After murdering Porphyria, the speaker believes that he did the right thing: “And all night long we have not stirred, / And yet God has not said a word!” (59-60). He suspects that if it was really so wrong to kill Porphyria, then why would God do nothing? Surely he would punish the speaker. Or maybe God would prevent Porphyria from going to his house in the first place. Perhaps that was the purpose of the raging storm. With no punishment from God, the speaker interprets that his murder was acceptable. He uses God’s silence to justify his actions so the guilt does not manifest. Similarly, the Duke also does not feel guilt after murdering his wife. He felt no guilt as he thought there was no other way to fix their problems:
—and if she let
Herself be lessoned so, nor plainly set …show more content…
(39-43)
The Duke is certain that telling her about his issues with her would not have done any good as she would have argued about it, and he refused to argue with her. For this reason, he concludes that the best punishment to establish his dominance and stop his wife was to kill her. The Duke does not feel guilty for his actions because he figures that since he has the power in the house and she disrespected his authority, she is subject to any punishment he sees fit as ruler. Most important is the nature of the love that caused both of the men to end the lives of the women. For instance, Porphyria’s partner kills her because he is too in love with her. He knows she has greater affairs, and is upset by the thought that she does not love him enough to break free from them. When he finally realizes Porphyria loves him just as much, he is overjoyed:
Be sure I looked up at her eyes Happy and proud; at last I knew
Porphyria worshipped me:
—and if she let
Herself be lessoned so, nor plainly set …show more content…
(39-43)
The Duke is certain that telling her about his issues with her would not have done any good as she would have argued about it, and he refused to argue with her. For this reason, he concludes that the best punishment to establish his dominance and stop his wife was to kill her. The Duke does not feel guilty for his actions because he figures that since he has the power in the house and she disrespected his authority, she is subject to any punishment he sees fit as ruler. Most important is the nature of the love that caused both of the men to end the lives of the women. For instance, Porphyria’s partner kills her because he is too in love with her. He knows she has greater affairs, and is upset by the thought that she does not love him enough to break free from them. When he finally realizes Porphyria loves him just as much, he is overjoyed:
Be sure I looked up at her eyes Happy and proud; at last I knew
Porphyria worshipped me: