biographie Universelle ) and learned Latin, Greek, French and
Italian by the time he was fourteen. He attended the University of London in
1828, the first year it opened, but left in discontent to pursue his own
reading at his own pace. This somewhat idiosyncratic but extensive education
has led to difficulties for his readers: he did not always realize how obscure
were his references and allusions. (http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/rb/rbbio.html)
Browning
became an admiror of Elizabeth's Barretts poetry in 1844. He began
corresponding with her by letter. This was the start of one of the world's most
famous romances. Their courtship lasted until 1846 when they were married. The
couple moved to Italy that same year and had a son, Pen, later in 1849.
Browning did not become recognized as a poet, until after Elizabeth's death in
1861. After which, he was honored for the rest of his life as a literary
figure. (http://www.poetseers.org/the_great_poets/british_poets/robert)
Browning is
perhaps best-known for his dramatic monologue technique. In his monologues, he
spoke in the voice of an imaginary or historical character. Robert had a
fondness for people who lived during the Renaissance. Most of his monologues
portray persons at dramatic moments in their lives. (http://www.cswnet.com/~erin/rbbio.htm)
THE
POEM: MY LAST DUCHESS
Ferrara
That's my
last Duchess painted on the wall,
Looking as
if she were alive. I call
That piece a
wonder, now: Frà Pandolf's hands
Worked
busily a day, and there she stands.
Will't
please you sit and look at her? I said
"Frà
Pandolf" by design, for never read
Strangers
like you that pictured countenance,
The depth
and passion of its earnest glance,
But to
myselfthey turned (since none puts by
The curtain
I have drawn for you, but I) 10
And seemed
as they would ask me, if they durst,
How such a
glance came there; so, not the first
Are you to
turn and ask thus. Sir, 'twas not
Her
husband's presence only, called that spot
Of joy into
the Duchess' cheek: perhaps
Frà Pandolf
chanced to say "Her mantle laps
Over my
Lady's wrist too much," or "Paint
Must never hope
to reproduce the faint
Half-flush
that dies along her throat": such stuff
Was
courtesy, she thought, and cause enough 20
For calling
up that spot of joy. She had
A heart —
how shall I say? — too soon made glad,
Too easily
impressed; she liked whate'er
She looked
on, and her looks went everywhere.
Sir, 'twas
all one! My favour at her breast,
The dropping
of the daylight in the West,
The bough of
cherries some officious fool
Broke in the
orchard for her, the white mule
She rode
with round the terrace — all and each
Would draw
from her alike the approving speech,
30
Or blush, at
least. She thanked men, — good! but thanked
Somehow — I
know not how — as if she ranked
My gift of a
nine-hundred-years-old name
With
anybody's gift. Who'd stoop to blame
This sort of
trifling? Even had you skill
In speech —
(which I have not) — to make your will
Quite clear
to such an one, and say, "Just this
Or that in
you disgusts me; here you miss,
Or there
exceed the mark" — and if she let
Herself be
lessoned so, nor plainly set 40
Her wits to
yours, forsooth, and made excuse,
--E'en then
would be some stooping, and I choose
Never to
stoop. Oh sir, she smiled, no doubt,
Whene'er I
passed her; but who passed without
Much the same
smile? This grew; I gave commands;
Then all
smiles stopped together. There she stands
As if alive.
Will't please you rise? We'll meet
The company
below, then. I repeat,
The Count
your master's known munificence
Is ample
warrant that no just pretence 50
Of mine for
dowry will be disallowed;
Though his
fair daughter's self, as I avowed
At starting,
is my object. Nay, we'll go
Together
down, sir. Notice Neptune, though,
Taming a
sea-horse, thought a rarity,
Which Claus
of Innsbruck cast in bronze for me!
(http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/rb/duchess.html)
ANALYSIS
AND RELATION WITH ROMANTICISM
My Last
Duchess’ is a poem by Robert Browning, frequently anthologized as an
outstanding example of the dramatic monologue. It first appeared in 1842 in
Browning’s Dramatic Lyrics. This poem is based on the life of Alfonso II, duke
of Ferrara in the sixteenth century. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Last_Duchess)
The theme is
the arrogant, authoritarian mindset of a proud Renaissance duke. In this
respect, the more important portrait in the poem is one the duke ‘paints’ of
himself with his words.
Many writers
now felt that in order to provoke an emotional reaction they had to compete
with the turmoils and excitements of everyday life, had to shock their audience
in even more novel and sensational ways. Thus violence became a sort of
aesthetic choice for many writers, among them Robert Browning. In many of his
poems, violence, along with sex, becomes the symbol of the modern urban-dwelling
condition. Violence of Browning’s
includes ‘Porphyria’s Lover’ and ‘My Last Duchess’ reflect this notion.
This poem is
loosely based on historical events involving Alfonso, the Duke of Ferrara, who
lived in the 16th century, so it is set during the Italian Renaissance. The
nature is one of the themes used by Romantics, now, in Browning’s poem we can
see that the historical setting of the poem harbors much significance: the
Italian Renaissance held a particular fascination for Browning and his
contemporaries, for it represented the flowering of the aesthetic and the human
alongside, so, the setting of this poem is in a place of flowers, plants,
trees…., nature.
The Duke is the
speaker of the poem, and he tells us he is entertaining an emissary who has
come to negotiate the Duke’s marriage (he has recently widowed) to the daughter
of another powerful marriage. As he shows the visitors through his palace, he
stops before a portrait of the late Duchess, a young and lovely girl. Then,
starts a monologue talking about this portrait, the duke also discusses his
relationship with the late countess revealing himself as a domineering husband
who regarded his beautiful wife as a mere object, a possession whose sole
mission was to please him.
Rich man is
the type of men that is talked in Romanticism. Writers use them as characters
of theirs writings. For example, the characters of the poem are: Duchess,
Emissary of the Count of Tyrol, Count of Tyrol, Daughter of the Count of Tyrol,
Frà Pandolph, Claus of Innsbruck….They are nobility. While we can see authors
like Charles Dickens using characters as D. Copperfield (poor), Browning uses
the type of character of Romanticism.
Line 1
rhymes with line 2, line 3 with 4, line 5 with 6, and so on. Pairs of rhyming
lines are called couplets. So, the poem is written in 28 rhymed couplets,
iambic pentameter prevailing, the identity of the listener not revealed until
lines 49-53 of this 56-line poem.
The lines do
not employ end-stop; rather they use enjambment. Consequently, the rhymes do
not create a sense of closure when they come, but rather remain a subtle
driving force behind the Duke’s compulsive revelations.
Browning
uses many techniques, including a simple rhyme scheme, enjambment, and caesura
to convey various characteristics and qualities about the speaker and the
situation. Browning uses an AA BB rhyme scheme, which is very common to ballads
and songs. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Last_Duchess)
A dramatic
monologue is a type of lyric poem, developed during Victorian period, in which
a character in fiction or in history delivers a speech explaining his or her
feelings, actions, or motives. The monologue is usually directed towards a
silent audience, with the speaker’s words influenced by a critical situation.
The example of a dramatic monologue exists in ‘My Last Duchess’, when a duke
speaks to an emissary of his cruelty. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dramatic_monologue)
In exploring
these issues of art and modernity, Browning uses this dramatic monologue. A
dramatic monologue is a poem with a speaker who is clearly separate from the
poet, who speaks to an implied audience that, while silent, remains clearly
present in the scene. (http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/rb/dm1.html)
The purpose
of the monologue is not so much to make a statement about its declared subject
matter, but to develop character of the speaker.
During his
discourse, the speaker makes comments that reveal information about his
personality and psyche, knowingly or unknowingly. The main focus of a dramatic
monologue is this personal information, not the topic which the speaker happens
to be discussing.
From the
speaker’s indirect allusions to the death of his wife the reader might easily
think that the speaker committed a vengeful crime out of jealousy.
One of the
most important direct influences on the development of the dramatic monologue
are the Romantic poets, so Romanticism has played an important role in
Victorianism. The novel is another direct influence on the dramatic monologue,
particularly in the novel’s emphasis on closely observed detail to reveal
character. (http://www.answers.com/topic/dramatic-monologue)
‘My Last
Duchess’ is written as a dramatic monologue: one speaker relates the entire
poem as if to another person present with him. This format suits this poem
particularly well because the speaker, taken to be the Duke of Ferrara, comes
across as being very controlling, especially in conversation. For example, he
seems jealous that he was not able to monopolize his former duchess’ smiles for
himself. He also seems to direct the actions of the person he is addressing
with comments such as: ‘Will’t please you rise?’ (47) and ‘Nay, we’ll go /
Together down, sir’ (53-54).
In my view,
the most important theme in this poem is the personal relationship. Romantics
used to use this topic, Browning inherited it. The resource he uses is the
monologue, thanks to it he explains is relationship with the ducheness.
We are going
to analyze lines that I think are important, I mean, they have a relevant
meaning.
The first
line is one of the most important: ‘That’s my last Duchess painted on the
wall’. Stress ‘That’s’ and Ferrara reduces a woman, once his spouse, to
something he casually points out, a thing on a wall. Emphasize ‘my’ and Ferrara
reveals his sense of owning her. Pause over ‘last’ and we might infer that
duchesses, to him, come in sequence, like collectibles that, if necessary,
having become obsolescent, are to be replaced. If ‘Duchess’ gets the stress, he
implies that he acquires, not just works of art, but persons; and that
Duchesses are no different from paintings.
Continue
with the first lines, Browning immediately withdraws the person from the poem,
saying directly to the envoy, and thus the reader “there’s my last Duchess
painted on the wall” (1). Only four lines later, we are politely invited to
admire the painting: “Will’t please you sit and look at her?” (5). By jumping
right into the Duke’s comments to the envoy regarding his “last” wife’s
portrait Browning effectively draws the reader in, as we are enthralled by the
Duke’s courteous demeanor.
The duke
tells the Austrian emissary that he admires the portrait of the duchess but was
exasperated with his wife while she was alive, for she devoted as much
attention to trivialities–and other men–as she did to him. He even implies that
she had affairs. In response to these affairs, he says, “I gave commands; /
“Then all [of her] smiles stopped together.” Does commands mean that he ordered
someone to kill her?.Does it mean he reprimanded her?.Does it mean he ordered
some other action?
The poem
does not provide enough information to answer these questions. Nor does it
provide enough information to determine whether the duke is lying about his
wife or exaggerating her faults. Whatever the case, research into her life has
resulted in speculation that she was poisoned. Browning himself says the duke
either ordered her murder or sent her off to a convent. (http://www.cummingsstudyguides.net/Guides3/MyLast.html)
That the
duke regarded his wife as a mere object, a possession, is clear. For example,
in Lines 2 and 3, while he and the emissary are looking at the painting, he
says, “I call that piece a wonder, now.” Piece explicitly refers to the
portrait but implicitly refers to the duchess when she was alive. Now is a
telling word in his statement: It reveals that the duchess is a wonder in the
portrait, because of the charming pose she strikes, but implies that she was
far less than a wonder when she was alive.
(http://www.cummingsstudyguides.net/Guides3/MyLast.html)
Of course,
the engaging pose the duchess strikes is not the only reason the duke prizes the
portrait. He prizes it also because the duchess is under his full control as an
image on the wall. She cannot play the coquette; she cannot protest or disobey
his commands; she cannot do anything except smile out at the duke and to anyone
else the duke allows to view the portrait.
The author
employs many literary techniques to convey the overriding jealousy, controlling
demeanor of the persona, the Duke. The poem, through the Dukes careful words,
illustrates that appearances can indeed be deceiving.
His poetic
style is influenced by Romanticism, the sentimentalism is present in the major
part of the poem. Thanks to his style, the author can transmit to the audience
an emphasis of emotions.
Thanks to
sentimentalism, we can talk about the love, the topic of the Romanticism. The
Duke creates a monologue in which we can see the passion, in my view obsession.
So, we know that this term is related with love.
CONCLUSION
The portrait
of the late Duchess of Ferrara is a fresco that symbolizes the Duke’s possessive
and controlling nature in as much as the Duchess has become an art object which
he owns and controls.
A poem like
‘My last Duchess’ calculatedly engages its readers on a psychological level.
Browning forces his reader to become involved in the poem in order to
understand it, and this adds to the fun of reading his work. It also forces the
reader to question his or her own response to the subject portrayed and the
method of its portrayal.